We just came back from our dog show in Antwerp, Belgium. Tulip was first time showing in the intermediate class and she was properly prepared - nicely shampoed and brushed and groomed, till she looked all white and fluffy and beautiful. There were only six pyrenean mountain dogs in the catalogue, two males and four females, including Tulip. I was getting ready for the female competition, but in the end, the show turned out into a nightmare, when the judge started giving inicredibly low marks to all the dogs, without any explanation. When Tulip went in, I still felt confident, she looked great. She ran nicely, she made the "arroundera" and then she even stood nicely in show position (which often is not the case for Tulip). The judge, Mr. Van den Bergh (NL) looked at her teeth, checked her dew claws, sent us running once again and finished. The result? "Good". I could not believe my ears. Again, no explanation why such disastrous result. I came out of the ring and shared the result with other pyr owners - they could not believe it either.

After the end of the judging, I went to ask Mr. Van den Bergh, if he would be so kind and told me, what were the problems of my dog, why did Tulip got such bad mark. The answer was: Tulip should be higher and have longer legs. Her head has nice feminine expression, but is too narrow and not full enough under the eyes. Tulip´s chest should be bigger and more massive. There you go!

I dared only to mention, that Tulip was actually female, but nevertheless, that´s the judgement and last but not least, Mr. Van den Bergh did not like her tail. What exactly, I am not sure, as she was the only one to carry her tail up, but I did not dare to ask more.

Here are the photos of the small, weak dog with narrow head - see for yourself and make your own opinion. I have made mine - I will make sure I do not go to a dog show judged by Mr. Van den Bergh again, unless I start breeding bullmastiffs.

Tulip´s current height is around 72cm in shoulders, weight 49 kg.