AN eight-year-old girl is one of the youngest-ever competitors to take her dog to Crufts.

Isobel Khawaja, from Stanford-le-Hope, will take her Shetland sheepdog, Dusty, to the dog show where she will be the only child handler in two of the classes.

Isobel and Dusty will be competing in three categories, junior handler aged 6-11, the veterans class and the good citizens class.

Her mother, Sally Khawaja, of Branksome Avenue, said: “We’re really, really proud of her. Not only is she brilliant with dogs, but earlier in 2014 she had surgery on the tendons on her thumb at Great Ormond Street Hospital which meant she couldn’t train for two months.

“Despite this setback, she calls it her ‘magic thumb’ as it got her through to Crufts!”

Mrs Khawaja, 37, added: “She’s had so much encouragement from people all over the world because there aren’t many children doing it. She’s really making her mark.”

Well-wishers and friends from as far as Australia and the US have been contacting Isobel and Dusty to wish them both luck in the competition.

A spokesman for Crufts said: “Isobel has done exceedinglywell to enter into the breed-showing classes at Crufts at just eightyears- old and she is one of the youngest people we have seen entering these competitions. We wish her the very best of luck.”

Isobel, a pupil at Graham James Primary Academy, has been making her parents proud since taking first place in different classes at the Windsor Championship Dog Show and the Manchester Championship Dog Show.

Those placings qualified her to get through to the Crufts competition, which starts on March 5.

Isobel has showed a gift for handling dogs since she was only two, her family say. She attended her first dog show at that age, and won her first dog show as a handler when she was six.

Mrs Khawaja added: “From day one, she’s always loved dogs and she’s got a really special bond with Dusty.”