Question of the Week

Stephanie Abraham

Scotland, Connecticut

In October 1971, as an absolute neophyte, I drove from Connecticut to Baltimore to show my 14-month-old Boxer. It may have been my very first time in the ring and I was wearing high heels — I have the photo to prove it! (See above.)

“Casey” (later Ch. Gray Roy’s Minstrel Boy LOM) went Winners Dog for his first of five majors under a lovely gentleman whose name I later learned was Alva Rosenberg. What a day that was! 

As an aside — Alva never forgot Casey. And every time he would see us at a show he would ask after him and followed his career. I was always so honored to have been his acquaintance. 

Beverly Vics

High Point, North Carolina

I remember my first big win like it was yesterday ... close to 50 years ago. Westminster, Best of Breed. My first Akita special, Ch. Tobe's Peking Jumbo, CD. Back then Akitas were much more popular than they are today. We had maybe 20 or 25 specials in the ring. I remember when I made the first cut, I was over the moon ... then the second cut ... couldn't believe I'd done so well! Then the judge pointed to me for BEST OF BREED ... OMG, I couldn't believe it. 

As I walked out of the ring, I handed the dog's leash to someone on my right side ... on my left side, a friend, Renee Gold, handed me a drink ... alcohol ... whoops. Downed it. By the time I walked off that huge arena floor I was flying, both from the excitement of the win — and the alcohol. When I got back to the benching area, Jumbo was not in his crate. I had no idea to whom I had handed his leash when I left that ring ... DUH!

Fortunately, it was my dear friend Eric Gold: He had taken Jumbo to the ex area and returned him to his crate a few minutes after I got there. Bless you, Eric!

Randy Garren

Apex, North Carolina

A win that meant a whole lot to me was my first group placement. It was with my Standard Poodle puppy under Mrs. Romana Van Court around 1970. I think it was Augusta Kennel Club.

Janet York

New York, New York

I remember it well! Arleen Czech gave me my first AKC BIS on Ch. Corneel VH Lamslag at the shows in Williamsburg, Virginia, I think in 1970. This was his first of four Bests. Definitely a most memorable memory!

If you are reading this, Arleen, a BIG THANK YOU!

Jay Phinizy

Acworth, New Hampshire

Under Bo Bengtson, the Scottish Deerhound Club of America National 1983 BOB. “Snags” was a stud-fee puppy bred by Sue Coons. She then went on to be the first Deerhound to place in the group at Westminster.
 

Bob Urban

Greenwich, Ohio

Easy one: Winning the American Black and Tan Coonhound Club National Specialty in Chicago in 1992 under Anne Rogers Clark. Then winning the group later that weekend at the International KC under Kent Delaney.

Susan Shephard

Deltona, Florida

LOL. I won a local Pekingese specialty (Citrus Capital Pekingese Club of Central Florida) nearly 30 years ago under judge Betty Dudding. The big-winning dog was next to me in line, and when Mrs. Dudding stepped forward with the BOB outstretched ribbon, the handler stood up with his hand out and great big smile ... she smiled back and said, “No, not you,” and handed me the ribbon. It was my first specialty BOB win and — bonus — with a dog I'd bred. I'd only entered him to support the club, as he'd finished the year before and had been on squirrel patrol since then. Ch. Deja vu Travelin' Man. 

Glen Lajeski

Cloverdale, California

I remember my first win like it was yesterday. I was showing a 10-month-old fawn Great Dane puppy from my first litter. I was working for Kitty Kolyer of Kolyer Great Danes on weekends. Kitty took me to the Dane specialty in Pennsylvania, my first show under her guidance. Not only was everyone shocked that I won a large puppy class as a novice exhibitor, but I went on to win a five-point major under the highly respected judge Alva Rosenberg with Kolyer’s Alligator All of Glen, who went on to finish his championship as a puppy. Fortunately, I just held the end of the lead, with Alligator Al being a natural showman. I felt just like Lina Basquette, who I competed against, and who congratulated me — I was in heaven and hooked on dog shows. 
 

Kathy Ronald

Umatilla, Florida

John and my first big win together showing Samoyeds was in December 1981 at Eau Claire Kennel Club. We were just moving back to Wisconsin and decided to take our Samoyed, Am/Can/Bah Ch. Polar Mist Dr Pepper, ROM, to the Eau Clair show, shown by John. The judge was the fabulous Melbourne Downing, and that day, under the old rules, he judged breed, the old Working Group and Best in Show.  

We won the breed, and, to our delight, the Working Group. John nervously entered the Best in Show ring with many of our fellow Samoyed friends watching and cheering them on. Like a fairy tale, Mr. Downing pointed to Dr Pepper for his first Best in Show!

As John was on the platform taking the Best in Show photo, Mr. Downing asked, “Do you know what just happened?” John said, “My dog won Best in Show.” Mr. Downing replied, “No, he won Best in Show under ME! THAT is important — live up to it.”  

And he did. With John, Dr Pepper went on to be the top Best in Show-winning owner-handled Samoyed with 13 Bests in Show. The record from the 1980s still stands.

Mark Jaeger

Mason, Michigan

It depends on what you mean by BIG.

The first time I showed a class dog that took breed over a special was with a Miniature Schnauzer that I had bred at Central Ohio KC under breeder-judge Bob Moore.

The first time I had a dog place in the group (it was the same Miniature Schnauzer) was at Monroe KC under John Cole.

The first time I showed a dog to a Group 1st was with a Brussels Griffon at Kalamazoo KC under Jean Fournier. Judging was delayed by a tornado warning that day.

Dr. Daniel Dowling

Hope, Maine

I sure do remember ... my first all-breed BIS in the mid-1970s with one of my Borzoi from the Open class to finish his championship with a five-point major. The judge was Derek Raine, Greeley KC in Colorado.  My wife and I were THRILLED!

Julie L. Mueller

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Like it was yesterday! But it was 52 years ago, and I had just had my 16th birthday one week earlier. I won the Non-Sporting Group with a class Miniature Poodle dog under Isidore Schoenberg. His registered name was Ch. Gregella's Ebony Executive, bred by Pat Hancock of Gregella Poodle fame. My mother, Arlene, was still doing all the driving to the shows since I did not have my driver's license yet.

No cell phones, so when I got home the first person I called was Michael Dachel to tell him my exciting news; he was working for Bill Trainor then. He said, "Oh, Jules, did you win a major?" No,” I replied. “There was only two points in the classes” — not knowing you could win a major by winning the group if a breed in that group had a major entry! Whoa, I was jumping up and down telling Michael there were a ton of Lhasa Apso because I watched them and knew they had a huge major, actually a five-point major! Michael was laughing and he was so happy for me.

I will never forget that conversation or that win. And after the show, my mother and I had dinner with the handler of one of the top Mini specials that was defeated that day. In the infamous words of Cher, "If I could turn back time."

Judy Baumgartner 

Kiel, Wisconsin 

The Irish Red and White Setter was accepted into the Sporting Group in 2009. But not until January 2014 at the Oshkosh Kennel Club Show under judge James Brown did I win Best in Show. I handled Sean myself. He was BIS BISS Mizen Duhas Dilis JH. To this day it has never been done again. No one else has ever gotten a BIS on an IRWS. 

Dr. Vandra L. Huber

Woodinville, Washington

My most memorable win was when BIS BISS Ch. Gaelforce PostScript — aka Peggy Sue — went Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club Show. 

We (myself, Maripi Wooldridge, her wife Jennifer, who was her girlfriend then, and Larry Cornelius) had a wonderful day shopping to find just the perfect suit for Maripi to wear in the ring. After stops at all the major stores, we settled on an exquisite white suit with just a little bling around the jacket cuffs. Perfect! Elegant and understated to show a black Scottish Terrier!

That night, co-owner Dr. Joe Kinnarney and I sat together in a ringside box. The judge was the notable Dr. Jacklyn E. Hungerland. She had done well by Peggy Sue when she had judged her before. But we’d never been up against such impressive dogs as the Best in Show lineup that night.  

The No. 2 show dog in the country in 1994, the black Cocker Ch. La Shay’s Bart Simpson, was shown by the late Bob Covey. Two Poodles— the Toy Poodle Ch. MVP of Ahs shown by the late Gary Wittmeier and the Miniature Poodle Ch. Surrey Sweet Capsicum shown by the late Kaz Hosaka — made it to the finale. Given that Dr. Hungerland was a Poodle breeder, they not only were trimmed to perfection but to be feared. Representing the Working Group was Ruth Winston's Akita Ch. Tobe’s Return of the Jedai. The legendary Pat Craige piloted her homebred Norwegian Elkhound Ch. Vin-Melca’s Marketta. There was an upset in the Herding Group: The Bennetts’ Bouvier de Flanders Ch. Aristes Hemantite Dragon beat out Jimmy Moses’ German Shepherd Ch. Altana's Mystique. Mystique was the number-one all-breed show dog in 1994.

It was hard to see what was happening on the green carpet, so I mostly watched the huge monitor. Peggy Sue looked good, really good, on the table. On the down and back, Peggy was perfection. Ears forward, head up. Tail bang on. Footfall strong and clean. Her black coat seemed to gleam under the spotlights. And she stood out against the white of Maripi’s suit.

But the other contenders also looked good. I remember Dave Frei making his final winner prediction … I sat back and waited. There Peggy Sue stood, positioned between the two Poodles. Given the judge’s Poodle background, I wondered which one she would choose. But then she didn’t. “I’ll have the Scottish Terrier, please.” 

In shock, I tried to make my way down to the green-carpeted main floor. It was chaos. Cheers and shouts. Pats on the back. There was Peggy Sue, and all I could do was smile.

A week later Peggy Sue and Maripi came home to the Pacific Northwest. More than 2,000 people turned out at the Seattle Kennel Club show to see and meet Peggy Sue. She was shown two more times: at the Scottish Terrier Club of America’s rotating specialty in Puyallup, Washington, and the 1995 Montgomery County KC show. Peggy Sue still holds the record for winning six STCA national specialties. She only had one litter of puppies before her untimely death due to a rare fast-acting cancer. But Peggy Sue lives on in the pedigrees of most of my Scottish Terriers, including my young boy who just won the STCA’s National Sweepstakes.

Mark Threlfall

Merrimack, New Hampshire

My first Best in Show was with a Smooth Fox Terrier, Champion Foxden Warspite, a young dog that was bred and owned by Mr. and Mrs. James A. Farrell’s Foxden Kennels. It was on a Sunday in Ludwigs Corner, Pennsylvania. We were in Albany, New York, on Saturday, and we drove the seven and a half hours to Ludwigs Corner for the show. The Sunday judges in New York were not very good for the bulk of our dogs, so we decided to make the trip to Ludwigs Corner for the Sunday show, which was only an hour from home.

My dog won the breed, and Max Riddle was doing the group. I had never shown the dog to him, but like I said, after a loss it was a lot easier to be an hour’s drive from home than seven hours. To my surprise, Mr. Riddle pointed to my young dog for the win in the Terrier Group. The Best in Show judge was Mr. James Clark.

I remember being in the Best in Show ring next to Bobby Barlow with his Chow. When Mr. Clark went to mark his book, Bobby asked me who I thought would win. I told Bobby I thought he would. He said he thought I would. Sure enough, Bobby was right. My young dog won his first Best in Show, and I had sweet dreams that night.

Rita Figg

Laurel, Florida

I was a total novice! I won the Bred-by bitch class and then Winners Bitch and then BOB over five boy specials! So into the group I went. I had watched, but had never been in the group before. The judge, Garland Baker, did all the individuals, during which I just played with my young girl. Never in a million years did I expect to do anything! He walked down the line, looking at the gorgeous dogs, came back to the front, and just flipped his hand at me and walked on down the line again! I had no idea what was going on. The lady next to me said, "Go over there, he just gave you a group one!" I still get chills remembering this. She went on to be a multiple-group-winning bitch. Thank you, Mr. Baker, for her start! 

Christine Chapman

Primos, Pennsylvania

My very first Group 1st win with my Scottish Deerhound, Ch. Briarwood's Obsidian of Vale Vue, RA, CGC, after more than 20 years of showing! Perkiomen Valley KC's show on August 4, 2007, under S. Candace Way!

Nancy Winton 

Tucson, Arizona

My first big win in AKC was at Palm Springs, California, in 2012. My bitch, GRBCH Ch. White Deer Lil Nite Music, won three five-point majors that weekend. The judge who finished her, Roger Pritchard, made her the first Treeing Walker Coonhound female to finish in our breed.

I was too nervous to show and had Tara Schultz handle her. It was an amazing ride with Bella.

Rodney Herner

Long Neck, Delaware

My first BIG win was accomplished by the Toy Manchester Terrier Ch. Renreh Lorelei of Charmaron, bred by me and owned by Mari-Beth O'Neill and her father, Charles O'Neill.  She won the Toy Group at Westminster (1969) under judge Anna Katherine Nicolas. Although she didn't go Best in Show, it was so exciting to see her in that iconic competition! She was handled by J. Monroe Stebbins, who went on to become an early AKC field rep.

Lorelei remains the only Toy Manchester to win the Toy Group at Westminster. She went on to win Best in Show under two very iconic judges — William Kendrick and Alva Rosenberg. 

Diane Young McCormack 

Reno, Nevada

I had entered my homebred Standard Longhaired Dachshund in the 1996 Westminster Kennel Club show. It was February and, of course, Spirit had blown his coat. I kept threatening to pull him, but my sister, Beverly, kept telling me, "No, we have traveled all this distance, and you're not going to pull him."

The judge was Jon Cole, and in the year before, he had dumped me at one show and put me up at another.

Spirit and I were near the front of the lineup of 20 other spectacular Longhaired Dachshunds. The dogs went around the ring together, then one by one were examined on the table. Then the judge had Spirit move against practically every other dog in the ring. The more times he moved around the ring, with the crowd cheering, the more animated he became. 

Next we were kneeling on the floor, with our dogs stacked in front of us. Up and down the judge walked, looking at our dogs. He started at the end of the line. I was concentrating on keeping Spirit perfectly stacked. Then I looked up and saw the judge's very long legs directly in front of us.

He pointed down at Spirit and me and said ... "And you ... YOU ... are my Best of Variety!”

Katharine Baptiste

Wantagh, New York 

My first big win was a Non-Sporting Group 4th under Johnny Shoemaker. He couldn’t have been kinder. He took the time to make sure that my dog was set correctly, and showed me how to hold my lead on the podium. It’s been almost 10 years since that, and I've gone on to have many more group wins, placements and a National BISS winner. However, this win with Johnny will always remain proudly displayed in my home for decades to come. It represents so much more. 

Leah Hartlep

Garden City, Iowa

At the Nebraska Kennel Club show in 2018, my Whippet puppy and my Ibizan Hound both won the breed. I asked a friend to take my Ibizan into group under Andrea Bradford MD, so I could stay on my puppy. Both made Dr. Bradford's cut ... and then she pulled out my Ibizan to win the group. I still remember my friend looking back at me, in shock! And then, Group 2nd went to my Whippet puppy! It was my first group win, and the first time I've had two of my dogs place in the group at the same show. What an exhilarating experience!

Dr. Larry W. Dosier

Rhoadesville, Virginia

I was SOO green, I do not remember the show or the judge. However, it was the second time in the ring with a handler for my first dog, and the first MAJOR for the eventual Ch. Zat's So of Woodcrest, presented very adeptly by George Alston. The show picture is on page 33 of his book, “The Winning Edge” (1992).   

Denise Borton

Kalamazoo, Michigan

I sure do! Winning the 1989 ABA National Specialty in Novi, Michigan, under Mrs. Anne Clark with a 25-month-old bitch. This win introduced me to the sport on a more serious level and, most importantly, a teaching relationship with Mrs. Clark. Whenever I saw her and if there was appropriate time, she would patiently answer my questions about Working dog movement, construction and breed type. How lucky was I?