Colony senior tries hand at national dog show

The first and most prestigious American Dog Show, the annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, took place at New York’s Madison Square Garden Feb. 15-16. Among the thousands of people was Colony High School senior Lindsey Dowling.

In 1877, the Westminster Kennel Club presented its first dog show. After 57 years in 1934, a new idea began known as the Children’s Handling Class. This was a class where professional handlers would judge any random kid that found a dog to practice his or her skills. Over the next 17 years this new idea evolved into what is today called the Junior Sportsmanship competition. It was this competition that Dowling was able to be a part of.

“It was a great experience, very well organized and exciting,” Dowling said.

Unlike the professional league, Junior Sportsmanship is geared directly toward novice handlers. In this competition participants are judged only on their handling abilities, not on the traits of the dog. Judges focus on the handlers’ presentation skills and abilities to smoothly show the dog in the proper fashion required for the breed. Dowling and her Australian Shepherd came into this competition with high expectations. However, Dowling was not as impressed as she had anticipated, “Being the most esteemed dog show in America, I had set very high standards,” Dowling said. “Although, being only from Alaska, I was a no one in the status of the competition. It was a let down for me that the politics present in the competition interfered with the results.”

In order to qualify for this invitational competition, young people between ages 9 and 18 must have won 10 or more firsts in the Open Classes for Junior Sportsmanship at any American Kennel Club-licensed show held the previous season. Dowling was one of a select group invited in the country.

As a two-day event, Dowling was in one of the four divisions. It became evident, she said, the show was very much entertainment for the public.

“You had to be with your dog from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., it was very much geared toward the public with lots of rules and stipulations,” Dowling said. Although Dowling did not place in the Junior Sportsmanship, her older sister went on to give a go at the standard adult league with their beloved dog Dexter.

Being the 134th annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, it was a huge honor for Lindsey Dowling to be eligible for such an opportunity. Although she did show well, Dowling came up short in the results due to her lack of status in the ring of dog show competitions.

The Junior Sportsmanship program is intended on giving young people a taste of the dog show competition, hopefully aiding participants to become more experienced and return later in the adult league. Dowling has definitely made Colony proud for putting herself out there and competing with the best. If she pursues this competition, someday she could become the first Alaskan to place in the Westminster Kennel Club Dog show.

Casey Branch is a sophomore Colony High School.