"I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Windsor Dog Show Society for inviting me to judge at their show held in the picturesque Home Park Windsor. I have to compliment the committee on running such an efficient event under very stressful conditions. With Temperatures rising to 32 degrees the committee were exceptional in providing cover for the dogs and exhibitors and ensuring all were well protected and the show flowed without any difficulties. I was made to feel very welcome and the hospitality was second to none.
I would like to thank the exhibitors for allowing me to assess your dogs. I really appreciate the efforts made in extreme temperatures to actually exhibit and it means a lot. I would also like take this opportunity to thank each and every exhibitor for their sporting acceptance of my decisions on the day.

Overall I was most impressed with the quality in our breed and with no obvious health issues that could be detrimental or cause discomfort or pain. A point I feel necessary to note is dentition. Usually when I judge I might find 8-10 dogs with dentition issues but sadly today that number was reversed and I would say that if there were 10-20 dogs with the correct dentition it would be an accurate summary. One very beautiful exhibit was badly overshot which is such a shame as the dogs other qualities are in abundance. Generally though there were a lot of crooked teeth and slightly under shot or barely even bites. I urge you all, please be vigilant to this in your breeding programs as once acceptance of these faults is allowed it’s a very hard and long road to eradicate them.

The Newfoundland is a draught dog described in the standard as the cart horse of the dog world and as such excellent front and rear assembly are of the utmost importance. I was quite shocked to see so many poorly constructed dogs and even more so many big winning dogs with completely incorrect front assemblies resulting in lack of reach and a pitter patter movement in front. This seems to becoming the norm now not just in the Newfoundland but in many of the giant and molosser breeds. In movement the Newfoundland should have great reach in front and powerful drive from the rear, this can and will only be achieved with correct front and rear assemblies. Across the world I have seen the newfoundland and indeed lots of other molosser breeds type being eradicated in the quest for flashy light movement much like a setter or pointer. There seems to be an acceptance by all rounders especially for a flashy light footed movement with short stepping prancing action. Please do not be influenced by this. This is a working dog of great substance and bone, it should never move like a setter instead it moves with slow powerful strides. A real worker built for stamina not speed. I have been fortunate to have judged this breed in a lot of countries around the world and without doubt the single biggest issue I see are poor forequarter construction so I am fanatical about this and penalised it severely here today. Many top winning dogs didn't get a higher place based on this reason alone. If we accept this type of movement as the norm then we will be saying goodbye to this breed and its characteristics that our forefathers strived to maintain. Form and function should be your blue print to work from. Last time I judged in the UK I was concerned at the number of unpigmented 3rd eyelids but I am pleased to say today I only found two.

This said I was so very impressed by the quality of the breed in the UK today and I think all those concerned should feel very proud of your dedication and commitment to this wonderful breed."