pet connection

Jerry stayed home with the dogs, so my friend Tamela was my date to the Groups tonight: Toy, Hound, Non-Sporting and Sporting. I was fortunate enough to be a guest of Cornell University’s Baker Institute for Animal Health, so we had nice seats in the VIP risers, just three rows above the floor. I expected to have photos, but Tamela, who’s an excellent photographer and takes a camera with her everywhere, decided to leave it at home tonight. Sigh.

First up was the Toy Group. We were, of course, rooting for the Cavalier, but it was no surprise that the Brussels Griffon, Ch. Cilleine Masquerade (Lincoln), won this Group. My fellow dog writer Sharon Sakson, author of Brussels Griffons: A Complete Owners Guide and a BG breeder herself, went into raptures over him when I interviewed her in September.

The most gorgeous BG anyone has ever seen and he’s a smooth! Very unusual. People look at him curiously, obviously thinking, ‘Is that a Pug? Or a badly colored Boston Terrier?’ Instead, he is a perfect smooth Brussels Griffon. Few people have ever seen a smooth; they are only about 5 percent of our breed. In Europe they have their own breed name, Petit Brabancon.

Lincoln has an interesting back story.

He was born in England, in a litter of two. Both looked like good show puppies, but at some point, Lincoln’s ear was injured and he lost part of it. You can’t show a dog with half an ear, and it is illegal to crop ears in England. The current owner, Anne Jahelka, was visiting England and heard about this dog. She brought him back and had his ears cropped, which 90 percent of our show dogs do as well. He has the most incredible personality, always “up,” always alert, always happy. He embodies all the qualities we look for in a Griff: great substance and bone within a small, square body. He has the perfect round skull with plenty of forehead and an upturned jaw. We call it the “soup spoon jaw” because that’s what it looks like. Big dark curious eyes. When you consider that our standard asks for “an intelligent, alert, sturdy dog with a thickset, short body, smart carriage and set up” you can see that Lincoln embodies it to the fullest.

I’ll get the bad news out of the way upfront for the Hound Group: Lovely Rita didn’t make the cut. Nonetheless, it’s always a pleasure to watch these canine Ferraris and SUVs, among them some of the most ancient and historic of dog breeds, some of noble lineage, others belonging to the rough and tumble working class, but all beautifully formed for their purpose, whether that’s running down fleet prey, holding them at bay, digging them out or patiently tracking them. Taking Group 1 was Scottish Deerhound Ch. Jaraluv Ouija, followed by Whippet Ch. Tivio’s Tapestry of Nations, Basset Hound Ch. Topsfield-Vision Silver Noodles, and Borzoi Ch. Po Dusham Royalist.

I recently interviewed Basset breeder Claudia Orlandi, who owns Noodles, and she said Bassets are among the most difficult breeds to show because of their long, low body and abundance of skin. Being a scenting breed, they have a tendency to want to put their nose to the ground instead of gaiting with their heads up, and since they are short-legged, they would often rather sit than stand. She’d like prospective owners to know a few things about living with a Basset Hound:

The Basset Hound is a pack animal and craves the companionship of other animals and people. It does not do well left by itself all day. This is also a larger breed than what many people think, weighing from 50 to 65 pounds on average, and care should be taken with children who are very small. Bassets are scenting dogs bred to trail game, which means that their keen nose can lead them into the path of a speeding car or far away from home. A Basset’s long, pendulous ears require cleaning every week, and daily walks and exercise are necessary to keep a Basset toned and healthy.

No big surprises in the Non-Sporting Group. The Standard Poodle won, natch. She’s Ch. Randenn Tristar Affirmation, ranked #3 all breeds last time I checked. French Bulldog Ch. LeBull’s Midnight Confessions went second, Chow Chow Ch. Eastern Magic Channel Beauty third and Tibetan Terrier Ch. Players Protocol fourth.

By this time, Tamela and I were tired and ready to go home, but we’re both huge fans of the Sporting Group, so we stayed on. I cheered on the Flat-Coat (Ch. Featherquest Paradise Kiss) for Gina’s sake, but some of my other favorites were the Irish Water Spaniel and the Welsh Springer Spaniel. Again, no real surprises in this Group. The Pointer, Ch. Cookieland Seasyde Hollyberry, the number one dog all breeds (as of October) took first place. A bit of trivia: she won’t be at Westminster because she’s owned by a WKC member. In second place was Golden Retriever Ch. Rush Hill Run’N Amuck At Abelard OAP OJP NFP; Welsh Springer Ch. Royailes Hasta B A Cut Above was third (yay!); and Brittany Ch. RJ’s Sierra Edition was fourth.

I wanted to blog about the ACE Award winners, but I’m too tired. Tomorrow.

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