Top dogs: Locals compete in West Virginia无毛视频檚 biggest dog show
The sound of scissors snip-snipping, blow dryers softly rumbling, human voices swirling about and the occasional dog bark filled the Hazel and JW Ruby Community Center in Morgantown, W.Va., April 26, as day two of the 2024 Black Diamond Cluster Dog Show got underway.
无毛视频淭his is where the nerves and adrenaline kick in,无毛视频� said Howard West, an amateur owner-handler from Amity, as he and his Alaskan Eskimo, Jake, prepared to enter the ring for the best in show contest. 无毛视频淲e learned a long time ago: one, how to lose, and how not to be embarrassed. Once you get those two things, it无毛视频檚 fun.无毛视频�
More than 700 people of varying skill levels, from amateur owner-handlers like West to professionals and national champions, traveled with their four-legged athletes and models from Southwestern Pennsylvania, across the U.S. and beyond to compete in West Virginia无毛视频檚 largest dog show, which ran April 26 through 29.
无毛视频淵ou无毛视频檒l see some of the best dogs in the country and some of the best dogs in the world at every dog show. I pay money to lose to some of the best people in the sport,无毛视频� laughed West, who started showing dogs about 25 years ago. 无毛视频淏ut occasionally, I win, and that无毛视频檚 what无毛视频檚 fun about it.无毛视频�
There无毛视频檚 a lot that goes into dog shows; West and his wife, Lynda, take their dogs to practice twice weekly. There无毛视频檚 training, there无毛视频檚 traveling and there无毛视频檚 bathing and grooming, which can take hours before showtime. It can be stressful 无毛视频� all that just for a ribbon, joked Laura Wright, a breeder from Morgantown 无毛视频� but rewarding.
On any given weekend, dogs compete across the country and the world, so opportunity abounds within the dog show world. The Black Diamond Cluster show started at the Greene County Fairgrounds before moving to Morgantown about 10 years ago, said Dave Yoders, president of the Mountaineer Kennel Club. This year无毛视频檚 show not only offered the chance to compete in all-breed conformation (the runway of dog shows), the National Owner-Handled Series (NOHS) and obedience and rally (the athletics of dog shows) events, but was the setting of the Nederlandse Kooikerhondjes breed national dog show (the breed is centuries old but only recognized by the American Kennel Club in 2018).
Patricia Ross, a member of the South Hills Kennel Club and owner of Fox Chapel Bulldogs in Pittsburgh, attended the show in Morgantown with Brie, who won best of breed on April 26. Ross is one of those people who lives and breathes her dogs: she breeds, owns and handles, or shows.
That attention pays off; Ross无毛视频� bulldogs have a history of success: Julian, now retired, was No. 8 in the country in 2022, No. 2 for owner-handler, and is an ambassador for health for the Bulldog Club of America.
无毛视频淓specially as a breeder-owner-handler, you无毛视频檝e produced what you are showing, so it无毛视频檚 really, really rewarding when you win. For me, I无毛视频檝e had my dogs out with professional handlers before, and that无毛视频檚 an incredible thing, too, because you get to see your dog in a different light. But when you do it and you win and you accomplish it, you get group placements or you get a best in show or best in specialty show, the reward is so tremendous because that无毛视频檚 your animal and you无毛视频檝e got such a great connection with them,无毛视频� Ross said.
Yoders said this year无毛视频檚 show was smaller than past years, in no small part thanks to COVID-19 and West Virginia University无毛视频檚 spring baseball game, which fell on the same weekend.
He said numbers are rebounding post-pandemic, but noted the sport is aging: the average age of a handler, he said, is about 50 years old. Mountaineer Kennel Club and other clubs work hard not only to host exceptional events, but to also involve the community and draw attention to the sport.
无毛视频淲e try, like I said, to gain membership,无毛视频� said Yoders. 无毛视频淲e try to reach out and we无毛视频檙e trying to do more of that, to get into the schools and 4-H clubs, see if kids are interested. We always look at trying to be an integral part of the community. Last year, year before last, we did presentations to the Girl Scouts. And just went over, how do you approach a dog 无毛视频� kind of safety procedures and caring for them and feeding them.无毛视频�
During the four-day show in Morgantown, young people under the age of 18 无毛视频� the future of the sport 无毛视频� glammed up and showed dogs in the ring. Millennials and Gen Z were also represented.
Alyssa Kimmeth, 22, an owner-handler from Lexington, Ky., showed 18-month-old Landon 无毛视频� who was named best male 无毛视频� at the Nederlandse Kooikerhondjes national show in Morgantown.
无毛视频淗e earned his championship today,无毛视频� she said with a smile.
Kimmeth无毛视频檚 family breeds Nederlandse Kooikerhondjes at Amber Moon Kennels in Lexington, and the young owner-handler started in the dog show world at age 5.
无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 all about learning. I无毛视频檓 watching a lot of older people. It无毛视频檚 constantly just consuming information, and also just kind of guiding the other younger people, too. I feel like as somebody closer to the really young kids无毛视频� ages, it无毛视频檚 part of my responsibility to guide them and teach them. And then it无毛视频檚 a lot of looking up to people.无毛视频�
Zoe Dall无毛视频檕lio, 31, of Fairmont, W.Va., also looks up to the sports veterans. She started showing Australian cattle dogs just two years ago, but dove in head first: she无毛视频檚 part of the Mountaineer Kennel Club, where she learns from her cohorts, and served as show chair Friday.
无毛视频淚 didn无毛视频檛 even know anything about showing,无毛视频� said Dall无毛视频檕lio, whose dog breeder sold her her first show dog on the grounds that Dall无毛视频檕lio would give showing a try. 无毛视频淗ere I am today, having a great time. I无毛视频檓 really having a lot of fun. It无毛视频檚 a fun hobby to get into.无毛视频�
Showing is social, but does require investments of time and money.
无毛视频淭he camaraderie, just outstanding. I无毛视频檝e met a lot of friends here, from different states, just people that love dogs. It无毛视频檚 just a relaxed atmosphere,无毛视频� said Shelly Hepler, of Smithton, who handled South Hills Kennel Club President Rene Dunfee无毛视频檚 French bulldog, Vivi, during the April 26 contests. 无毛视频淭hough we无毛视频檙e competitive as heck. We all want to win.无毛视频�
Competitors win points, which go toward the earning of different titles, including champion, and unlock the potential for invites to bigger dog shows, including Westminster (Yoders无毛视频� wife, Mary Yoders, and their dog Sergeant Major, one of the top Clumber Spaniels in the nation, are headed there in a few weeks).
No matter how big or small the stage, though, athletes and their breeders, owners and handlers celebrate those glittering moments when they are top dog, and spend the intervening shows chasing that high.
Howard West and Jake captured the euphoria of winning in West Virginia last weekend, where the duo took home two owner-handler Best in Show ribbons. Julie Iverson, of McMurray, won the owner-handler group April 26 with her Shetland sheepdog, Grand Champion Homespun Kymric Accolade.
无毛视频淲hen I taught school, my kids would ask me, 无毛视频榃hat are you winning?'无毛视频� Yoders said. 无毛视频淚 said, well, it was a ribbon. That day, the judge feels as though you无毛视频檙e the chosen one. The next day can be a totally different story.无毛视频�