TOBIAS - SETTING RECORDS FOR THE BREED IN AUSTRALIA:

The first male Dogue de Bordeaux to be awarded Best in Show at All Breeds Championship Show level.

The first Australian bred Dogue de Bordeaux to be awarded Best in Show at All Breeds Championship Show level.

The first Dogue de Bordeaux to be awarded 37 Classes in Group at Championship Show level.

The first Dogue de Bordeaux to qualify for the prestigious Queensland Puppy of the Year Final.

The first Dogue de Bordeaux Grand Champion to reach 1000 championship points with no 6 point Challenges.

The first Dogue de Bordeaux to reach 1377 championship points with no 6 point Challenges.

TOBIAS' ACHIEVEMENTS AT CHAMPIONSHIP SHOW LEVEL:

1 x Best in Show

1 x Consolation to Best in Show

4 x Best in Group

7 x Runner-up Best in Group

1 x Best Aust. Bred in Show

2 x Best Intermediate in Show

1 x Best Puppy in Show - (Queensland Puppy of the Year qualifier)

37 x Classes in Group

5 x Royal Best of Breed

2 x Royal Runner-up Best of Breed

2 x Royal Puppy of Breed

Tobias wins BEST IN SHOW at the Brunswick Valley Kennel Club championship Show under Mr Keith Cronchey (Vic).

The Best in Group awarded by Mr Wayne Douglas (Vic) gave him his GRAND CHAMPION title.

Tobias is an "in to everything" sort of a boy, with an angelic face and a cheeky personality.

Although only young, he is growing in to a very promising dog. He has a strong head with curved underjaw, excellent chin mark and layback of the muzzle, superb stop and lovely closed angles.

His sound structure is evident in his excellent topline, balanced front and rear angulation and his strong front and rear ends. As expected in a youngster, his width and depth of chest are only starting to develop.

When Tobias joined our show team he quickly made his mark by taking 3 Best Baby Puppy in Group awards from the 5 championship shows entered. That was just the beginning of his fabulous show career to date.

Tobias took Baby Puppy of Breed at the Toowoomba Royal Show under Mr B. Owen (Canada).

Then 2nd in the Baby Puppy Sweepstakes from 25 Baby Puppies entered, under Miss G. Goller.

In only his 2nd show in Minor Puppy, Tobias takes Best Minor Puppy in Group.

Tobias gains his first championship points from the Minor Puppy Class by taking an 11 point Dog Challenge under European All Breeds judge, Dr M. Levente (Hungary), at the Beenleigh & District Kennel Club Championship Show. (He is only beaten for BOB by his cousin and kennel mate, Ch. Bordogue Joelle and for RU BOB by his litter sister Bordogue Imogen.) We also received some lovely comments from Dr Levente about his sound structure and breed type. It is fabulous to receive these types of comments from a European judge who has judged the breed overseas.

Tobias finishes a great July weekend being awarded Reserve Challenge Dog and Best Minor Puppy in Group by Mr M. Chaloux (Canada).

Tobias takes his first Best of Breed (11 pts) at the Mt Gravatt Show Society Championship Show from the Minor Puppy Class and follows it up the next day with another Best of Breed.

He finished the Puppy Class on 137 championship points, but still needed to gain 25 points after turning 12 months of age. Tobias gains his Australian Champion title 2 weeks after turing 12 months old taking him to 162 points (and no 6 point Challenges amongst them). He is proving himself against older Dogues from both our own, and other kennels.

Tobias also takes Puppy of Breed at the Royal Queensland Show.

Tobias takes Best Puppy in Show at the Western Suburbs All Breeds Kennel Club Championship Show and qualifies for the prestigious Queensland Puppy of the Year Final. (We believe it is a first for the breed in Queensland and possibly Australia.)

At only 12 months of age, he has two Best Puppy in Show awards and 12 Classes in Group.

Tobias finishes 2009 as the No. 1 Dogue de Bordeaux in Australia. In addition to finishing 2008 as the No. 1 DDB Puppy in Australia, he finished as the No. 8 DDB nationally - no mean feat for a puppy!! His achievements in his two years of showing have been nothing short of amazing.

Tobias had a great start to 2009 by taking Best of Breed at the Toowoomba Royal Show, from the Junior Class, under Mr R.B. Jenkins (Sth Africa). There were 19 DDB exhibited on the day, bred by 9 different kennels. It was a fabulous achievement for a 16 month old dog.

At age 22 months Tobias is awarded Runner-up Best in Group/Intermediate in Group by All Breeds judge, Mrs H. Beasley (NSW) at the Allora Kennel Club Championship Show.

Tobias is awarded Runner-up Best of Breed at the 2010 Royal Canberra Show.

Tobias is awarded his second Runner-up Best in Group/Intermediate in Group by All Breeds judge, Ms Y. Smith (TAS) at the Tweed River Canine Club Championship Show. The following weekend he is again awarded Runner-up Best in Group/Intermediate in Group by All Breeds judge, Mr W. Chambers (Qld) at the Goomeri & District Show Society Championship Show. He is also awarded Runner-up Best in Group at the Burnett Kennel Club Open Show by Mrs J. Ireland (Qld).

Tobias is awarded his first Best Exhibit in Group/Intermediate in Group by Mr D. Staines (Qld) at the Burnett Kennel Club Championship Show. This makes him our second Dogue to win Best in Group at a Championship Show.

Tobias is awarded his fourth Runner-up Best in Group/Intermediate in Group by All Breeds judge, Mrs B. Balaam (Qld) at the Blackbutt Agricultural Show Society Championship Show. He is then awarded Best Intermediate in Show by Mrs Balaam.

Tobias is awarded his fifth Runner-up Best in Group/Intermediate in Group by Mrs A. Everson (Qld) at the Toogoolawah A.D. & I. Assoc Championship Show. He is then awarded Best Intermediate in Show by Mrs M. Webber (Qld).

In the past 12 weeks (19/3/10 to 18/6/10) Tobias has been awarded:
1 x Best in Group,
4 x Runner-up Best in Group,
2 x Best Intermediate in Show, and
6 x Best Intermediate in Group.

He then continues on his winning way with a Consultation to Best in Show at the Dubbo & District Kennel Club Championship Show, Best of Breed at the Royal Queensland Show from 22 Dogues de Bordeaux exhibited and more Class in Group awards.

He finishes 2010 as the No. 1 Dogue de Bordeaux in the Dogzonline Show Dog competition for Best in Group and Runner-up in Group wins, and also No. 1 in the Best of Breed competition. He is the only Dogue de Bordeaux to be awarded a Best in Group in 2010.

2011 has started well with Tobias taking Best of Breed under Mr E. Filippini (Argentina) at the Beaudesert Kennel Club Championship Show and then following it up two weeks later by taking Best of Breed at Toowoomba Royal under Ms C. Ringstrom (Canada). This is Tobias' third Royal Best of Breed. The Best of Breed at Toowoomba Royal also gave him a total of 1002 championship points. He has achieved this without being awarded a single 6 point challenge. We are fairly certain this must be a breed record.

Tobias takes his sixth Runner-up Best in Group at the Mackay Show Association Championship show. He also picks up 2 more classes in group that weekend and 3 more Best of Breed wins. He now has 1133 points and no 6 point challenges.

Tobias has a fabulous weekend at the Brunswick Valley Kennel Club Championship shows. On the Saturday he was awarded Best Exhbit in Group by Mr K. Cronchey (Vic). On the Sunday he was awarded Best Exhibit in Group by Mr W. Douglas (Vic). He was then awarded BEST IN SHOW by Mr K. Cronchey (Vic).

This is the first time an Australia bred Dogue de Bordeaux has been awarded Best in Show at All Breeds Championship level. It is only the second time a Dogue de Bordeaux has been awarded Best in Show in Australia.

Tobias takes his second consecutive Best of Breed at the 2011 Royal Brisbane Show under Mrs M. MacBeth (Canada). There were 19 DDB exhibited.

Tobias takes his 7th Runner-up Best in Group at the Ipswich Kennel Club Championship Show No. 1 under Mr G. Kerr (Qld).

He achieved 1377 points with no 6 point challenges. This must be a breed record. Then the unthinkable happened and he was awarded his first ever 6 point challenge. Joelle beat him for Best of Breed and as he was the only male shown, he got a 6 point Challenge Certificate. Somehow, I think his record of being awarded 1377 championship points with no 6 point challenges will stand as a breed record for a very long time to come. It's an amazing achievement.

Tobias takes his 5th Royal Best of Breed at the 2012 Toowoomba Royal Show under Mr G Biasiolo (Italy).

Tobias takes Best in Group and then Runner-up Best in Show at the Queensland Kennel Council Open Show. Our sincere thanks to Mr T. Thomas for the Best in Group and Mrs J. Ireland for the Runner-up Best in Show.

Tobias takes his 30th Class in Group at Championship Show level at the Brunswick Valley Kennel Club under Mr G. Blyth (TAS). He then takes his 31st Class in Group also at the Brunswick Valley Kennel Club under Mr R Cleland (SA). I would not be surprised if this is yet another breed record.

Tobias takes his 32nd Class in Group at Championship Show level at the Mt Gravatt A. H. & I. Society show under Mr G. Kerr (QLD) and his 33rd at the Maree Kennel Club Championship Show under Miss M Davis (Qld), his 34th at the Dog of the Year Support Committee Show under Mrs B. Balaam (Qld), his 35th at the Combined CCC Clubs Show under Mrs A. Holman (Qld) and his 36th at the Dorrigo & Guy Fawkes Agricultural Show under Mrs R. Hartmire (Qld).

Mrs Hartmire awarded Tobias his 4th Best in Group at the Dorrigo and Guy Fawkes Agricultural Assoc. Show.

He is consistently receiving lovely comments from judges about his strength of head, solid bone and overall soundness of structure.

Tobias is a well put together, impressive young dog!

Tobias' daughters have done well in the showring with limited showing. Tayla took Reserve Challenge Bitch at Brisbane Royal at 12 months of age. She also took Best of Breed under Dr Lemo (Croatia) at the Sydney Kennel Club show in July 2016 and Runner-up Best of Breed under the President of the Dogue de Bordeaux Club of Ireland, Mrs Colette Muldoon. Teagan is a Runner-up Best in Group winner at Championship Show level.

**********************

Tobias was diagnosed with a cancerous tumour in the roof of his mouth in October 2015. We were advised that that tumour was inoperable. In February 2016 a second tumour appeared, this time on his tail. In March our vet removed the tumour from his tail and also cut back the tumour on the roof of his mouth. His tail healed up and the tumour in his mouth stopped growing. In early July the tumour reappeared on his tail and the tumour in his mouth also appeared to be growing again. He went back to our vet for another checkup and she gave us the terrible news that the tumour in the roof of his mouth was spreading down the back of his throat and up in to his nasel passages. She said it would only be a matter of time as there was nothing more she could do for him.

On Friday 29 July 2016, while Keith was showing in Sydney, I made the heartbreaking decision to let him go. He had had a restless night and the look on his face said it was time. He and Reggie now rest next to each other in gold urns on my dressing table. They were both our bedroom boys, so they are resting in their favourite room of the house. RIP Mr Tobes.