146th time every year The Westminster Dog Show is underway at Lyndhurst Estate in Tarrytown, NY. More than 3,000 dogs representing 209 breeds will compete for the coveted Best In Show title.
Traditionally, prizes do not come with cash prizes. Winners go away with just a trophy, bragging rights and the respect of their peers. Last year’s Best In Show, Wasabi the Pekingese, hung its leash, meaning a brand new champion will be crowned in 2022.
Before we reveal this year’s special dogs, let’s take a look at the history of this beloved event.
Westminster: America’s Dog Show
Westminster Crib Club, founded in 1877 by a group of hound lovers, is America’s oldest organization dedicated to the sport of purebred dogs. It is the nation’s second-longest continuously held sporting event. Only the Kentucky Derby, begun two years earlier in 1875, preceded it.
The event has survived power outages, blizzards, national depressions, two World Wars, a tugboat attack, and most recently the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Interesting facts about Westminster:
- Westminster predates the sport’s governing body, the American Kennel Club, which was founded in 1884.
- Westminster’s first television show was in 1948, three years before “I Love Lucy” premiered.
- Dog shows have been held in all four versions of Madison Square Garden and are currently the only one that does.
- Westminster has been held at Madison Square Garden for all but eight years since it existed.
- In 2021 and again in 2022, the program has been moved to Lyndhurst Estate in Tarrytown, NY, due to concerns about COVID-19.
- The Master Agility Championship held its first trial in 2014 within the framework of Westminster Week.
Former Champion
112 dogs have won the title of Best In Show, which seems odd given that there have been 145 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Shows. The difference is because some dogs have won years in a row.
Most notable is the show’s first Best In Show winner, Warren Remedy, a fluffy terrier who won the award a record three times in 1907, 1908 and 1909. Since then. After that, many dogs won twice, but none matched or exceeded Warren Remedy’s three-year streak.
RELATED: Wasabi Pekingese Wins Best Show at Westminster Dog Show
The Hounds are definitely a favorite at Westminster, with the group taking the most wins on the show with 47. No other group comes close. The second place team is Sporting with only 18 Best in Show titles.
Most wins by group
| Coporation, group | Number of winners |
| Terrier | 47 |
| Sport | 18 |
| Working | 15 |
| Toy | twelfth |
| Non-sports | 11 |
| Hound | 6 |
| Cattle herding | 3 |
Favorite Breeds That Never Won First Prizes On Display at Westminster
1. Labrador Retriever
According to the annual ranking of AKCLabrador Retrievers have been America’s favorite breed for over 25 years, but the breed has yet to win a Best in Show – or even Best In Group title!
2. Golden Retriever
America’s third most popular dog breed began competing at Westminster in 1928, but they never took the top spot. In fact, they’ve only won Best of Group once – in 2006.
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3. Dachshund
These silly short-legged pups are loved by millions of Americans, but the twelfth most popular breed in the country has never won Best In Show. However, they have won Best of Group at Westminster an impressive 11 times.
4. French Bulldog
While their older British Bulldog cousins have won Best in Show twice (in 1913 and 1955), the Frenchies have yet to score a single win. In 2022, the French Bulldog Winston almost took second place “Best reservation in the show” title.
5. Rottweiler
A beautiful Rottie named Carter’s Noble Shaka Zulu won First Prize in the Group in 2006, but these powerful working dogs have never won the top honor.
Several other beloved breeds have been notably culled at Westminster, including:
- Great Dane
- Chihuahua
- Shih-Tzu
- Miniature Schnauzer
- Pembroke Welsh Corgi
- Australian Shepherd
- King of Cavalier Charles Spaniel
- Hound dog
- local army
- Dalmatian
This year’s contest
More than 3,000 fangs came to the Lyndhurst mansion this week to compete in The 146th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. They represent 209 breeds, including two new dog breeds recognized: Mudi, a Hungarian herding dog and a Russian toy.
More than 350 dogs took to the ring to compete in the 9th annual Westminster Masters Agility Championship. Founded in 2014, this part of the event is open to dogs of all breeds, including including mutant dogs (or “All-American Dogs”, as the AKC refers to them).
How it works
A team of knowledgeable judges will examine each dog, including characteristics such as teeth, temperament, and agility to determine which dogs in each group best represent the ideal or “standard” for the breed. its. In this initial round of evaluation, the dogs competed only with other dogs of their own breed. Depending on the breed, there can be dozens of competitors or just a handful.
Next, the winner from each breed will advance to the semi-finals. Here, they are judged against others in their “group”, which includes seven – toy, active, athletic, non-athletic, hunting dog, herding dog, and hunting dog.
Finally, the best dog from each group will advance to the final round to compete for the Best in Show award.
While the coveted Best in Show title doesn’t come with a cash prize, the $5,000 donation is made in the name of the Masters Agility Championship winner to the AKC coaching club of their choice. choose or the AKC Humanitarian Foundation.
An additional $1,000 donation is made to the name of the highest-scoring All-American Dog, as well as the remaining four top-ranked dogs in their height categories.
RELATED: The Incredibly Distracting Beagle Stole a Performance at the Westminster Agility Competition
Winner’s Circle 2022
Trumpet, a 4-year-old bloodhound, co-owned by Chris Flessner, Bryan Flessner, Heather Buehner and Tina Kocar, was the big winner, taking home the Best in Show trophy. It is the first Bloodhound and the seventh dog in the Hound to achieve the highest honor at Westminster.
Trumpet’s father, Nathan, also won the hound group at Westminster but never Best in Show.
Here are the additional 2022 winners from each category:
- Hound: Trumpet the Bloodhound
- Toy: Maltese Hollywood
- Non-sports: Winston French Bulldog
- Breed: River, German Shepherd
- Sport: Belle the English Setter
- Working: Samoyed striker
- Terrier: MM, Lakeland Terrier
And of course, Bee the Shetland Sheepdog, who won the 9th annual masters agility championship. See her winning course run below.
