BLUE BOOK TOYS
PAPILLON Mrs. J. De Forest Danielson was gifted a pair of Papillons from Paris by Mrs. William Storr Wells in 1907. In the years that followed, the Boston native imported another pair, one of which produced a dog named Jou Jou, the first Papillon regis- tered with the AKC and the breed’s first American-bred champion. In 1915, the year of the breed’s recognition in the US, Mrs. Danielson resided at 4 Commonwealth Avenue, her childhood home that had been built by retail druggist William Brown on land purchased directly from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Mrs. Dan- ielson was the parent club’s first president and the breeder of Am. Eng. Ch. Offley Coquette, the first Papillon in America to win the Toy Group, and Am. Eng. Ch. Offley Black Diamond, the breed’s first Best in Show winner. By the time Ch. Itho of Offley appeared on the bench, the lady divided her time between a townhouse at 28 Commonwealth and Pound Farm, her country home in Medford, Massachusetts. MINIATURE PINSCHER In 1929, the American parent club of the Miniature Pinscher was formed, four years after AKC recognition. Interestingly, the “King of Toys” originally competed in the Terrier Group. Among the breed’s early supporters in the US was Mrs. B. J. Wen- tker of Burlington, Wisconsin. (A brew pub by the name B. J. Wentker’s operated in the city, though it is unclear whether its German immigrant proprietor and his wife were associated with the Min. Pin.) In any event, Ch. Princess Sylvia v. Konigsbach was owned by a Mrs. Wentker and competed successfully on the bench during the breed’s earliest years in America. As detailed in the 1938 Blue Book, “This beauti- ful little Miniature Pinscher set the circuit ‘on fire.’ She would show ‘just enough’ against her own breed. In the Groups she would get steamed up, but when she was in against larger breeds she’d really ‘turn on the heat’ and show her champion class.” “This beautiful little Miniature Pinscher set the circuit ‘on fire.’ She would show ‘just enough’ against her own breed. In the Groups she would get steamed up, but when she was in against larger breeds she’d really ‘turn on the heat’ and show her champion class.” POODLE (TOY) By the 1930s, the Poodle had become a force to be reckoned with in the ring. The dogs of Pillicoc, Misty Isles, Fair Acres, and Blakeen feature prominently through- out the pages of the AKC Blue Book of Dogs. Most, if not all, are Standards, with a few gorgeous Miniatures included for good measure. A notable exception is a small white Toy that appears on page 126, sandwiched between two Pomeranians. Mitor of Muriclar is the sole representative of the variety that would ultimately capture the hearts of innumerable fanciers in the US and around the world. Owned by Mrs. Charles Clark of San Francisco and bred by Florence Orsie, the coy little coquette is listed as having been sired by Happy Chappy out of Orsie’s Mit Zee. According to Mackey J. Irick Jr. in The New Poodle , many US Poodles can be traced back to this particular sire. Mrs. Clark’s involvement in the breed apparently spanned several decades. In a 1951 San Francisco Chronicle article covering the Golden Gate Kennel Club Dog Show, one of the lady’s Toys is featured in a photo with a caption that reads, “Ticky, the parti-colored Toy Poodle, challenging a teddy bear to a fight.” CHIHUAHUA (SMOOTH COAT) Mrs. Henrietta Proctor Donnell Reilly was an American promoter of many Toy breeds, most notably the English Toy Spaniel, Miniature Pinscher, Affenpinscher, and Chihuahua. In its heyday, her Etty Haven Kennels in Larchmont, Westchester County, New York, was home to more than 100 dogs. Mrs. Proctor Donnell was co- founder of the Chihuahua Club of America and its president for eight years. She was also the first president of the Progressive Dog Club, the revered Group show where a Group First is officially considered a Best in Show win by the American Kennel Club. The Etty Haven Kennel’s top-winning Chihuahuas included littermates Ch. Uz of Etty Haven and Ch. Buz of Etty Haven, and the diminutive Ch. Cecillee of Etty Haven. Beginning in 1933, Ch. Joya Preciosa was a reliable winner for the kennel, earning Best of Breed wins and multiple Group placements for three years running.
Ch. Itho of Offley (Trytho x Bella du Chauffeur)
Ch. Princess Sylvia v. Konigsbach (Nichol’s Buddy Boy x Ch. Eui v. d. Konigsbach)
Mitor of Muriclar (Happy Chappy x Orsie’s Mit Zee)
Ch. Joya Preciosa (Ch. Little Meron x Angelica)
108 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, OCTOBER 2020
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