Cute Aylesbury crossbreed Sammi makes Scruffts semi-final at top dog show Crufts

Sammi, a five-year-old Bichon Frise cross has been named ‘Good Citizen’ in the regional heats for Scruffts, the annual crossbreed competition run by The Kennel Club.

Sammi, owned by Rowan Carter of Aylesbury, will go on to compete in the semi-final stages hosted at the world’s most famous dog show, Crufts, in 2022.

The sixth and final Scruffts heat took place at ExCeL London as part of Discover Dogs event last weekend. The competition attracted crossbreeds and owners from all over the south east with just four making it through to the next stage. The overall winners of the semi-final will now have the chance to compete in the final, also at Crufts 2022.

Speaking of their win, Rowan said: “We are really excited to have won the heat. Sammi loves the environment and can’t wait to compete at Crufts and get even more sausages for being such a good boy.”

Outside of the show ring, Sammi and Rowan also compete in agility, heelwork to music, obedience and rally.

The Scruffts Family Crossbreed Dog of the Year competition, exclusively supported by pet food makers James Wellbeloved, is open to all crossbreeds and mixed breed dogs, of all shapes, sizes, aged over six months.

Judging on the day was dog judge, Gerald King, who had the tough decision of choosing just one winner in the Good Citizen Dog Scheme class.

The other winners included:

Most Handsome Crossbreed Dog: four-year-old Frank, the crossbreed, owned by Wendy Halling from Bedford

Prettiest Crossbreed Bitch: eight-year-old Wilma, the Springer Spaniel/Jack Russell Terrier cross, owned by Rachel Hukin from Bedford

Golden Oldie Crossbreed: 10-year-old Teddy Bear, the Lhasa Apso/Bichon Frise cross, owned by Louise Jacobs from Colchester

Good Citizen Dog Scheme: five-year-old Sammi, the Bichon Frise cross, owned by Rowan Carter from Aylesbury

All dogs were judged against the following qualities including, good character good health, good personality and good temperament with people and other dogs

The four dogs are now preparing to compete at Crufts 2022, which will be held at the NEC Birmingham next March, where the judges will be making the difficult decision of choosing the Scruffts Family Crossbreed Dog of the Year.

Throughout the year, heats of the popular Scruffts contest, which is exclusively supported by pet food makers James Wellbeloved, are taking place at events around the country in search of crossbreeds with that extra special something.

The four heat winners will receive delicious goodies from James Wellbeloved, the sponsor of Scruffts, and ultimately the four category finalists at next year’s Scruffts Grand Final will each win a year’s supply of James Wellbeloved food for their dog.

Lucy Williams, marketing manager for James Wellbeloved,said: “Congratulations to our four brilliant semi-finalists who have all qualified to Crufts next year. It was a fantastic weekend at Discover Dogs at ExCeL London and we were impressed by all the entrants who took part.

“James Wellbeloved is very proud to exclusively support Scruffts and we’re looking forward to seeing how our semi-finalists progress.”

For more information on the Scruffts Family Crossbreed Dog of the Year competition, please visit the scruffts website