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| Anne Harvey |
Thanks to Emma Kimberly who picked me up from the airport after a ride in one of the smallest commercial planes I have ever been in! Kerry Holden who organised one of the club members, Miria Busby, to play tourist guide on a walk through the Te Apiti Manuwatu Gorge track on Saturday. I want to make special mention of the fact that in the time we spent together, Miria never once mentioned the show the next day. The walk was beautiful and the weather could not have been more perfect. And of course, my grateful thanks to Miria for not making me feel like a total novice even though we took twice as long to walk the track as she does when not she is babysitting guest judges. :o) Thanks also to Denise Grace for the lift to the airport on Monday morning and a lovely chat along the way.
The official dinner on Saturday evening was a great opportunity to relax and meet the committee and club members and socialize with fellow judges Donna, John, Janice and Lyle as well as catch up with a friend I had not seen for a long time.
And then the show on Sunday ran so smoothly. My stewards Brittany and Julie got me well organised and after some initial dancing around to work out a pattern that suited us all, we got to the main point of the day - the beautiful cats which were presented for me to judge. My scribe Marion did a great job too with marking the results in the catalogue and keeping me on track.
John Smithson has written so beautifully about some of the cats that my words seem inadequate.
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My best longhair entire cat was a beautiful red silver tabby female Maine Coon “SDGC Flurmonz Beaunka”. This lovely lady had everything in perfect balance - wonderful boning, fabulous long body and tail, and a beautiful expression too. In a breed where the Best in Show is often a male, this lady really deserves a special mention!
My best longhair entire kitten was a stunning Norwegian Forest Cat “Jaymlynkatz Renaissance”. A beautifully groomed silver tabby with white, his coat flowed beautifully as it does in this breed when you have the right texture. A lovely straight profile from tip of nose to forehead, beautifully lines to his head and a good strong chin, as well as perfectly balanced from tip of tail to his ear tips.
In the longhair neuter spay section my best cat was “GDGC Maineflame Gold Rush”, a red tabby Maine Coon boy with a wonderful temperament, beautiful expression, beautiful boxy muzzle and lovely coat. This boy begged me for the best spot in this ring and his temperament made him a pleasure to have on the bench.
My best in the longhair neuter spay kitten section was a lovely blue point Birman “Florencia Shadowfax”. A beautifully groomed boy with lovely coat texture, gloves and gauntlets very even, and clear body colour, he was winner of my best eye colour in this ring too.
And now onto my shorthairs. My best shorthair entire cat was “Ch Sashima Madagascar” a beautiful Chocolate Burmese with a glossy smooth coat, lovely eye shape, colour and expression. She had a great body too, well-muscled, well balanced and in superb condition.
My best shorthair entire kitten was “Tellassee Maiden Strawberry Fair”. A lovely name for an elegant young Lilac Point Siamese lady. Her coat texture and colour were beautiful, lovely bone structure and shape in her face and complemented by a long and elegant body and tail.
My best shorthair in the neuter spay section was a lovely Blue Bi-colour British “GDGPr Petals Blue-Bi Adonis Brevistyla”. This boy was beautifully rounded everywhere with a lovely broad chest, a broad blunt muzzle and beautiful eye shape and colour. He had a lovely dense coat and was groomed beautifully. The presentation didn't stop with the cat though, I also enjoyed the themed cage decorations!
The shorthair neuter spay kittens was a very small class but with two lovely kittens. My best was the seal Burmese baby “Sachima Coco”. A beautifully balanced little girl with sleek satiny coat and great musculature. Eye colour and shape was excellent and a really sweet profile. The Black Shaded Silver Burmilla baby “Cheron Arctic Storm” was also a beautiful example of the breed and a delight to handle.
The Domestic and Companion classes are always difficult to judge because every one of the cats has his or her own story to tell. All the cats presented for me to judge in this section were groomed beautifully and had great temperament for the show bench. I would like to be able to award multiple first placing in these sections sometimes. :o) So just a couple of special mentions here “Ka Pai Kai” is a lovely white neuter who really has show-presence and who I am sure could teach us all some things about the show scene! But I particularly loved hearing Lola's story after the show. We all love a lost kitten story with such a happy ending! And it reminds us why and perhaps how we end up spending our free time doing what we do.
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I see John dobbed us all in for choosing the Silk Cake at Café Cuba after the show! A decadent end to a busy day. :o) Good food, but better company to make it a very relaxing evening.
A huge thank you to the committee and club members for a wonderful show and for all the hard work done behind the scenes to make the show run so smoothly on the day! And again my thanks for all the little extra touches that made my trip to Palmerston North so memorable.
Anne Harvey
Australia
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