Sandra Campbell: Sweepstakes Judge
Craigwood Kennel was started when I purchased my first Basset with my first paycheck earned as a Science teacher. After looking all over for a Basset puppy, I found one advertised in the Atlanta paper. Since I was a novice about acquiring a dog I just called the people in Atlanta and told them if they would bring the dog to me that I would buy it. Believe it or not, they agreed to! It was a female puppy that I named Pongi Fonji. I bred Pongi Fongi to Clinch River Hercules when my husband and I were living in a one bedroom apartment. Unbelievably, they produced a very nice male puppy, Ch. Criaigwood’s Shoefly. Coming home from church one Sunday I saw a setup with a lot of dogs, so I went to see what was happening. They told me it was a match and if I had a dog I could enter and show it, so I ran to the apartment and got Shoefly. To my great surprise, he went best in match and I was hooked. Shortly after raising the puppies, we moved to a house we bought in the Craigwood subdivision, thus the name Craigwood Kennel.
Over the years I have bred and shown over 150 champion dogs. I have been lucky enough to breed National Specialty winners in Sweepstakes, Winners Dog, Winners Bitch, Best of Opposite Sex, Brood Bitch and Best of Breed. My latest National Specialty winner was Ch. Craigwood Super Nova, who is the link to Craigwood’s future.
It has been a fun and exciting journey from Pongi Fongi to my new dog, Ch. Solow’s Been There Done That (RWD at 2013 Nationals). The things that have meant the most to me are the wonderful friends and breeders I have met along the way. Due to this sport I have made many lifelong friends.
It is indeed an honor being selected to judge this year’s sweepstakes by the dedicated breeders of BHCA. I look forward to judging your beautiful and promising puppies that are the future of our breed. I want to thank everyone for their support and wish everyone “Good Luck” at this year’s Nationals.