CHESHIRE STUD

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WINNING SOWS  21ST CENTURY

Appreciating and assessing a self golden just as every other breed of cavy is NOT about picking out the obvious good and bad points but it is about understanding the concept of BALANCE. This ability is a gift only attained by a few truly good judges, some never learn or think so arrogantly after a little teaching they are God's gift to judging, there is no substitute for breeding, keeping and exhibiting a breed. Colour, type and coat are the three largest categories in the self standard amassing in a similar proportion of the points available. Every cavy in my stud must be balanced but I have to admit wrongly or rightly I expect my sows to exude type before all other points. Below are a few of the sows which have given me some success on the show bench in recent years. I have very strong feelings re the dubious ability of some breeders and judges to fully understand the concept of type in self cavies. With this in mind following the pictures of my sows I have included in this web page  an article I wrote for the ESCC in 2007.

	DOUBLE CHAMPION MAIGOLD 2002 - 2007 MANY WINS INCLUDING:- BEST SELF  BRADFORD CHAMP 2004 TWICE BEST ADULT SELF GOLDEN   BRADFORD CHAMP 2004 & 2005
	DOUBLE CHAMPION RUDBECKIA 2001 - 2007  RUDBECKIA WAS ALWAYS IN MAIGOLD'S SHADOW  BUT STILL  ACHIEVED HER  DOUBLE  CHAMPIONSHIP WITH EASE SEVERAL B I S's IN 2006 BEST CAVY AT E.S.C.C. NORTHERN STOCK SHOW
	GOLDEN MELODY 2003 - 2008 MY BEST TYPED GOLDEN TO DATE HER PICTURE HAS BEEN  USED ON ESCC ROSETTES  AND  IN THE ARTICLE DESCRIBING THE IDEAL TYPE FOR A SELF CAVY. BEST P.E. GOLDEN AT THE    LONDON CHAMP SHOW B.I.S. EGTON DIFFICULT PIG TO SHOW EASILY UPSET
	CHAMPION KENORA SUNSET 2006 MEDIUM COLOURED GOLDEN SOW  VERY GOOD EARS AND EYES  WON  MANY PE GOLDEN CLASSES  NOW RETIRED AND LIVING WITH RYAN BENNETT
	CHAMPION INDIAN SUMMER 2006  IS THE PRESENT  SHOW LEADER Best Adult at club Adult Stock Show at Loughborough 2008 Best Adult & Runner Up To Overall Best Self Adult Harrogate 2009 3 BIS's IN THE SPRING OF 2008 RUNNER-UP TO BEST ADULT   ESCC STOCK SHOW AT  WYEVERN.

NEXT GENERATION SOWS FOR 2009 AND BEYOND

CANARY BIRD
Born August 2008 Medium coloured golden  very short head and body As Golden Ribbons and Serena Sunburst have naturally ultra short coats. This is a pathway the Cheshire Stud is now relentlessly pursuing

GOLDEN RIBBONS Born June 2008 Winning intermediate P E Golden Harrogate 2009, adult P E Golden hopefully for Harrogate 2010.

ORPHAN GIRL Born June 2008 now gone to Sweden

SERENA SUNBURST Born August 2008, Third in 5/8mth P E Golden class Harrogate 2009. Another show adult hopefully in a year's time.

STAND BACK AND APPRECIATE TYPE
Deep in a distant past ( some forty odd years ago) I can remember vague and misty impressions of my first cavy show .Three pictures linger in my mind from that day:-Firstly putting down my boxes in this large dusty Methodist church hall with high windows and carrying my pigs to their pens helped by a nice old chap called Sid Jefferies .Secondly I remember and can still picture the judges on that day ; a grey haired Harold Waterhouse and the dapper Aubrey Roebuck, and thirdly and most importantly to me was the row of twenty three AOC Self's stood on travelling boxes in a row in front of the judge (my pigs were 16th and 17th in the line up, this will stick in my mind forever).This first image of all these cavies standing exhibiting their individual beauty and many fanciers present assessing and comparing from a distance left an enduring impression in my mind to this day. An oak tree grew for me from this first little acorn.

To me a self cavy has many endearing features but above all I appreciate type exemplified in my mind when a first class exhibit stands on the judging table looking resplendent. The English Self standard in my interpretation allows fifty five points for what I broadly define as type and shape (more than half the available points). Basically it says: - The head should have a pronounced roman nose (in my eyes that means it should have a bump on it giving it a curve or some fanciers think of  this shape as almost parrot like ). Good width of muzzle, square at the end but rounded at the corners. Eyes (which I think of as part of type) should be large, bright and appealing, set wide apart .Ears (also I like to encompass under the type umbrella ) to be large and drooping with lower rim parallel to the ground and set with good width between. The ears must be held flat against the side of the head with no fly back folds, the front edge extending almost as far as the eye. I have reared pigs where the ears are so large the eye is actually obscured from the side but this to me actually detracts from the overall appearance. Body shape to be short and broad with deep broad shoulders .The self cavy is to be shown in a fit condition of good substance and with plenty of firm flesh. To have good size appropriate to age .The guidance notes to the standard are to me far more revealing than the standard itself. The outline of the English Self cavy should consist of a series of gentle curves, rising from the nostrils to the peak of the shoulders, then dipping to the back and levelling briefly before again dipping over the rear. Viewed from above the overall impression of the self should be of a brick, round at the corners. Size is very desirable, but not at the expense of cobbyness or quality. Condition is very important, the cavy should carry plenty of firm flesh but not be gross or flabby and in no way feel soft when handled.
Anyone who aspires to judging self cavies should read the standard set down by our specialist club and form their own opinion on the ideal type for a self cavy. Having read, cogitated and inwardly digested the the written description, the way in which a judge perceives the ideal is determined by 1) His or her individual translation of the standard. 2) The way he or she handles and sets up the pig to show off its type to the maximum advantage. It is possible for twenty different judges to have in their minds eye twenty different pictures formulated from the standard but there is nothing wrong with this we are just asking for an opinion and if we disagree there is no need to ask for the same opinion on more than one occasion. Essentially the standard in respect of type can be broken down to a few building blocks from which we should strive to allow no margin for deviation.
1.) The body and head should be brick shaped when viewed from above.
2.) When viewed "side on" the outline must consist of a series of curves from the nostrils to the base of the tail. A prominent shoulder is essential to make this possible.
3.) The outline of the head viewed from the front should be square or a broad oblong with rounded corners.

4.) The position and size of eyes and ears have a major influence on head type. Both should be large and set well apart.
                                                           

 If these bullet points are adhered too then we eliminate pigs winning with the following faults.
 1.) Banjo or pear shaped pigs.
2.) Show pigs that slouch on the judging table, like a wet rag.
3.) Exhibits when viewed from above that are narrow chested.
4.) The presence of a straight line from the top of the head to the nostrils (ski slope)
5.) Heads when viewed from the front are triangle shaped (snipey nosed).
6.) Pigs with high positioned ears (surprised expression).
7.) Cavies with small eyes (mean expression).
There is one fault that still often "rears its ugly head" when a fancier strives too hard to produce that ideal head shape. Not only has the wall been scaled but you've gone over the top and right down the other side. Pigs with this fault may appear to amass nearly all the points the standard has to offer but are not pleasing to the eye.  This is the dreaded golf ball head, a head that is ultra short, very wide but small in comparison to the body (looks like a golf ball stuck on the front of the cavy). To give good balance overall the head must be large and in my opinion tending towards the oblong in outline rather than a perfect square.
I offer no apology for repeating myself in describing the ideal self. Appreciation is an individual thing but judges must not deviate from certain principals. My very personnel crusade is that a cavy should be allowed and encouraged to fully show off all of its attributes. The analogy in the extreme is when a supermodel shows herself off to perfection on the catwalk but may not warrant a second glance as she peruses the supermarket shelves. The good showman will train his show exhibit to stand with its nose tucked into its chest and its shoulder held high. The more experienced self judge will spend time setting up a cavy to show it attributes off to the best advantage. Then having settled the show cavy into position and ushered away any mauling hands from inexperienced stewards frightened in case she does a double somersault with two backward flips, the judge should step back and appreciate its finer points. A show pig should be viewed from all sides to appreciate its subtle curves. Only by standing back and viewing the side on aspect can the Roman nose be taken in. The pig must be viewed from the front to see the head shape and then this is obviously linked to what we call expression .Expression is primarily determined by the square or oblong shape only present if a pig is fully developed in her jowls, a good deal of this fullness in the face only develops with age . Expression is also inextricably linked to the eye and ear.
I left the show scene for a good deal of the eighties and nineties when I returned I was a little disappointed to say the least to see the standard of judging. When showing at a championship show I exhibited a golden I considered to be quite a typey sow. Alas she was never stood on the pedestal to which she was trained. Her body and particularly her head were studied as she was gently tickled under the chin whilst sat on the judge's knee. She won but her true beauty was sadly missed. The concept of curves and side viewing seemed to have been completely bypassed this judge. A month or two later I experienced a greater sacrilege; type was completely accessed from above with each pig only fleetingly leaving the judging stall. In most cases even this blinkered assessment of type was obscured by sweaty hands belonging to stewards who seem to think that all show pigs are trained to emulate the actions of our celebrated much lamented harrier jump jets. Some present day judges should have more confidence in their handling ability. In exuding their own confidence they will give confidence to the exhibits and this will have a beneficial calming effect.
Type is a beauty to be treasured, it can only be appreciated by gently settling a cavy in position to show itself to full advantage and then by standing back and viewing from all directions. In my early days in the cavy fancy I remember groups of knowledgeable intense fanciers surrounding the judging tables, appreciating and silently comparing (in reality not as silently as they should have been) at the same time as the judge. I must admit I do very occasionally see this today but not as often as I would like. This to me whether its my cavy or one very much better than mine gives me a great deal of enjoyment.
DAVID OULTON  (Autumn 2007)