A giant schnauzer named Monty has been declared America’s top canine after earning the title of best in show on Tuesday night at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show.
Judge Paula Nykiel chose the five-year-old male with the jet-black coat from Ocean City, New Jersey, over a stacked field of six other group winners, among them a whippet named Bourbon (awarded reserve best in show for a third time), a German shepherd named Mercedes, and English springer spaniel named Freddie, a bichon frisé named Neal, a Skye terrier named Archer and Comet, a sassy shih tzu who won the toy group for a second consecutive year only to again be pipped at the final hurdle.
The victory marked a historic first. No giant schnauzer had every won America’s most prestigious dog show the breed was first entered in 1930.
Monty, whose official champion’s name is Hearthmore’s Wintergreen Mountain, was the last dog standing after a winnowing-down process that began on Monday morning with more than 2,500 canines in over 200 breeds and varieties hailing from all 50 states and 12 other countries, including Canada, Japan and South Korea.
“Winning best in show is a dream come true,” said Katie Bernardin, Monty’s handler and co-owner, who became overcome by emotion in the immediate aftermath. “I won best junior handler at this dog show when I was 18 and I always used to sit up in the rafters and watch and just want to be them. All those people were my idols and then I got to be them and be down there and get to win the big ribbon.”
Monty’s rise in the sport has been meteoric. He had won best in group and reached the last seven in both 2023 and 2024, only to come up short in the final round, and entered this year’s contest as the top-ranked dog in the country based on points compiled in previous shows. The third time proved the charm as he became the first dog from the working group to win the big prize since a slobbery crowd favorite Newfoundland named Josh in 2004, ending a two-decade hoodoo that represented the longest active drought of any group.
“He thrives off this environment and he’s just so much fun to show in these situations,” the 39-year-old Bernardin said. “Because he just knows it’s important.”
Asked what was going through her mind as she took her final lap around the green-carpeted ring before the judge’s decision, Bernardin said: “That it would probably be our last lap together. And I just wanted him to enjoy it and I wanted to enjoy it.”
Bourbon, a nine-year-old whippet that came out of retirement after winning reserve best in show in 2020 and 2021, was forced to settle for second yet again at the nation’s most prestigious dog show, which is the oldest continuously held sporting event in the United States after the Kentucky Derby.
A total of 201 breeds and varieties were represented at this year’s show, from affenpinschers to Xoloitzcuintlis. Some have better odds of advancing than others: only one bluetick coonhound, Dandie Dinmont terrier and Belgian laekenoi apiece were entered, compared to 52 dachshunds, 44 poodles, 40 French bulldogs, 39 Chihuahuas, 38 golden retrievers, 34 Rhodesian ridgebacks and 33 Labrador retrievers.
Breed judging takes place during the day at the nearby Javits convention center, with the breed winners advancing each evening to the finals at Madison Square Garden, home to Westminster for all but 12 of its 149 years. There’s no prize money for winning Westminster, but owners of champions can demand top dollar for breeding rights.
The immediate aftermath for Monty includes the traditional Wednesday media blitz, a whirlwind itinerary that includes TV appearances on the morning shows and a photo op atop the Empire State Building, before resuming life as “just our family dog” in Chaplin, Connecticut. Asked how she thinks will take to his newfound celebrity, Bernardin didn’t hesitate.
“Oh, he’ll love it,” she says. “He’ll love it. It’s all about Monty. Just ask him.”
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