An Okehampton Crufts dog handler is hanging up her hat after more than 50 years of dog showing.

Brenda Randle, who started her dog handling career in 1976, has decided to retire her well-loved Cavalier King Charles spaniel, Treacle, from the dog ring in order to give her some much-needed rest in her later years.

She said: ‘At 12 years and three months she’s amazing. People say “oh, you should carry on showing” and she does still enjoy it so much, but I think is it fair to, not drag her around every show going, but do it for another rosette?

‘You know, she won some money and [her awards] are already up on the wall here everywhere. She’s won so much more than I could ever wish for you and she’s good company as well. She’s done some really good winning; that’s more poignant.’

This year’s Crufts saw one of Treacle’s last successes as she came fifth out of ten veteran show dogs and was the oldest dog in her breed.

Brenda has also decided not to return to the dog show with a younger animal either as she too takes a well-deserved rest in her golden years.

‘ I’m getting older and I’ve got a couple of little niggles and I don’t think it’d be fair,’ she said. ‘I’ve been offered puppies that good breeders have run on and asked “would you like to take this puppy?” So that’s very nice, because that shows what other people think of you, but I don’t think it’s fair. I’ve got Treacle and she deserves a good rest now.’

Brenda originally showed German Shepherd dogs after she became friends with a local dog groomer who introduced her to the world of dog showing, after which she joined a few of the local clubs in the area.

She described how she and her friend were able to change local people’s perception of German Shepherds as aggressive dogs after regularly taking their dogs on the bus on the way to the dog show club meetings.

She added: ‘[The people on the bus] gradually got to know us and we got to know them. We had lots of conversations and they learned and got really into it, which is really really nice. It’s just changed people’s perception.’

But Brenda later changed to showing Cavalier King Charles spaniels in the 90s in order to allow her daughter to compete in the children’s classes and because she dislike the way that German Shepherds were being bred to fit the changing show standards.

During her years as a dog handler, Brenda said that she had seen the dog shows become increasingly professional with more and more professional dog handlers, as opposed to pet owners, showing dogs in the ring.

Crufts is the world-famous annual dog show organised by the Kennel Club and attracts thousands of competitors and visitors from across the world each year.

The first Crufts show was held in 1891.