Becoming: DiscoveringWestminster 2018
BY JACQUELYN FOGEL continued
Over the years she always wished us well as we left for New York. She watched us on TV – both the streaming breed video and the Group broadcasting. She was one of the first to congratulate or console. This year Becca made her dream of attending the show in person come true. She brought her fiancé along, and they did a whirlwind tour of some of New York’s best spots – including the World Trade Center Memorial, Central Park, and the Westminster Dog Show. She had heard my stories over the years, and finally got to experience this week for her- self. I am pleased to report that she was thrilled beyond all expectation, and her FaceBook posts verify and chron- icle her adventures. I had no idea how deeply she was affected by my annual trek, but I am so glad we always came back with a positive attitude and great stories to share. Though I know Becca and her two labs will prob- ably never be entered in the show, it is so gratifying to see that our experiences inspired her so much. I hope she continues to come back, and maybe bring even more friends with her. Finally, I am discovering that it’s time to get serious about passing the mantel to the next generation of great breeders. As I see more young breeders and handlers entering the ring at Westminster, I realize how important this is. I still have a few years of breeding left in me, but I must pass along both my knowledge and passion if my breeding program is to survive. I am discovering what a monumental responsibility this is. People new to a breed often have passion, but they typically lack the ability to evaluate dogs objectively, or the patience to do the pedi- gree and health research that must be done to build and establish a great bloodline. I don’t want the breeders I mentor to become kennel blind, and I want them to understand the difference between good, really good, and great dogs. That takes time and developing an eye for great dogs not just in one breed, but in many. I want to teach them how to breed, and how to select puppies, and how and when to trust their developing instincts. I am blessed to have a couple of young breeders who want to start the journey in bedlingtons, but I am afraid I will have to trust other good breeders to pass the mantel in bassets. I am also discovering how rejuvenating this process can be. Now I just need to find the energy to keep up. They all have Westminsters of their own to work toward and discover. n Jackie Fogel got her first purebred basset in 1969, but her real education in the world of AKC dogs and shows start- ed in 1979 when she moved to Wisconsin and whelped her first home-bred champion. In 1995 Jackie got a bedlington terrier from David Ramsey of the famous Willow Wind line. She has bred and shown numerous #1 bedlingtons, and continues to actively breed both bassets and bedlingtons. In 2007 Jackie began judging, and is approved to judge 6 breeds. She owns and manages Cedar Creek Pet Resort, and is active in the Kettle Moraine Kennel Club, Keep Your Pets, Inc., (a non-profit she founded), and the local Rotary club. Jackie writes for ShowSight Magazine, the basset column in the Gazette, and a pet column in a local magazine.
I discovered that no matter how often you wash your hands, it’s still possible to catch a bad cold. I have also learned that I am unwilling to give up on hugs in a vain attempt to limit exposure to germs and viruses. Many of the people I spent time with in New York came down with the Westminster crud this year. It was a nasty respi- ratory disease, and it is taking a long time from which to recover. It could well have been the plane travel that caused so many people to get sick. Air travel is certainly full of perils these days. But whatever caused it, it is not enough to deter me from going again. I don’t want to miss any of the excitement of this time in New York I rediscovered that sharing a great dinner with dog show friends is one of my greatest rewards for being a part of this culture. Nothing can replace the laughter at inside jokes and the super camaraderie we have when we share a meal at a fabulous New York restaurant. Even when we spend the day doing different things, that evening meal together is heavenly. The worries of the day disappear, and only the friendships remain as important. We have also discovered the joys of finding New York restaurants that are delicious and won’t break the bank. I am happy to share our favorites with anybody who is looking for a recommendation! Unfortunately I have also rediscovered that the depths of jealousy know no bounds, and social media only makes things worse. This year I was fortunate to win BOB with a bedlington. Both my dog’s handler and I made a stupid mistake and did not turn in our media card, each thinking the other had done so. That means the TV announcer Gail Bischer, had a blank paper in front of her when the dog went on the table. Thankfully, Westminster is staffed with super professionals who did a little background checking and found out that my dog had also won BOB at Montgomery County in 2017. That was the only fact she had to fill 30 seconds of airtime. Since the bedlington is a terrier, Gail talked about the wonderful Montgomery County Terrier show where many terriers host Nationals. However, because bedlingtons did not host our 2017 National there, two members of the Bedlington Terrier Club of America board of directors took the opportunity to publicly call my handler and I liars and reputation embellishers. Texts on my phone were coming in fast and furiously Tuesday night as their FaceBook postings started going viral, correcting our “lies” with win pictures of the real 2017 National winner, and rancorous remarks about both of us. Even when I tried to tell them it was a simple mistake, they would have none of it and dredged up even more falsified “facts” to back up their assertion that this was all planned in advance. I nearly let it destroy my extra day in New York – but decided I was not going to let this incident ruin our Valentine’s Day for the people with whom was I travelling. There would be time later to correct the false assertions and innuendos. I discovered that sometimes the dreams you instill in others take a few years to come to fruition, and they are always worth the effort. Several years ago a young lady worked for me as a receptionist/bather and all-around great kennel employee. Becca started when she was in high school and stayed with me until she graduated with her Associate Degree as a medical technician. She loved the dogs so much that she even taught herself how to groom a bedlington in a really nice pet trim. Now that Becca is working full-time for a premier Milwaukee hos- pital, she has the resources to do a lot of things that were beyond her financial reach while she was still in school.
54 • S how S ight M agazine , M arch 2018
Powered by FlippingBook