If you hear that a six-year-old won at Crufts, you’d be forgiven for assuming that the dog was the six-year-old in question.
However, Freddie Osborne, who took home the best veteran accolade, is a child. He entered with his smooth fox terrier, Penny, on March 6th, and won, which wasn’t something he and his family were expecting.
A Crufts spokesperson said that, while they couldn’t definitively say whether Freddie was their youngest-ever winner in Crufts history, he is thought to be one of them. He’s so young that his school had to grant him special permission to have the day off to attend the dog show.
Freddie said that he’d “really enjoyed Crufts,” describing Penny as the “best dog ever,” via BBC News. He added, “Penny and I won best veteran in breed and we are so happy with our rosette. I love walking her and she's really good.”
Before his Crufts victory, Freddie’s mom, Kimberley, said, via BBC News, that her son had “worked really hard and done lots of training at home and other shows,” but that the experience would be “all about having fun”.
Kimberley explained that Freddie – who had a “special step” to put Penny onto the judging table – is eager to help care for Penny and the family’s other dog, Charlie, adding, “He helps with the dogs, he does their food in the morning and it's a responsibility for him."
She said, “I'm really proud that he has got this far,” revealing that she didn’t necessarily expect him to win.
“Penny is old now so she’s a bit past it, but it's more about Freddie being able to go to Crufts and learn about winning and losing, and how to be a graceful loser.”
Crufts ran last week (March 6–9th), and Miuccia the whippet won Best in Show – the first time a dog from Italy has won the award. Meanwhile, Belgian Malinois Baloo won The Kennel Club Hero Dog Award for her work visiting police stations, schools, care homes, and local community groups, years after the retired police dog was hit by a car as a suspect fled a crime scene.
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