Westminster Dog Show Offers No Joy for Fans of a Charming Galoot

I'm really disappointed about Nathan for a personal reason. I had an absolutely gorgeous female Basset Hound. (Yes, they can be gorgeous.) And I know that breed will never stand a chance of winning either. Beagles are wonderful but they have won enough.

We are on the lookout for a replacement for Goldie who passed after guarding her turf for 12 years.
Some kind of Jindo, or Husky mix.

I want another mutt, hybrid vitality, and a look that lets everybody guess the breed incorrectly. "How did you know that, wow you are really good". Its makes peoples day.

One of the most beautiful and elegant breeds, the Irish Setter, has never won BIS at Westminster!

Go Rottweilers !

Love the Dog Show. The dogs enjoy it and don't seem to care who wins.

As someone committed to reducing the number of companion animals killed in the US because of over-population, unregulated "puppy and kitten" mills and breeders only interested in profit, watching the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is certainly a guilty pleasure for me. It is a real pleasure, however, to see the uncommon breeds and watch the dogs relax once off-stage. I loved the visual of the young dog in the Toy Group who joyfully jumped into the box labeling the group as he made his way back to his place. An unscripted moment of being a "real" dog.

I understand how much effort, money and time it takes to bring a dog to Westminster. And I do understand that many "breeder, owner, handlers" are not affluent, hands-off participants, but people dedicated to dogs. I agree with those who express concerns that "breed standards" can negatively affect dogs; the increasing participation of Westminster dogs in agility, therapy and other activities helps that perception and probably helps the health of the dogs.
I hope that Westminster and other dog shows continue to advocate for "best practices" of dog breeding. I hope that breed rescue groups are supported by those who care about purpose bred dogs who are casualties of the breeding process. It is an unfortunate reality that millions of dogs do not live the life of these champions; millions don't live at all. We can change that reality.

Growing up in a breeders home and continuing in the dog fancy myself into my 50's, I have had the pleasure of attending and often participating in hundreds of shows from Westminster to Pensacola to Beverly Hills, and so many in between. Westminster remains a jewel because, aside from its historic importance, it is one of the few remaining bench shows where entered dogs are required to stay on the show grounds from the opening to closing of each show day. This allows the public an exceptional opportunity to meet the dogs, learn about the breeds, and see first hand how unique they all are. Preparing a dog or bitch to reach this level of competition takes years of dedication, careful breeding, exceptional handling skills, money, a bit of luck, and above all, the love of the dog. My very best to all the breeders, owners, handlers, and judges who will participate in Westminster this year. Only wish I could be there with you.

I can't imagine how any small yappy dog could be better than the noble, hardworking, fiercely loyal Border collie. The Border collie has more brains, guts, determination, and is certainly more fun than most of the dogs that show up in these competitions.

Watching the show on TV, I am reminded how much more fun it is to watch the sheepdog trials on a cold and windy winter afternoon.

We never think of ourselves as owning our two wonderful dogs.
We do however feel owned by them and that suits us just fine.

Glitzy and fun and all, but so removed in every respect from anything like what being a dog should be, and everything about the tendency of humans to carry things to freakish extremes.

Such negative comments about terriers here, but my favorite, the soft-coated wheaten terrier, has never gotten a second glance from any judge at Westminster. These large terriers are a joy, with a nice deep bark, not a yap. I've been told the politics in Westminster judging are why wheatens are overlooked - but I don't know what those politics are. They are an old breed, hearty, affectionate, amusing, and beautiful. And they don't slobber.

Bloomberg exposed the scandal of Westminster judging last year.

http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2014-02-10/westminster-dog-show-his...

The variety of dogs at Westminster is truly astounding. I wonder, however, at the overbreeding for "type" that results in those smash-faced dogs that can't breathe and the sloping back of the German shepherd that results in damaged hips. If dogs were bred as much for health as for looks, we'd have much better dogs.

I have loved, owned, bred, and showed AKC canines, but in the past several years, I have had an awakening. For each AKC elite approval stamp that accompanies these admittedly appealing dogs, how many equally appealing canines are abandoned, abused, and euthanized? Does this politically powerful organization take any serious or meaningful responsibility for the approximately 5500 dogs (see "Act of Dog") euthanized each day in the US? When a well meaning family pays a lot of money for a "purebred", what is the consequence for those canine sentient beings without homes?

The judging should be liberated to include a broader spectrum of judges. Even empowering all in attendance to judge would be an improvement.

Of course the beagle won! They're adorable.

I would like to know the criteria these judges use when deciding what is the best dog. I see them looking at their teeth and poking and prodding the dogs. What is it the judges are looking for? I remember when Stump won Best in Show a few years ago and the judge said part of the reason why was his personality. Stump was bouncing around and barking. He was a cutie.

I founded and ran for a number of years a purebred beagle rescue group. After Uno won we were nervous that we would suddenly see an uptick in homeless beagles because of his win and popularity. As cute as they are their reputation for being noisy apparently staved off a big wave of faddishness in owning one, which we were very thankful for.

I'd much rather see dogs bred for their working purpose, which helps maintain genetic strength, than their adherence to a breed standard which in some cases has become diametrically opposed to the original purpose of the dog. It's no secret that Labrador Retrievers and German Shepherds have suffered some of the greatest genetic defects due to breeding for form over function.

That said, the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is kind of fun and although I do not watch it I root loudly for hounds of all kinds, especially the scent hounds.

I wonder if it would be possible for Westminster to have a mutt class, comprised of dogs of mixed breed, in which the winner would be one who best displays a combination of traits from his/her breed mix.

I have two purebred dogs, both rescued from the pound in dire shape. My rat terrier is a good dog, energetic, always ready to play. But my bluetick coonhound makes people smile. Every day on his walk someone will say, "That's a good looking hound." Construction workers and well-dressed women alike laud my lazybones dog, wanting to pet him. Hounds aren't for everyone but people do like them.

In some countries halfway around the globe dogs are eaten as a dish. Here in America they are fed with a silver spoon and waited on hand and foot so that they can strut their stuff in front of hundreds of thousands of people to win a grand prize for themselves.

Why are three paragraphs of this Westminster Dog Show article about Patty Hearst? Does anybody remember or care about Patty Hearst? Leave her alone and report on the dog show.

These dog shows are fixed! Those small, prissy "dogs" seem to always win. They aren't a "dog's dog!!" Also why aren't the Akitas and Shiba Inus ever in the winner's circle? These are truly noble dogs: loyal, sturdy, excessively intelligent and handsome. I agree with Larry, terriers for the most part are just yappy rug rats. And NO dog should ever have a bow or look frilly, female or not.

Dog show judging is so arbitrary, just like hunter classes in horse shows. Remember, while Lassie on TV was supposed to be a bitch, "she" was actually a he because male dogs have more ruff than do female collies. I am always amazed when I hear that some judges prefer bitches. Since my breed, the australian shepherd, had difficulty getting into the AKC, I've always been interested in the politics of dog showing. Same for horse showing since I have a German jumper with better form than any horse around here over jumps. But he gets second to horses who take 6 strides between jumps but have bad form over jumps. The perfect bascule and great conformation don't matter to judges who count strides. So dog showing as well is hostage to the whims of the judges. Everyone should go to dog shows and see just how crazy the owners and handlers are though. It is so bizarre.

As the owner of a medium galoot (a basset) i can attest to the slobber and and can say that these breeds are no dogs for Susie Homemaker. However, more affectionate dogs can't be found anywhere.

Judges at Westminster remind me of those that judge ice dancing at the Winter Olympics. All "subjectivity" and no "objectivity."

Whoever put standard poodles in the nonsporting group doesn't know poodles. They are not just sofa ornaments, they are hunting dogs.

The sloberry-er (?), the better.

Congratulations to Miss P, but I thought Nathan deserved to win his round. I see him as noble, wise beyond his years and adorable. I am not a fan of bloodhounds normally, but Nathan is clearly an exception for his charm and intelligent demeanor. Hopefully next year's judge won't be beguiled by the beagle and Nathan will get a well deserved win.

As a fan of larger dogs (especially from the Working Group), it's almost always disappointing that terriers and other small, yappy dogs seem to do far better in most years. I didn't mind the beagles, Scottish deerhounds, Irish wolfhounds, Newfoundlands, etc.