As many of you know Liz Cartledge runs the JHA. Each year at both open & championship shows there are chances to qualfy from 1st-3rd in each class for the semi finals, which are held at Richmond Ch Show. Then 14 lucky finalists will go forward to represent their age range & group for the crown of ''UK Junior Handler Of The Year''. This is what every junior handler aims to win.

Back at Richmond 2010 I had qualified a number of times under many judges. Only 3 days before the show I was told who the judge was going to be and this year it was Lisa Moir, A former junior handler herself. On the day I remember it being very nerve racking as every year I had never been able to have the best chance due to borrowing other people’s dogs and not being very prepared. But this year I was determined to show my own dog, Winflash The Final Magic, the youngest of the Winflash family. I had been practicing with her from the age she could walk so she knew exactly how to act when being shown in the junior handling class. We went into the ring at 9.00pm when we had to stand our dogs in the line while the judge looked up and down. This year the breed was lucky enough to have 3 juniors who handled a Dalmatian, Katie South, Katie Kelly and Myself. All of the juniors where asked to stand their dog, show the teeth and do a triangle and up and down before setting up and returning to the line. After that there was a shortlist of six places where myself and Katie where both pulled out! By this time the nerves had kicked in and I was desperate for that top place! After doing another up and down and standing back in line, the judge stood in the middle of the ring and walked straight towards me! I was in total shock!  All I could hear was all of the screaming and clapping from all of my support from ringside. The photographers as usual flood the rings and take loads of pictures! Lisa then gave me the best critique i could have asked for

''Charlotte put in a sophisticated & faultless performance, handling a young Dalmatian. Pattern work was executed precisely & she has a fantastic rapport with her dog. Handling with a confident style, nothing was exaggerated or overdone. Charlotte was gentle & considerate & encouraged her dog throughout. Both Charlotte & her dog where presented to perfection & the same can be said for her handling. A true natural and impressive handler! Charlotte was a real pleasure to watch. I wish you the very best of luck in the finals, you are a very worthy representative of this group and a real contender.''

Needless to say Lisa must have seen into the future! As next up were the finals at Discover Dogs. Due to having both sixth form and work it was a struggle to fit a lot of time in. So I had to rely a lot on the shows at the weekend and cramming it in when I could. Needless to say the 13th of November came around really quickly and before I knew it I was waking up at 4.30 to get ready.

 

On the day I decided I was going to stick to the outfit I wore in the semi-finals which was a white skirt and jacket and black top. I arrived at Earls Court at 8.00am where we had a five-minute walk to the building. When I arrived there, there was couple of handlers that had already arrived with cards on their benches and all looking very worried about what was ahead of them. I had already had cards from some of the Dalmatian people along with balloons and cards from my family. All of them were put up on the bench and Rubie was all settled too. Liz Cartledge was the organiser of the event and Peter Jolley was our commentator for the day. After signing in with Liz and collecting all of the free goodies (Agria pets bag, book etc) I decided to take Rubie into the ring while no one else was there and could get her used to it. Of course being a Dalmatian she had to find something to keep her occupied and decided to try eating the yellow dots on the floor.

At dead on 10 all handlers where asked to go to the ring to get lined up. This year there were only 13 handlers due to one handler having to suffer the loss of her dog and was unable to attend. After Marina Scott, our judge for the day was sent into the ring we all then followed after her. I was last into the ring so I had a very long wait till I got my 5 minutes.

After standing in line the judge went along the row having the first chance to see us all. We were then all told to relax are dogs while she concentrated on each individual handler. Of course Rubie took relax to mean laying on her back with her legs up in the air trying to play with the Bulldog. By the time it got to me I was starting to feel very nervous. I stood Rubie in front the table and showed the judge the teeth. I was then asked to do a triangle and an up and down. I then presented my dog and ran round the ring onto the end where I set her up for the final presentation. The judge then closely had a last look before short-listing six of us. The six finalists where Katie Pinkerton with a Borzoi from the hound 12-16 years, Ashley Pike with a Pomeranian from 12-16 years Toy, Page Allen with an Australian Shepherd Dog from the Pastoral 12-16 years, Jodi Allen with a Pointer from the Gundog 12-16 years, Brydee-Mae Mills with a Bulldog from 6-11 year Utility and then Lastly ME!

I was actually in shock I didn't expect to get shortlisted at all. We all then left the ring shaking hands with the judge before being given a swapped dog. Three of us were given Springer Spaniels and the other three PBGVS. I got a 10 year old Springer spaniel called William to handle ... totally different to showing a Dalmatian so I spent the hour I had working with him and making sure I could get the best out of him. But time flies when you are focusing and before I knew it we were all getting called back in again. We all did the same patterns again. William was so good and just went round the ring perfectly. After that we went back out the ring to bring back in our original dogs.

Next was the moment all the handlers had been waiting for. We all got asked to do an L and then go back in line. Now the next part is such a blur to me I literally can't remember most of it. All I remember was Marina starting to walk left and then walking straight towards me! I was literally in shock; I thought it was a dream. I then heard loads of clapping and noticed loads of photographers flooding the ring. All of the other handlers congratulated me. I was then presented with £150 from the Junior Handling Association, £50 from the Welsh Kennel Club, a towel from Agria, two trophies, a glass trophy and another blanket. I then did my last run round the ring where I was then surrounded by loads of supporters and other juniors who had come to watch. I then completed an interview with one of the radiomen, had group photos, separate photos EVERYTHING! I had Lisa Moir the lady who put me through, who had spent a lot of time giving me advice there to see it all! I think she was just as excited as me.

Needless to say Lisa was right! By the time I had got to my phone word had got around and I had a phone full of texts and missed calls. Then hundreds of Facebook messages with so many nice messages from Dalmatian people, juniors and other breed people who had congratulated me. After four years of handling I never would have thought I would get crowned as the UK JUNIOR HANDLER OF THE YEAR. Due to winning and only having two shows left (LKA and next year's Richmond Semis) that I will be able to attend, I have decided to end the junior handling world at the top, but will still be attending the YKC ring.

Liz told me on the day that I would be unable to show Rubie or any of the dogs I have shown previously due to this being unfair on any of the other countries that will be given their dog on the day. So fingers crossed I will be showing another person's Dalmatian for the International Handling Finals, which will be at Crufts 2011 on the Sunday. A big thank you goes to my family and all the people who have supported me over the years! Good luck to the up and coming junior handlers in the breed. A lot hard work will make you achieve the goals you set out!