Prince Caspian

Cool!

Beagle, a Breed Long Unsung, Wins Best in Show

I knew it could be done!! We beagles rock!!! Way to go Uno!!!

When Dr. J. Donald Jones, the judge for the best in show at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show, looked at the seven competitors for the title Tuesday night, he saw four breeds that had been denied the crown and three that had captured it.

Of course, there is no actual crown, but a lovely celebratory bowl into which victorious toy dogs leap for a little nap while their entourage kvells.

The four breeds that had been shut out were a beagle, a Weimaraner, an Australian shepherd and an Akita. There were two breeds that had captured best in show four times in the history of the show, the standard poodle and the Sealyham terrier, and a third — the toy poodle — that was twice a victor.

Jones watched each dog enter to the fanfare of dimmed house lights at Madison Square Garden and a double spotlight. The standard poodle trotted out first for a lap around the green-carpeted floor, followed by the Akita, the weimaraner, the Australian shepherd, the beagle (to thunderous applause, as if Willis Reed had walked into the arena one last time), the Sealyham terrier and finally, the toy poodle.

Jones could hear Uno, the 15-inch beagle, baying as he gave his once-over to the standard poodle. And when he completed his observations, he needed four minutes before he pointed to the winner: Uno, the beagle, or Ch. K-Run’s Park Me In First, who will turn 3 in May.

Snoopy and Underdog would be pleased. Their breed, long passed over for glory, had finally triumphed. Click Here to Read More

Of the many breeds that have never won best in show at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show is the beagle. Through 131 previous editions, no beagle has celebrated what terriers have more than 40 times.

G. Paul Burnett/The New York Times

Have all of Snoopy’s efforts at beagle hegemony gone for naught?

On Monday, at Madison Square Garden, a nearly 3-year-old, 15-inch-tall beagle named Uno took one small step toward the coveted title for his breed by winning the hound group, the first beagle to do so since 1939.

Eddie Dziuk, one Uno’s owners, could not explain why a beagle, whether 13 or 15 inches high, has never reached the summit. “Others this special,” he said, looking at Uno after his victory, “are few and far between.”

Uno, or Ch. K-Run’s Park Me In First, was the sixth-ranked dog in the country last year, according to Dog News, after a toy poodle, an Akita, a standard poodle, a Sealyham terrier and an English springer spaniel.

On Monday night, he defeated 25 other dogs, including a long-haired dachshund, a harrier and a whippet.

“He was his usual self,” said Aaron Wilkerson, his handler, as Uno relaxed contentedly in his arms. “Perfect, as always.”

At some point when he shows, Uno bays, for no reason other than to say his piece. It was more of a croon than a bark that he emitted from the green carpeted floor of the Garden. And he did it several times.

“He bayed at the judge,” Wilkerson said. “He does it on his own. He’s saying to the judge, ‘Look at me.’ So he just plants his feet and bays away.”

The judge, Ralph Lemcke, said he had no memory of being bayed at. But he said he will remember Uno, whom he had never seen before.

“This is one of the best hounds I’ve ever seen,” he said. He, too, had no explanation for Westminster’s best-in-show beagle shutout. Click Here to Read More