Top dogs: Locals compete in West Virginia鈥檚 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.
鈥淭his is where the nerves and adrenaline kick in,鈥� 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. 鈥淲e learned a long time ago: one, how to lose, and how not to be embarrassed. Once you get those two things, it鈥檚 fun.鈥�
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鈥檚 largest dog show, which ran April 26 through 29.
鈥淵ou鈥檒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,鈥� laughed West, who started showing dogs about 25 years ago. 鈥淏ut occasionally, I win, and that鈥檚 what鈥檚 fun about it.鈥�
There鈥檚 a lot that goes into dog shows; West and his wife, Lynda, take their dogs to practice twice weekly. There鈥檚 training, there鈥檚 traveling and there鈥檚 bathing and grooming, which can take hours before showtime. It can be stressful 鈥� all that just for a ribbon, joked Laura Wright, a breeder from Morgantown 鈥� 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鈥檚 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鈥� 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.
鈥淓specially as a breeder-owner-handler, you鈥檝e produced what you are showing, so it鈥檚 really, really rewarding when you win. For me, I鈥檝e had my dogs out with professional handlers before, and that鈥檚 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鈥檚 your animal and you鈥檝e got such a great connection with them,鈥� Ross said.
Yoders said this year鈥檚 show was smaller than past years, in no small part thanks to COVID-19 and West Virginia University鈥檚 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.
鈥淲e try, like I said, to gain membership,鈥� said Yoders. 鈥淲e try to reach out and we鈥檙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 鈥� kind of safety procedures and caring for them and feeding them.鈥�
During the four-day show in Morgantown, young people under the age of 18 鈥� the future of the sport 鈥� 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 鈥� who was named best male 鈥� at the Nederlandse Kooikerhondjes national show in Morgantown.
鈥淗e earned his championship today,鈥� she said with a smile.
Kimmeth鈥檚 family breeds Nederlandse Kooikerhondjes at Amber Moon Kennels in Lexington, and the young owner-handler started in the dog show world at age 5.
鈥淚t鈥檚 all about learning. I鈥檓 watching a lot of older people. It鈥檚 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鈥� ages, it鈥檚 part of my responsibility to guide them and teach them. And then it鈥檚 a lot of looking up to people.鈥�
Zoe Dall鈥檕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鈥檚 part of the Mountaineer Kennel Club, where she learns from her cohorts, and served as show chair Friday.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 even know anything about showing,鈥� said Dall鈥檕lio, whose dog breeder sold her her first show dog on the grounds that Dall鈥檕lio would give showing a try. 鈥淗ere I am today, having a great time. I鈥檓 really having a lot of fun. It鈥檚 a fun hobby to get into.鈥�
Showing is social, but does require investments of time and money.
鈥淭he camaraderie, just outstanding. I鈥檝e met a lot of friends here, from different states, just people that love dogs. It鈥檚 just a relaxed atmosphere,鈥� said Shelly Hepler, of Smithton, who handled South Hills Kennel Club President Rene Dunfee鈥檚 French bulldog, Vivi, during the April 26 contests. 鈥淭hough we鈥檙e competitive as heck. We all want to win.鈥�
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鈥� 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.
鈥淲hen I taught school, my kids would ask me, 鈥榃hat are you winning?'鈥� Yoders said. 鈥淚 said, well, it was a ribbon. That day, the judge feels as though you鈥檙e the chosen one. The next day can be a totally different story.鈥�