Beagle crowned top dog at show
NEW YORK — A soft-spoken beagle really raised a ruckus.
Wagging her tail a mile a minute, Miss P became America's top dog Tuesday night by winning best in show in a big surprise at the Westminster Kennel Club.
At 4, Miss P is a grand-niece of Uno — in 2008, the immensely popular hound barked and bayed his way to becoming the only previous beagle to win at the nation's most prominent dog show.
Miss P, however, didn't let out a peep in the ring.
“She is a princess,” handler Will Alexander said.
A quiet one, too. Not your normal, everyday, vocal beagle, as most owners can attest.
Instead, it was the packed crowd at Madison Square Garden that seemed to loudly gasp when judge David Merriam picked her in a dog show world shocker.
The best-of-seven final ring was full of favorites.
Matisse, a Portuguese water dog that's a cousin of President Barack Obama's family pet Sunny, was the top-winning male in show dog history with 238. Swagger the old English sheepdog finished second at Westminster in 2013 and clearly drew the biggest cheers.
A Skye terrier came in second. A standard poodle, a shih tzu owned by Patty Hearst and an English springer spaniel also made it to the last ring.
Miss P was the one that charmed Merriam, a retired California trial-courts judge who has spent over 50 years with dogs. This was the first time he judged a best in show.
There's no prize money for winning Westminster. Instead, there's prestige forever in the dog circles, plus the possibility of lucrative breeding rights.
