Will Crufts be on tele this year? I really missed watching the highlights last year.

Yes, on More Four

Taken from crufts website

More 4 will bring a fresh perspective to coverage of Crufts while retaining the show's popular highlights including the stories of 'hero dogs' in the Friends for Life competition and the live award of 'Best in Show'. The programming will also provide a high profile platform to inform the public about issues of health and welfare in pedigree dog breeding.

Coverage of the four-day dog show will be broadcast between 11 - 14 March with an hour long programme from Thursday to Saturday and a two-hour special on Sunday
  

I must get a new digibox then.. That is if it comes up on digital TV, i can't recall been without it for so long.

Looks like I won't see it then!  Don't have sky, digital etc.  Just the basic 4 stations.  I couldn't justify the cost of a Tv if I added up how many times I switch it on in a week.  Guess it will be the first thing to go when everyone goes digital.

Maybe they will still show it online? thats where i watched it last year...and you obviously have a computer and internet. ;-)
Wouldn't like to think people were missing it..its my first time there with a dog LOL!
Paula xx

I've missed it. I have watched it every year since I was ummmm... about 6? heaven knows. It didn't ever make me want to jump into breeding or showing dogs, but it kept my dream alive of one day having a dog of my own, in the years when I wasn't able to. If anything I loved seeing the other things aside from the showing & BIS.... agility and flyball, but I still liked seeing different breeds looking their best in the show ring, learning about what breeds there were. The times I was able to go as a visitor I couldn't get near the breed rings anyway. But I was in happy-tears the first time I saw Agility for real... something about the joy of the dogs really got to me... I felt it deeply. It's still my dream to have an agility dog, even on a non-competitive level... I waited two decades to have my own dog and chose a breed that I hoped could take part. Hasn't worked out that way but I wouldn't part with him. Would happily wait another decade to find one that can.

They could have still televised it last year without the breed rings. OK.... I know that won't sound good on a forum like this, but Crufts is not just about the showing side... they surely could have done something for people who don't show but take part in other activities, or just love dogs. I couldn't see it online either. Something was definitely missing last year, for all dog lovers... no matter what their particular niche in the dog world.

Is showing worse for the dogs than agility?
Are the agility dogs definately more healthy than show dogs?
I don't know the answers to my own questions, maybe no-one does...so why would the showing side of Crufts be less appealing to a viewing audience than the agility?
Paula

> Wouldn't like to think people were missing it..its my first time there with a dog LOL!
>

:-)  :-)  :-)

Paula - I promise to watch out for you!

> Is showing worse for the dogs than agility?

The showing side was said to be the reason why the BBC pulled out. Don't get many bulldogs in AG after all.
They were targetting pedigrees, as we all know. The side of Crufts which allows non peds and isn't breeding-based was ignored....No reason why they couldn't have televised that side of it, considering their reason to pull out was because of PDE.

Looks like I won't see it then!  Don't have sky, digital etc.  Just the basic 4 stations.  I couldn't justify the cost of a Tv if I added up how many times I switch it on in a week.

You can get a freeview box for around £20 Jean, that's all you need. :)

Are the agility dogs definately more healthy than show dogs?

Some dogs do both! There is certainly one dog of my breed, Malinois, who currently has 2 agility CCs and also was shown in the breed classes at Crufts last year AND competed in the agility there -placed in both competitions.

The showing side was said to be the reason why the BBC pulled out. Don't get many bulldogs in AG after all.
They were targetting pedigrees, as we all know.

And then what did the BBC do -they took one of the breeds they had demanded was banned from competing at Crufts so the general public would not have to see it on TV (St Bernard), portrayed it in their own program EastEnders and had it going to SHOWS there! (Gosh I miss the rolling eyes smiley!!)

> Looks like I won't see it then!  Don't have sky, digital etc.  Just the basic 4 stations.  I couldn't justify the cost of a Tv if I added up how many times I switch it on in a week.
>
> You can get a freeview box for around £20 Jean, that's all you need. :-)

We are all going to have digital soon when they do away with terestial. The switchover date here is 3rd week in March. I bought a digi box a couple of weeks before Christmas, looked at the destrucions and put it back in the box!! I suppose I will have to try installing it soon!!!

Don't worry you'll still be able to see it live online. They will be doing Crufts TV again on the Crufts website same as last year.

> Are the agility dogs definately more healthy than show dogs?
>
> Some dogs do both! There is certainly one dog of my breed, Malinois, who currently has 2 agility CCs and also was shown in the breed classes at Crufts last year AND competed in the agility there -placed in both competitions.

And there is a Pug that is a champion and also has an Agility warrant - oh no, that can't be right can it? Pugs are all unhealthy - it said so on PDE :) :)

>Don't worry you'll still be able to see it live online. They will be doing Crufts TV again on the Crufts website same as last year.

I'm really pleased to hear that.  The TV never does justice to the breed judging.  And I really enjoyed the running commentary that we had going on here of the group judging last year :-)

> Are the agility dogs definately more healthy than show dogs?
>
> Some dogs do both!

I do both with my Gordons - although not sure we will ever be at Crufts for agility LOL! 

My Cavalier girl is shown (though not up to Crufts level!) and also does fun agility, obedience and rally.

But I do love watching the agility, particularly because so many of the dogs were unwanted pets chucked out by their owners, and have now become Champions - lovely to see!

although admittedly some of the dogs that do agility are non-pedigree..not all are.
I had a lovely day watching the agility at Scotland last year, lots of Shelties, Collies and a fab Rottie if I remember rightly. So how could they have shown only the agility at Crufts as some of the dogs in the teams may have been pedigree dogs?
And agility isn't just for the super active breeds of medium size, I believe there are different size courses for the little dogs...like pugs etc.

I didn't miss crufts, I  paid for and watched it all on-line because 1) I didn't want to miss it. 2) I wanted to show my support to the thousands of HEALTHY pedigree dogs that are shown at Crufts every year!! ;-)
I'm glad changes are being made in some breeds regarding health, but I'm not sure that portraying a biased and missleading view of pedigree dogs has helped dogs in general...the back lash is  some people thinking that cross breed, non health tested dogs are the better dogs. On a well known pup website there are more of my breed crossed with some other breeds that in my opinion would make a bad mixture (both high energy etc) than full pedigree ones. very sad :-(
Why can't we have a tv show about all the breeds welfare clubs that are full of volunteers who are dealing with dogs that are being bred for money by puppy farmers and are no longer wanted. Its not only the RSPCA that are out there but they seem to be on the tv all the time.
Paula

> Looks like I won't see it then!  Don't have sky, digital etc.  Just the basic 4 stations.  I couldn't justify the cost of a Tv if I added up how many times I switch it on in a week.  Guess it will be the first thing to go when everyone goes digital.

Hi JeanSW

I have a freeview box for my tv and like you I do not watch it much. More 4 is on freeview and my digi box cost £19 from Tesco last year. I do not pay for a subscription, as I do not believe anything on TV is worth paying for.....
So before I go any further and rant about the BBC license...... lol

Thanks Polly.  I'll have a mooch round Tesco then.  :-)

I have to admit that when cuts need to be made, the TV would be the first to go.  I ponder every year whether it's really worth me renewing the license.  And what I would pay for Sky each month feeds another couple of dogs!  :-)

And what I would pay for Sky each month feeds another couple of dogs!

Would feed all of mine I think! Hence I stick to Freeview. You do get a fair few extra channels with Freeview and some of them can be worth watching -on Sky 3 (Freeview) the other day there was a programme about Endal the assistance dog. In fact there's been a few doggy programmes on Sky3.

Thanks for the info Marianne.

I love sky3 I was watching about Endal, what a fab dog! Also it's me or the dog UK and USA.

I don't have sky Tv but i would like to have it, but we make do, it would add about £30 a month on o our out goings which i would rather keep for the odd treat and take away! Freeview is the way to go.

JeanSW have a look on free sites etc as many people give them away as alot of tv's now have them built in.

I really enjoyed watching Crufts on-line last year,  I was glued to it!  We saw much more of the breed judging than just being shown the highlights when it was on the BBC.  Can't wait for it!

Snowflake

I do agility with a Golden Retriever and our club also has a SBT, a standard poodle, several labradors, a springer spaniel and a GSD who participate and one of those competes at Grade 6 level. One of the instructors had an OES who wasn't fast but thoroughly enjoyed himself and entertained the spectators :-)

I have sky plus, got the box for free. I get documentaries, music, lifestyle and culture and entertainment package. No movies kids or sports as theres no need. I pay £21 and can record whatever i want when i want, and watch it when i have the time.

I shall be going to crufts this year as it was my breeds first year last year, and i missed it. My boys half brother won bob.

Im not going to crufts this year :-(