Crufts

A perennial favourite in the British calendar, Crufts is one of the highlights of the year for millions of dog-lovers around the world, as Emma Pomfret discovers...

For dog lovers all over the world, Crufts, the largest dog show on the planet, has always been considered the very pinnacle of canine excellence, and this year was certainly no exception.

Now in its 102nd year, the longawaited arrival of Crufts 2005 at Birmingham's National Exhibition Centre attracted some 120,000 visitors accompanied by a staggering 21,500 of their primped and preened fourlegged- friends.

Run and organised by the Kennel Club since the inaugural 1891 show at the Royal Agricultural Hall in London's Islington, almost 200 breeds are estimated to have attended the fourday Crufts event this year, including a record number of overseas entries.

And Crufts not only includes the highly prestigious Best In Show category, but this year the Kennel Gazette Junior Warrant Final was launched, giving the younger generation of dogs a chance to show off their potential as future championship winners at Crufts.

The notoriously competitive Obedience World Cup competition also attracted many hopeful canine challengers from all over the world, but in the end, the reigning English team emerged as champions on the day, with Northern Ireland bringing up second place and Holland coming third.

And finally, Pedigree made history at the show with a new record for the world's longest dog lead, which measured over 700 metres. This is the first-ever attempt at a recordbreaking lead - all Crufts has to do now is to find a dog big enough to use it!

A beautiful six-year-old Norfolk terrier called Coco - otherwise known as Champion Cracknor Cause Celebre - deservedly won Best In Show at this year's Crufts. In fact Coco, a bitch who had three puppies last July, had previously won the Terrier category but managed to beat six other group winners at the show's prestigious final.

This year's victor takes the title from last year's winner, a whippet bitch called Cobyco Call The Tune - or Deedee - owned by Lynn Yacoby-Wright of Greater Manchester. Coco, owned by Pamela Beale, Stephanie Ingram and Elisabeth Matell, all from Ashford in Kent, is said to enjoy nothing better than hunting mice and small birds in her owner's garden, as well as lounging around on the sofa for hours on end at home.

Handler Peter Green, who lives in America, says he is ?absolutely delighted? at Coco's success at Crufts, adding that she was ?very confident going into the group. ?As I was born in the UK I am delighted to come back and make Coco best in show, especially as this will be her last event - she has gone out on a real high,? he smiles.

The other group winners included a beagle called Harry, a smooth coat Chihuahua called Astro, Marnie a Japanese Shiba Inu, Rosco an English Setter, India a Belgian Shepherd dog, and last but not least, Phil the giant Schnauzer.

The much-coveted Hero Dog of the Year Award 2005 competition was won by a Springer Spaniel called Buster, an amazingly brave rescue dog-turned-Army sniffer dog, handled by Danny Morgan.

This new competition, organised by the Kennel Club and sponsored by Pet Partners plc, was the first time that members of the public were able to actually vote for the dog they would like to win a competition at Crufts - and they couldn't have picked a more deserving winner.

Buster, now semi-retired but still helping to train other dogs, is an army sniffer dog and has discovered weapons in the war-torn countries of Northern Ireland, Kosovo, and Iraq. More than 45,000 television viewers voted for Buster for his courageous work in those parts of the world, including Bosnia and Afghanistan.

?He's my overall hero dog - he's a rescue dog come good,? says Danny after receiving the award from Blue Peter presenter Matt Baker.