Araki Fabulous Willy
Encyclopedia
Ch/Am Ch.
Championship (dog)
Championships are awarded to dogs who have passed through a process of selection at dog shows. Traditionally, a championship was received at a conformation show, but championships are now offered for dogs who have attained a high degree of perfection in other dog sports as well.-The conformation...

 Araki Fabulous Willy
(25 April 2001 – 3 December 2008), also known as Willy, was a male Tibetan Terrier
Tibetan Terrier
The Tibetan Terrier is not a member of the terrier group, the name being given to it by European travelers to Tibet who were reminded of terriers from back home when they first encountered the breed...

 who won the title of Best In Show at Crufts
Crufts
Crufts is an annual international Championship conformation show for dogs organised and hosted by the Kennel Club, currently held every March at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, England. It is the largest annual dog show in the world, as declared by Guinness World Records, and lasts...

 in 2007. He was also the top of his breed in the UK for four years consecutively, and the top of the Utility group in 2003. Whilst competing at Crufts in 2007, his owners came in for criticism from some show dog breeders as they are a homosexual couple. Willy was the most successful of his breed of all time in the UK.

Early life

Owned by John Shaw and Neil Smith from Gloucester, Willy was bred by Ken Sinclair. He was born on 25 April 2001.

Show history

At Crufts
Crufts
Crufts is an annual international Championship conformation show for dogs organised and hosted by the Kennel Club, currently held every March at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, England. It is the largest annual dog show in the world, as declared by Guinness World Records, and lasts...

 between 2004 and 2006, Willy won the title of Best of Breed each time, and placed third in the Utility Group
Utility Group
Utility Group is the name of a breed group of dogs, used by kennel clubs to classify a defined collection of dog breeds. How Utility Group is defined varies among kennel clubs, and different kennel clubs may not include the same breeds in their Utility Group. Some kennel clubs do not use the...

 in 2006, winning the group in 2004. After winning Best in Show at the Birmingham National Dog Show in 2006, Willy became the most successful Tibetan Terrier of all time in the UK, having amassed 40 challenge certificates, breaking a record which had stood since 1970.

In 2007 at the age of six years, Willy qualified for Crufts and took first place in the Utility Group after winning its own breed group. However, following it's victory at that stage it came in for criticism from some show dog owners at the event as Willy's owners were a homosexual couple. Willy went on to take the title of Best in Show, the runner up in the final was a Wire Fox Terrier named Ch. Travella Show Stopper, with the other breeds who had qualified from winning their groups were an Alaskan Malamute
Alaskan Malamute
The Alaskan Malamute is a generally large breed of domestic dog originally bred for use as a utilitarian dog and later an Alaskan sled dog. They are sometimes mistaken for a Siberian Husky, but in fact are quite different in many ways...

, a Bloodhound
Bloodhound
The Bloodhound is a large breed of dog which, while originally bred to hunt deer and wild boar, was later bred specifically to track human beings. It is a scenthound, tracking by smell, as opposed to a sighthound, which tracks using vision. It is famed for its ability to discern human odors even...

, a Maltese, a Flat Coated Retriever and a Bearded Collie
Bearded Collie
The Bearded Collie, or Beardie, is a herding breed of dog once used primarily by Scottish shepherds, but now mostly a popular family companion....

, and was judged by Zena Thorn-Andrews. Owner John Shaw said of the victory, "It is unbelievable. This dog has done so well. It is the biggest accolade you could wish for. We may think about retiring him now because there is nothing left to do."

Claire Balding was the presenter of the Cruft's coverage for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

, and her dog Archie was the grandson of Willy. She said of the Tibetan Terrier's victory, "I got quite emotional. The critical thing is the X factor and he's got that." Another of Willy's grandsons, Notoriety Moonwalker at Tetsimi, took first place in the class of Special Junior – Dog. Following his victory at Crufts, Willy attended the re-launch of the Purple Hotel at Birmingham Star City, after it was rebranded from being named the Sleep Inn Hotel. He was retired after his win, and did not compete in the following year's Crufts. His breeder Ken Sinclair said that he was busy "playing with his girlfriend and digging up holes in the orchard".

Willy had been the top Tibetan Terrier in the UK for four consecutive years, and in 2003 became the only Tibetan Terrier to be the highest ranked of the Utility Group. He died on 4 December 2008, from a severe kidney infection.

External links

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