TITLES ON WESTMINSTER BEST OF BREED
my dog’s number at the Garden. David Frei’s departure was due to the new network contract (one announcer working for two net- works didn’t fly with the powers that be), and he will still be call- ing the National Dog Show aired by NBC. I don’t think many of us could have done a better debut performance than Gail Miller Bisher and by 2026 she could very well be a beloved household name for the fancy. Some other complaints that I have heard were about the cam- eras panning the crowd and miss- ing part of a dog’s judging and the interviews with the winners in the ring. Remember, everyone— FS1 is a sports channel. These are things that happen all the time during and after sports games. Should we request that the cam- eras remain focused on the dog being judged? Absolutely. Should we request interviews with the winners ask more dog-show rel- evant questions than the ques- tions athletes get? Absolutely. But we don’t need to panic. Yes, the channel should have been a little more prepared and had a bet- ter understanding of dog show proceedings, but studying only goes so far—in the heat of the moment, everyone, in every disci- pline, reverts to what they know. The FS1 team will improve. VERSATILITY REPORT On a lighter note, I went through the list of Breed win- ners again to look for perfor- mance titles. I did count CGC and CGCA this year, which yielded six Groups with at least one Best of Breed winner having an additional title. The Sporting Group topped the list with eight titled dogs. The Vizsla was one of the two dogs out of all Groups with the most titles: six agility titles and a Junior Hunter. Like last year, the Sporting dogs boasted the most purpose-relevant titles: three Junior Hunters, one Junior Hunter Retriever and two Senior Hunters (the American Water Spaniel and the Wirehaired
Pointing Griffon). The American Water Spaniel also boasted the most diverse spread of titles, hav- ing titles in obedience, rally, hunt- ing, retrieving, and a CGC, and the Wirehaired Pointing Griffon was the most successful performance- titled dog at this year’s WKC by winning second in the Group. The Herding Group boasted four dogs with titles, including the other most titled dog, the Belgian Sheepdog. He has two obedience titles, four rally titles and his CGCA. The Pumi was the only Herding dog with a herding title—Pre-Trial. The Hound Group also had four titled dogs. The Saluki was the most titled Hound, with titles in lure coursing, rally, and obedi- ence. Two Hounds had purpose- relevant titles; the Saluki with a Junior Courser and the Pharaoh Hound with a Master Courser. Although not a performance title, the Plott is also a Coon- hound Grand Champion through AKC’s Coonhound bench shows. I hadn’t realized that the AKC offers these competitions! The Working Group is next with three titled dogs. The Boer- boel was once again the most ver- satile Working dog, with titles in obedience, rally and lure cours- ing plus a CGC. The Bernese Mountain Dog went back to his roots by earning his Novice Draft Dog title and also placed fourth in the Group. The Terrier Group had one titled dog: the American Staf- fordshire Terrier, who is titled in lure coursing and dock div- ing, plus has his CGCA. The Am Staff was the third and final dog with performance titles to place in a Group, and took third from the Terriers. And last but not least, the Non- Sporting Group had one titled dog: the Shar-Pei with a CGC. Congratulations to all of these dogs on their successes in many venues! And of course congratu- lations to all of the winners— most of these dogs are limited by their owners’ time and finances, not by talent!
WINNERS BY GROUP
SPORTING 6 8 6
HOUND 1 4 2
WORKING 2 3 1
TERRIER 2 1 0
TOY
0 0 0
NON-SPORTING 0 1 0
HERDING 6 4 1
* CGC/CGCA not included this year
TITLES ON WESTMINSTER 2017 BEST OF BREED WINNERS BY EVENT **
AGILITY 1 AX 1 AXJ CANINE
10 CGC 3 CGCA
GOOD CITIZEN
CARTING/ DRAFTING
1 NDD
DOCK DIVING 1 DN HERDING 1 PT HUNTING 3 JH 2 SH LURE COURSING
2 CA 1 JC 1 MC
OBEDIENCE 3 BN 1 CD 1 CDX RALLY 6 RN 1 RE 1 RAE RETRIEVING 1 JHR
**Only highest title in each sport for each dog included.
64 • S how S ight M agazine , M arch 2017
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