In Their Own Words

Click here to read the complete article
274 – July, 2023

By Joan Harrigan

After two years at historic Lyndhurst in Tarrytown, the 147th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show had a new venue–the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, New York. Breed judging, group competition, Best In Show, and the Juniors Finals were spread over two days, May 8 and 9. Once again, we asked the seven group judges and Beth Sweigart, the Best In Show judge, to talk about their assignments and placements. Their comments, as well as those of the Junior Showmanship Finals judge, follow:

The Hound Group

The Hound Group was the first into the group ring on Monday night. Edmund Dziuk of Columbia, Missouri began his comments by sending “kudos to the members and staff of the Westminster Kennel Club.”

He continued by saying, “the new venue is amazing, with easy access, huge rings, great grooming, easy parking, and nearby hotels. No detail went unnoticed, from the beautiful floral arrangements, to the WKC signage, the swag shop, the friendly workers, and continuous shuttle buses. And the arena returned us to the glory days of MSG.

“I attended my first WKC in 1980 as a Junior-Owner-Handler, and piloted my Beagle to the 13-inch Variety. I have vivid memories of showing in the Hound Group in Madison Square Garden. To return 43 years later to judge the Group was a humbling honor and a dream come true. My sincere appreciation to Westminster for the invitation, and to all the exhibitors and dogs for such an amazing Group. I heard a number of people comment that they thought it was the strongest group of the show. I may be biased, but I agree! And while it may seem cliché, there truly weren’t enough ribbons to reward all the dogs I liked.

“My final four had several things in common. They all conformed to their standards and exhibited great type as it’s been taught to me. They were all athletic and sound. They were all presented well and shown in proper condition. But most importantly, I could genuinely envision all four doing the jobs they were bred to do. And, if I were to begin a new breeding program, these were the four dogs I’d want to take home as my foundation.”

Mr. Dziuk’s placements were:

Group One:

Click here to read the complete article
274 – July, 2023

Short URL: https://caninechronicle.com/?p=267369

Posted by AnthonyA on Jul 17 2023. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.