There are many great dogs in our
breed but none greater than Multi BIS/BISS # 1 ACD in breed history Aust Ch Kombinalong Super “K”
From the mating of sire Stillan Blue
Buddy and dam Ch Meroolestate Kristie producing
7 pups, 6 males, 1 female on 11 June 1985 came this
long legged, big headed, clumsy male who was to
be the greatest winning ACD’s in the history of
the breed.
He was named after the opening of
a large supermarket in our area called Super K Mart,
and his call name "Sao", after a very
famous Australian product.
His show career commenced relatively
uneventfully. Not until he gained his first Best
in Group at nine months of age did I really consider
that I would persist with this clumsy dog.
At eighteen months of age and a lot
of growing later, he gained his title as well as
winning Best in Group and Runner Up Best in Show
at a major Sydney Show with an entry of some 1800
dogs. I still remember the first person to congratulate
me as I left the ring, an old breeder who had told
me way back in the beginning of "Sao's"
career that this dog will be the best, saying "I
wasn't wrong, was I".
Sao's next big event was the Australian
Cattle Dog Society of NSW Specialty in September
1987. Mr Alan Gammidge took him from the Intermediate
Class to the Dog Challenge Certificate and Runner
Up Best in Show. What an exciting win it was! The
general feeling of the "establishment"
was "beginners luck"! They were not quite
so forgiving when he won Best in Show at the Australian
Working Dog Club of NSW show only 3 weeks later.
From that point on he never looked back.
1988 and it was the Bicentennial Year
in Australia. A tremendous amount of work had gone
into holding the first Australian Cattle Dog National
Show in conjunction with an Australian Breeds Bicentennial
Spectacular. All the Australian breed Specialties
were held on the one ground and the Best in Show
winners from each of these specialties went on to
compete for Best Australian Breed. It was the biggest
single event in the history of our breed with exhibitors
coming from every State of Australia. Mrs Carmyn
Kingston, a great lover of the breed officiated
at the event awarding "Sao" Best in Show.
We then competed against all of the other Best in
Show winners to be awarded Supreme Exhibit Australian
Breeds Bicentennial Spectacular. Even the torrential
rain on the day did not dampen my excitement at
winning such a prestigious event.
Sao continued his winning ways, being
Number 1 Working Dog Australia wide for 1989 and
1990 and Number 3 Dog in Australia 1989. He was
highest scoring Working dog, Dalwood Dog of the
Year for 1991, plus won many many breed and group
point scores for the years of 1989, 1990, 1991 and
1992.
He was retired in October 1993 on
his 20th Best in Show. He also won 21 Runner Up
Best in Shows including the 1990 Launceston Royal,
68 Best in Groups and over 100 classes in group
and in show awards. I had achieved my goal. To have
the greatest winning dog in the history of the breed.
In the latter stages of his life 'Sao'
battled with prostrate cancer and one of the saddest
days of my life came on May 1 1998 when I said goodbye
to my best friend.
"He will live in my heart forever"
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