South Bay Pets: Westminster Dog Show Archives

Recently in Westminster Dog Show Category

Bad hair day?

By Donna Littlejohn on February 16, 2009 2:35 PM | | Comments (0) |

sheepie and westminster.jpg

Backstage at the the 2009 Westminster show.

Photo: Chris McGrath, Getty Images

 

HT: The Pet Blog

Stump: The Bio (abridged)

By Donna Littlejohn on February 12, 2009 4:16 PM | | Comments (0) |

 What a guy.

 

stump.jpgBut ask yourself.

What do we really know about him?

Then again, how much do we want to know about Stump?

So in the interest of brevity, we're reprinting "just the facts" about the new Top Dog chosen as Best in Show at the Westminster Dog Show earlier this week.

Originally posted at the Dogs Clothes Horse blog:

Consider this the official "Stump Dossier."

1. His official name is Ch. Clussexx Three D Grinchy Glee

2. He was born is Dec. 1, 1998

3. He is named "Stump" ... because he has stubby legs, is brown and resembles a tree stump

4. He has sired pups named Root, Forest and Myrtle

5. His favorite chew toy is a plush Grinch doll

6. He weighs about 50 pounds

7. He lives in Houston, Texas with the 2001 Best in Show winner J.R., a Bichon Frise

8. He didn't train at all for his return to the ring

9. He is the oldest dog ever to win Westminster, that title was previously held by the 1999 winner, an 8-year-old Papillon

10. The Westminster show was his 51st career best in show win 

Stump is in fabulous shape for his age and will travel the dog world circuit just like the younger pups who've held the best in show title.

Judge Sari Tietjen said she had no idea the winning spaniel was an elder in the dog world. "He showed his heart out," she said. "I didn't know who he was or how old ... I just couldn't say no to him." 



 

 

 

 

 

TOP DOG

By Donna Littlejohn on February 10, 2009 11:19 PM | | Comments (0) |
Congratulations to Stump: 

stump 2 .jpg

Drum roll .... The winner

By Donna Littlejohn on February 10, 2009 10:33 PM | | Comments (0) |
Who will it be?

I've always wondered how judges of Best in Show are able to put aside their own natural preferences when they are judging so many different kinds of dogs in one group. Guess I wonder if they all don't have some sort of bias -- big dogs, little dogs. Most of us lean toward certain types of dogs. 

Looks like the Best in Show judge tonight is wearing a fur coat as she arrives at Madison Square Garden. Yikes.  PETA must really hate that. Maybe it's fake. 

Isn't is weird how people used to wear fake furs and try to convince everyone they were real? And now they try to convince everyone their real fur is fake?  Go figure.

Hey, the judge is from Rhinebeck NY, an incredibly beautiful, quaint little old town. 

So it comes down to this. Seven dogs: 

  • The Standard Poodle (no poodle cut jokes!); 
  • The Giant Schnauzzer;
  • The Scottish Deerhound; 
  • The Puli (Conrad);
  • The Scottish Terrier (Oh no! Did the Scottie just squat & pee right there in the show ring? FAUX PAUX); 
  • The old guy, the Sussex Spaniel named Stump; 
  • The Brussels Griffon (Lincoln).
The suspense builds. 

The crowd is wired. 

Sadie the Scottie looks like she's gonna pee again.

The clock is ticking.

How long can poor Sadie's bladder hold out?

The moment arrives: The ribbon & silver cup goes to: Woo-hoo! STUMP, the Sussex spaniel. Way to go, pal. 

Stump seems mildly excited, but perhaps a bit confused by all the ruckus. Gladly posing for the cameras, though. He appears to be close to a good drool.
 
stump.jpg
You can read more about Stump and his surprising, upset win here.




 







 






 


Working dog winner?

By Donna Littlejohn on February 10, 2009 10:20 PM | | Comments (0) |
The judge makes her cuts ... Top working dog is the GIANT schnauzer, "Spirit."  

Finally. 

Now for the main event. (PU-li, PU-li, PU-li)




Blogging Westminster: Top workers

By Donna Littlejohn on February 10, 2009 9:49 PM | | Comments (0) |
Hey, checking out some of these commercials tonight, that new Pledge pet hair remover doo-dad looks handy. 

OK, the working group. My fingers are getting tired.. So this will be an abbreviated report.

Big dogs. Brown, black, some of them are really tall; long hair, short hair. Bull mastiffs and boxers and Great Danes and St. Bernards and Burnese Mountain Dogs. Burly, tough, union-joining dogs. Will work for food. 

A blond, pony-tailed judge in a glittery jacket this time. No sensible shoes for her. She's the judge. She gets to wear stylish, strappy heels with pointy toes. 

And the winner is ......... ?? 

King of the toys = The Brussels Griffon, by a (smashed) nose

By Donna Littlejohn on February 10, 2009 9:29 PM | | Comments (0) |
I'll refrain from saying anything about the poodle cut tonight, having been taken to task by our reader who breeds poodles. I am not responsible for the mocking tone my co-blogger Josh takes when discussing such matters, however. 

So we're getting down to the wire on the toys, looking at the pug now. The first pug I ever saw was at the Long Beach animal shelter maybe 15 years ago when I adopted my dog Ellie. I felt so sorry for him, he was, well, about the ugliest dog I'd ever seen. It was only when I asked about him at the front desk that I learned how popular they were -- little did I know, he certainly didn't need my sympathy; there was a long waiting list of people who wanted to adopt him. The shelter would have to hold a lottery to see who took him home. I trust he had a long and wonderful life.

Oooo, now here's a Yorkshire terrier with a red hair bow. Wow. That's some girly looking dog. 

But none of them could beat the Brussels Griffon. The pug, however, did place 2nd. 

Go pugs. 





 

Toys just wanna have fun

By Donna Littlejohn on February 10, 2009 8:55 PM | | Comments (0) |
Here are the official "cute" dogs -- short little legs, hair bows, the proverbial lap & purse dogs: the chihuahuas, a toy poodle, Cavalier King Charles spaniel, maltese, pomeranian.

Fred Bassett is the name of the judge. That's pretty funny.

Ah, an affenpinscher. There was one in my neighborhood named Rita Hayworth. Rita Hayworth got out one night. A neighbor and I took her back home, thanks to a collar tag engraved with her address.

And a Brussells Griffon, this one supposedly a "dog to watch," as they say in dog-show handicapping. A serious contender, it would seem. 

The Cavaliers are very popular, this one's named "Jack." 

Mario, the long-haired chihuahua, followed by the more familiar short-haired variety. Such tiny faces. Ooo, a prancer! Her feet barely touch the ground. 

The Chinese Crested ("China") reminds me of Paris, a Mexican hairless dog that comes to the dog park. The latter named, of course, for Paris Hilton.

Wow, the next dog, a Japanese variety, I missed the name, is almost rolling his eyes as the judge probes toward his tail end. Hilarious. 









 



  


Sporting group winner is......

By Donna Littlejohn on February 10, 2009 8:46 PM | | Comments (0) |
Looks like the Sussex spaniel,  a 10-year-old dog by the way. Funny dog. The shortest in the group, I'd say. The dog doesn't act all that happy, but I suppose he wants to settle in for a nap pretty soon. Enough of this prancing around to applause already. 

OK, only 2 groups to go before Best in Show.  

Next are the "toys." Cute overload coming right up. 

(Lots of shedding pick-up tools being promoted in commercials on this show, guaranteed to clean your sofa of dog and cat hair. We'd be the crowd for it.)

Blogging Westminster: sporting dogs part II

By Donna Littlejohn on February 10, 2009 8:28 PM | | Comments (0) |
OK, now all the spaniels. Cockers, springers, the others. So many dogs. And it's only like 8:30. (If we didn't already tell you, the show is on USA, from 8-11 tonight.) 

My dad almost said we could have a cocker spaniel when I was growing up (what I really wanted was a collie but I'd have settled for any kind of dog). Alas, I was 15 before we got our first dog, a stray who galloped into our yard one day when we were putting out Christmas decorations. Sort of a cock-a-poo, I guess, he was such a cute dog. Not quite a collie, though. 

Cocker spaniels come in a lot of different colors. The grooming jobs are something to behold, look at all that glossy fur just swinging below hem. Like a Breck commercial, for those of you old enough to remember those.

Now it's the English cocker spaniel. There are water and land varieties, apparently. Sheesh. Do these dogs really do any hunting or swimming or herding though? I've always wondered about that. 

I remember a woman coming to the Long Beach dog park with her dog who was starring in a local dog show. She and her husband were all gussied up, nylons and everything (on her, not her husband). They wound up having to stand on one of the picnic tables so they wouldn't get dirty. They had to go back to the show ring and the dog was just there on a break. They worried about him getting dirty with all our "regular" dogs, which he did of course. I'm sure he probably would have rather stayed at the dog park and rolled around in the dirt with us. But after about 30 minutes, he was leashed up and hauled off, back to the dog show.

More spaniels. Now the irish water spaniel. Who knew? A waterfall retriever? No, that must be water "fowl" retriever. Ewww, and a rat-like tail. Sorta gross. But then I have an unpleasant history with rats.

Sussex spaniel -- a gun dog from England.

Oh, there's a Viszla, we had one of those at the dog park but I haven't seen him in a while. 







 
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About the Bloggers

Daily Breeze reporter Donna Littlejohn has shared her homes with a succession of wonderful, funny, and occasionally difficult canines -- Muffin, Fritz, Ellie, Mercy, Pilgrim and now Cowboy, an Australian shepherd-border collie, and Tess, a border collie. From strong-willed terriers to weirdly obsessed Australian shepherds, they've invaded her world with boundless energy, wet noses, muddy paws and soggy tennis balls. But they've really brought so much more than that -- like laughter and joy, some unexpected life lessons, and more than a few tears along the way.

E-mail Donna at donna.littlejohn@dailybreeze.com.

Josh Grossberg grew up with the usual array of animals: goldfish, dogs, hamsters, parakeets and turtles. He now owns the loudest dog in the South Bay(Video: Rocket the Dog) and is the least popular person on his block. He spends his free time in dog parks, pet shops and always has an extra plastic bag in his pocket just in case. He also has a cat.

E-mail Josh at josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com.

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