# Future of Crufts dog show in doubt after Pedigree pulls £1.5m sponsporship



## testmg80 (Jul 28, 2008)

From Times Online October 24, 2008

Valerie Elliott, Consumer Editor

Pedigree, the pet food company, in a shock decision today dropped its estimated £1.5 million a year sponsorship of Crufts dog show, a relationship that has lasted for 44 years.

The move from the firm, part of Mars UK, to take effect immediately comes after claims were made that the show promoted breeding methods that encouraged deformities and disease in animals.

The Pedigree brand was once so closely linked with Crufts that cans of the dog food carried the strapline "Top breeders recommend it" and champion dogs regularly appeared in TV advertisements.

But since coverage of the BBC documentary that highlighted the genetic side-effects of unhealthy breeding, there was concern that the brand was being tainted by association with the show.

Pedigree and its UK marketing manager, Stephen Rendu, declined to discuss their decision.

A statement from Marks UK said: "After careful consideration, Pedigree has decided to withdraw its sponsorship of Crufts. The Pedigree brand has evolved and we are prioritising initiatives that support the broadest possible community of dog owners such as our successful programme, the Pedigree Adoption Drive, and our online service for breeders, pedigreedirect.co.uk. We look forward to working with the Kennel Club on other projects in the future."

Leading figures in the canine world suggested that the split between the two now put question marks over the long-term future of the world's biggest dog show.

However, the Kennel Club, which organises Crufts, said in a statement that the show would go ahead, though it is still unclear whether TV coverage by the BBC will proceed or if the format is changed in some way.

Talks between the BBC and the club are still continuing and a panel of scientific experts is to advise the BBC about future screening.

Last year around 14.5 million viewers watched the show, which was televised over four days.

But it is clear that the pullout by Pedigree left senior officials at the club reeling.

The loss of sponsorship, just four months before the next show at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham in March, was being treated with such gravity that a statement from the club was issued by Rosemary Smart, its chief executive.

She said: "Clearly we are very sad to lose Pedigree from Crufts. We have had an excellent relationship for many years and we wish them well and look forward to working with them in the future."

Caroline Kisko, club secretary, is the usual voice and face for the charity.

The RSPCA and the Dogs Trust announced last month that it was severing links with the show and there are fears that other exhibitors may decide to follow Pedigree and withdraw.

Canine experts, however, were curious as to why Pedigree had waited so long to distance itself from Crufts, especially when the club has embarked on a shake-up of all dog breeding to introduce kinder rearing methods for all pets and showdogs.

Beverley Cuddy, editor of Dogs Today magazine and a longstanding critic of the Kennel Club, was intrigued by Pedigree's announcement.

"If it is a kneejerk reaction it's a slow one and as a marketing decision it's oddly controlled. I think it is sad in a way that it's come at a time when the Kennel Club was trying to tackle the problems. But it is a dramatic reversal and could be the knockout blow for the show. It will make it very difficult for it to be profitable. The club only makes about £500,000 from the show so this will create a massive deficit."

The club is already on collision with breed societies over its decision with the Dogs Trust to review breeding standards for 209 species.

The first dog breeds to face scrutiny are the Pekingese, the Cluber Spaniel, Bloodhound, Bulldogs, Mastiff, German Shepherd Dog, Basset Hound and St Bernard.

Crufts was first held in 1891 and attracts around 25,000 dogs and 150,000 visitors each year.

http://www.petforums.co.uk/newthread.php?do=newthread&f=62

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## gazt (Mar 31, 2008)

nice one pedgree about time it was stopped the poor dogs ,poeple trying to breed for perfection its done a lot of damage to many breeds this can,t be right


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## Guest (Oct 25, 2008)

Thought there'd be the usual people like the above poster (who obviously knows nothing about the world of pedigree dogs) jumping on the bandwagon and linking pedigree pullling out of Crufts to the Passionate Productions TV program.

The two facts have nothing at all to do with one another. The extract from the times merely says that this has happened after the programme. Pedigree themselves are not saying that is the reason at all. Read the following quote:

_A spokeswoman for Mars refused to say whether the documentary row had influenced its decision to pull out of Crufts.

It said in a statement: "The Pedigree brand has evolved, and we are prioritising initiatives that support the broadest possible community of dog owners."

Pedigree, formerly known as Pedigree Chum, was the principal sponsor of Crufts and has backed the show since 1964.

Mars said it was "looking forward" to working with the Kennel Club on future projects._
Pedigree ends Crufts sponsorship | UK news | The Guardian

The truth of the matter Gazt, which you would know if you had any knowledge at all about the world of pedigree dogs, is that because of a marketing decision by its parent company, Mars, Pedigree have been gradually withdrawing sponsorship from dog showing for a number of years. A couple of years ago they stopped sponsoring Discover Dogs. From January this year they stopped sponsoring championship shows. And from next year they are going to stop sponsoring Crufts. Discover Dogs has continued undiminished without their sponsorship. Championship Shows have continued undiminished without their sponsorship. And Crufts will continue undiminished without their sponsorship.

The only losers in this will be pedigree, who will find it hard to recover from the resulting drop in profits as pedigree breeders (whose use of their product has made the firm as prosperous as it is today) turn to the other firms who are still sponsoring championships shows and Crufts. There are plenty of them around.


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## gazt (Mar 31, 2008)

i may now more than you think i,ve only had dogs for 40 years ,at the end of the day there are to many breeds being ruined ,im not saying all breeds but there is hell of a lot and that is a fact do you walk arround with your eyes shut have you not seen dogs with hip displaysure how many breeds have that now whats caused all these deformaties i think you now but still they carry on breeding out of poor stock and selling the offsping to poor gullable poeple who then have all the upset of having to look after sick dogs costing them a small fortune and in a lot of cases they have to be put down causing a very stressful time for families i now there are some good breeders who are genuine dog lovers who do there best to breed good stock and give after care for owners of there pups and thats the way it should be but something needs to be done about the rest who mass produce and don,t care a ****


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## Guest (Oct 27, 2008)

gazt said:


> i may now more than you think i,ve only had dogs for 40 years ,at the end of the day there are to many breeds being ruined ,im not saying all breeds but there is hell of a lot and that is a fact do you walk arround with your eyes shut have you not seen dogs with hip displaysure how many breeds have that now whats caused all these deformaties i think you now but still they carry on breeding out of poor stock and selling the offsping to poor gullable poeple who then have all the upset of having to look after sick dogs costing them a small fortune and in a lot of cases they have to be put down causing a very stressful time for families i now there are some good breeders who are genuine dog lovers who do there best to breed good stock and give after care for owners of there pups and thats the way it should be but something needs to be done about the rest who mass produce and don,t care a ****


No, I don't walk around with my eyes shut. I see the true picture. I see what is actually happening in real life and make my own judgements, rather than watching a TV programme designed to shock and thinking it was telling the truth.

If you had been posting this ten years ago you would have been right, but a lot has been done over the past years, and is still being done. Bad breeders in the pedigree show world are in a very small minority - I actually agree with you about breeders who breed for money and doesn't give a *****, whether they are breeders of pedigrees or mongrels. However, as I said, in the pedigree world this is in the minority. Most pedigree breeders are dedicated to breeding for health and purpose. They research their lines, they look at genetics, they use healthy, health tested stock. The people you should be directing your anger towards are the puppy farmers who churn out litter after litter with no thought at all for the health or welfare of the pups. These are the people who are breeding from poor stock and churning out animals with problems such as hip dysplasia, not the average pedigree breeder who actually researches lines, and breeds from dogs with good hip scores.

One more point - the sorts of breeders who do puppy farm are not the people who are breeding and exhibiting at Crufts - just think about it for a moment and you will see it doesn't make sense to say that Crufts is full of people breeding unhealthy dogs. To even get to Crufts a dog has had to win at a Championship Show, where a judge has judged that it is fit for purpose, and that it conforms to the breed standard for that breed. If someone is churning out unhealthy dogs, they aren't going to be fit for purpose, they aren't going to conform to the breed standard, and they are not going to get to Crufts.


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## Dogs Trust (Oct 28, 2008)

With the announcement that Pedigree is no longer sponsoring Crufts, many newspapers and online forums reported the news this weekend. You may have incorrectly read that the Kennel Club is working with Dogs Trust to review breeding standards for 209 species of pedigree dogs. Dogs Trust has no involvement with the review of breed standards which is currently underway; this is something the Kennel Club is conducting independently. 



Although Dogs Trust has withdrawn from Crufts and Discover Dogs, we are firmly committed to ensuring that changes are now made to safeguard the health and wellbeing of dogs. This is why we have been in regular dialogue with the Kennel Club and have jointly called for Government support for a review into the breeding, registration and showing of all dogs. Timings and full details for this review have not yet been confirmed. We will be able to update our supporters about this review shortly.


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## Tigerkatz (Sep 29, 2008)

It is unfortunate but due to the fact that some unscrupulous breeders.. be it puppy farmers or a show enthusiasts who find showing far more important than the health problems thier stock suffer from has given the bait for much debate. 
As previously stated. Crufts and the dog world will carry on with or without Pedigree. 
It is VERY unfair to lump everyone into the debate of KC/Crufts exhibitor breeders are causing health problems. BBC exposed a small number of ONE sided events which sparked a debate. How about exposing the health committee and exposing the kennel clubs efforts to ensure healthy breeding. The Accredited Breeders scheme? so many things they have done to try and educate the public and the breeders about positive healthy breeding.

Pedigree has as spellweaver has so eloquently pointed out.. been slowly withdrawing itself from sponsorship, not just down to the BBC expose.


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