Page 9 - Autumn 2024 Newsletter Online_Neat

vaccinated. Chosen at 8 weeks she
retained Nighthawk and Natica.
Nighthawk, was so dark as a puppy
that he was nicknamed Nutty Slack
by a friend of Pam’s. She said there
was no way she was calling him that
so it was shortened to Nuts.
She recalled that he was not like
anything she had ever seen before
but he had a presence and a very
short back. She didn’t hurry to get
Showing Gavimir Rasmus in the
early 1980s. him into the ring, waiting until he was
10 months old
His maiden show was Southern
Counties where he won the CC from
Mrs Molly Collins, the Group under
Ken Bullock and Reserve Best in
Show under Group Captain “Beefy”
Sutton. That was the taste of things
to come. There was a lull until the
North of England Keeshond Club show
where he gained his second CC under
Pamela Cross Stern. His third and
crowning win was in the spotlight of
Pam spinning at home in the early Crufts 1982 when Miss Barbara
1980s with one of her early litters. Glover gave him the CC with Best of
Breed. He was going through his
In 1980, whilst judging an open
junior moult so Pam kept him at
show, she saw a young dog who was home for a while until his new coat
to change her life. The dog Kwintex had grown.
Katterwadd was different from
anything she had bred but she was At the 1983 Crufts Nuts won Best in
drawn to him. She recalled that he Breed under Mr Appleton and went
was on the small side but if mated on to win the Utility Group with
to a strong bitch might produce Pamela Cross Stern. Gavimir dogs
something special. G Verbena was won both reserve tickets in breed.
considered the perfect match and Pam was floating on air by the end of
produced a litter. the day. After this his career really
took off.
As the puppies were in Somerset,
Pam had limited access to watching Pam described 1984 as a year to
them grow. There was also an remember with CCs coming thick and
outbreak of Parvo which made visiting fast for Nuts and other members of
and collecting them risky. With John the Gavimir team amassing CCs and
seeing lots of cases it was decided to RCCs, often at the same shows. Nuts
leave the pups in Somerset until they won a Reserve Best In show at
were 14 weeks old and had been Driffield that year.
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