International BMD Judges Meeting

Sunday 25th September 2022

Some attendees of the meeting – unfortunately some people had already had to leave when we remembered to take the photo!

The final event of an exhausting but rewarding schedule over the last 5 days, the International Judges Meeting was the grand finale of our Golden Jubilee on the Sunday. As such it was set to finish earlier than any other daytime event to allow more travelling time afterwards. Co-chaired by Steve Green, as GB club President and host, and the originator of the meeting Satu Yla-Mononen from Finland, the meeting was, as intended, a good mix of presentation and discussions.

Jens Ramsing delivering on the History of the Bernese.

As stated beforehand the value of such meetings is definitely not simply in the subject matter on the agenda but in the discussions that are generated by these and no one can predict where these will go as people chip in with contributions directly and indirectly connected to the subjects. Previous meetings have ended up with discussion having to be cut short so the programme for this meeting included a generous open discussion period, which was more than used up.

Satu Yla-Mononen (Finland) addresses the meeting

It is sad to introduce a negative point into all the real positivity that was generated by the overall Jubilee event but it was commented on during the meeting that the number of British BMD judges present was disappointing. This was a great chance to, at the very least, sit and listen to, some very, experienced people from many different backgrounds and systems discussing all kinds of judging related issues of the BMD. This helps focus your attitude and reminds you of the purpose of judging and what your priorities and responsibilities should be. For the UK judges, of all levels of development and experience, this was an almost unique chance to learn  and improve their judging prowess, but sadly not very many UK judges took up this opportunity.

Emily Green, UK Breed Education CoOrdinator, kicks off the discussion on qualifying as judge

Having said that thank you to those who did support the event, I hope you all found it a worthwhile experience. We will measure the success by the feedback, not the numbers present, and everyone who spoke to me afterwards said how much they had learned from the experience and how interesting it had been, whether they interacted with the discussion or just sat and took in the experienced viewpoints. One person referred to just ‘sitting there and soaking up all the knowledge and experience present and on offer’. The feedback was all very positive although a few people wondered what direction the meeting’s future could be to keep it viable without becoming repetitive. However, everyone agreed it was a valuable and very worthwhile experience.

 Ben Taylor from Australia makes a point from the audience

Judging, done properly, is a complex thing to do and you are constantly weighing up different factors and constantly giving priority to different aspects of the dogs in front of you. Developing the confidence and thought processes to make these decisions in the spotlight is key and listening to how other people deal with the complexities and pressures can only help your own capability. The sub title to the agenda was “It’s Good to Talk” and for everyone who commented afterwards, it certainly was!

The official summary of the meeting will be available here when available.

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Links to Other Specific Event/Activity Reports

Most of these will be updated more as reports and more photos become available and fresh links will appear as other event reports are available.

The BIWG Meeting

The International Health Symposium

Berner Bar Evening including Veterans Parade

(Friday) Championship Show (Jens & Lisbet Ramsing) & Limited Obedience Show – Show Judges’ Reports and Obedience report plus photos now available

British Fete Night (Friday) – Jubilee Toast, Auction, Torchlit Carting, Champions Parade

Golden Jubilee Championship Show (Helen Davenport Willis) & Junior Handling – some photos now available

50th Anniversary Championship Show (Steve Green)  – some photos and show results now available

Swiss Breeds Event, Fun Dog Show, Good Citizens & Character Assessment (Saturday)

The International Judges Meeting

Working Carting at this event

Golden Jubilee event photography page – incl link to full online galleries and details of how you can obtain copies of the official photographs

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INFORMATION GIVEN PREVIOUS TO THE EVENT IS BELOW HERE

International BMD Judges Meeting

Sunday 25th September 2022

The club is proud to be hosting only the third meeting of this initiative. Originally the brainchild of well known international judge and BMD breeder Satu Yea-Mononen from Finland, it is a chance for Bernese judges from all over the world to come together and discuss breed related issues and how they can, or should, be affected by judges. Combine this with inputs from knowledgeable breed specialists and the spontaneous discussion of all kinds of subjects that develops from these inputs and y0u have a massively educational and interesting event for anyone who judges or is aspiring to judge Bernese in any country or show system. By holding it in different countries each time it gives judges from that country the chance to attend so it is hoped UK BMD judges take this almost unique opportunity to enhance their knowledge and develop their thought processes about judging the BMD.

Anyone who judges Bernese at any level is welcome to attend as well as ‘breed people’ who are only part way through their educational journey to become a qualified judge. We can all learn by listening and talking to each other and it is important to take stock and see if we can pick out any patterns of where the breed is going that we, as judges, can help to improve. For those breed people who have been there all week for the whole event this should be a great way to finish the week off and if the previous meetings are anything to go by the discussion session will be as stimulating as the presentations.

Delegates after the meeting in The Netherlands in 2018

Setting for the inaugural meeting in Finland in 2015

Any existing BMD judges, who are all invited to the meeting will be asked to submit some thoughts about the breed in their country via an opinion poll  questionnaire. A summary of these returns will form the catalyst for some of the discussion. Whatever your BMD judging status, and even if you cannot make it to the meeting, if you are a judge of Bernese Mountain Dogs at any level, PLEASE TAKE A FEW MOMENTS TO COMPLETE THIS ONLINE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR BMD JUDGES.

There is a fee to help cover the costs of the meeting and this includes refreshments and a light lunch. All places have to be booked in advance, ideally via the online system (links below), but if not the hard copy paper system is available.

When booking online you will be asked to book separately if you are an established judge (CC/CAC type level). You will then be sent the short questionnaire, if you haven’t already completed it, and the replies from these will be collated to form the starting points of some of the discussions subjects. You will be able to stay anonymous in this if you wish.

Timetable

Exact content and programme subject to change if necessary

The latter sessions are intended to be discussion sessions and participation is welcomed. Previous meetings have shown great willingness for discussion at these meetings and this very much the intention of the agenda. If you have something to say you will get your chance to say it!

It should make for a really interesting and refreshing session to look forward to that can only benefit all BMD judges and enhance their understanding of the BMD.

Please note – this is not a Judges seminar to assist with the Training of Judges. As the title says, this is a meeting of BMD judges to discuss aspects of the breed or dog world with any connection to judging and the judging process.

(Advance booking links removed)