An Underdog Could Be America's Next Top Dog

Dachshund has never been top at Westminster before
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Feb 12, 2019 1:45 AM CST
Updated Feb 12, 2019 5:17 AM CST
Dachshund Could Be America's Next Top Dog
A judge examines Pikku, a Norwegian Lundehund breed, during the Best of Breed event at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show on Monday, Feb. 11, 2019, in New York.   (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

Could this really be the year that dachshunds get out of the Westminster doghouse? Always a popular pooch, somehow they've never walked off with best in show at America's top dog competition. But that could change after sprightly Burns won the hound group Monday night, the AP reports. "Dachshunds are the best breed in the world!" handler Carlos Puig told the cheering crowd at Madison Square Garden. Golden retrievers, Labs, Chihuahuas, and Dalmatians are among other well-liked dogs that have been totally shut out here.

Clearly a fan favorite, Burns the longhaired dachshund will have a chance to win for all underdogs in the final ring of seven Tuesday night. The low-slung 7-year-old did well just to get this far—there were a whopping 76 dachshunds entered in three varieties at the 143rd Westminster Kennel Club. Also advancing were Bono the Havanese in the toy group, Colton the schipperke in the nonsporting, and Baby Lars the bouviers des Flandres in the herding—those breeds haven't won here, either. The sporting, working, and terrier groups will be judged Tuesday before the top dog among the more than 2,800 entries in 203 breeds and varieties is chosen. (Flynn the bichon frise was last year's top dog.)

(More Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show stories.)

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