THE North-East achieved an early success in the most famous dog show in the world.

Crufts – the one that every handler wants to win and the only UK dog show to be televised live – started today.

This year, The Northern Echo will be following handlers from the North-East over the show which ends with the final on Sunday.

The Northern Echo:

The region has very good recent form in the event – the Crufts Best in Show 2016 was a Westie from Tow Law.

Day one of the show, today, was Toy and Utility day. Amongst the dog showing elite at the NEC, Birmingham, were Simon Taylor and James Johnson from St Helen Auckland with their Lhasa Apso Gino.

Mr Taylor told the Echo: “Crufts means the world to us. It is the highlight of the dog show calendar, everyone aims to qualify their dog to be able to be shown there.

“Our dog Gino won first place at Crufts in 2014 yearling class but the highlight was in 2018 when our home-bred dog Dexter won Best Puppy in Breed.

“This year is a very proud year for us as we are showing our first ever Champion – Chanceinns Sir Gino avec Sifrason – in the veteran dog class.

“Gino loves showing, his tail never stops wagging and he gets so excited. Crufts being an international show, it’s a great opportunity to see dogs from all over the world that have previously only been seen in photos.”

And Gino did himself and his handlers proud, placing a very creditable second – particularly as he is barely seven-years-old so only just qualifies for this class.

The Northern Echo:

A thrilled Mr Taylor said afterwards: “He moved perfectly and excelled in movement, owning the ring. “

He added: “Crufts is buzzing with a wonderful atmosphere. There is so much to see and do, its impossible to experience everything in one day when you’re showing a dog but I’ll try and have a good look around once Gino has been into his breed class.”