SHOWSIGHT spoke with Westminster Kennel Club President Dr. Donald Sturz to talk about next month’s show and its triumphant return to the heart of New York City. As final details are being implemented, excitement continues to grow for the exhibitors, judges, spectators, and viewers who will gather together to celebrate purebred dogs in the place where it all began. We hope readers enjoy learning some of what’s in store from the club’s experienced and visionary leader.
Dr. Donald Sturz: Yes, absolutely. It is very much a coming home celebration! That’s one of the recurrent phrases, that it feels great to come home. We really wanted the advantage of coming home because it means we’re going to be in Madison Square Garden again and in a new venue as well, the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. And the timing is significant, because next year, the 2026 show, will be our 150th Anniversary.
Dr. Donald Sturz: Westminster’s history has always been synonymous with The Garden, starting in the late 1800s at Gilmore’s Garden and then at every iteration of Madison Square Garden. That’s where the show belongs. Of course, the club did a great job of pivoting and navigating the things that were thrown its way, like COVID. But when I walked into Madison Square Garden on our first site visit there this past year, I actually got an emotional reaction, because when you step onto that floor the first thing you feel is the enormity of the arena. When you’re not there for a while you forget just how big the place is. And then there was a flood of memories and emotions that were more personal, and I think a lot of people are going to have those moments when something is going to hit them and they’re going to have a visceral reaction to being back in the place that holds so many memories and so much history for the sport. I mean, think of all the greats who have run on that arena floor over the years… their spirits are still there for us!
Dr. Donald Sturz: Javits is a spectacular facility and they’ve been wonderful partners to work with and they’re very excited to have the dog show coming there. We even created a video from the venue to do what we could to inform exhibitors and maybe minimize the anxiety a bit for people who are coming. We wanted to show the proximities of the venues (Javits, MSG, and the New Yorker Hotel, which is our host hotel) and show the two different ways of getting into Javits. We committed to doing this and doing it really, really well by bringing in a camera crew and a producer, and they did a beautiful job.
Dr. Donald Sturz: I think it’s multi-tiered. I was on a podcast recently and one of the questions was from someone who will be showing for the first time at Westminster. There’s something really special about that. It’s like they’ve gotten an invitation to go to Oz to see the Wizard. They’re nervous and scared and don’t know what to expect, because in their mind it’s bigger than life—which it is. Of course, they’d love to win, but they’re excited just to be there. Then there are those who have been showing at Westminster more often and are clearly excited about their dogs’ entries having gotten in. So now everyone who is entered is hopeful of the outcome, because winning at Westminster is one of those things that’s on everybody’s list of goals for their dog. Everybody knows that everyone is really invested emotionally in this event, and I think that’s what makes Westminster different and sets it apart from all the others.
Dr. Donald Sturz: Junior Showmanship has always been an important part of Westminster. We had a big celebration for the kids last year for the 90th anniversary of the program and turned the annual Junior meeting from an administrative assembly into a party—and we decided to do it again this year in partnership with Purina Pro Plan. We are very much invested in the concept that Juniors are the future of the sport, and this is certainly true for me personally. I believe it with all my heart. I think Junior Showmanship is a great way for kids to learn values that will not only benefit the sport in the future but benefit society as well. It’s a great place to “find yourself” by learning things like commitment and responsibility and being able to understand the needs of others by caring for an animal. And having the ability to be a gracious winner and a gracious loser, and being able to interact with people from all walks of life. I know that Juniors has benefited me greatly professionally by giving me the ability to walk into any situation with anybody from anywhere and feel comfortable, and know how to engage with someone who may be different. I think this happens for kids who compete in Junior Showmanship.
Dr. Donald Sturz: It is. We leaned into this at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center by creating a Canine Celebration on Saturday, and so we decided to carry that over with us into the city at Javits. The Masters Obedience and Masters Agility Championships have been with us for a while, but we’ll also have a Demonstration Ring with Herding, Scent Work, Freestyle Obedience, and what we call our Dog Show 101 presentation, which is an instructional beginner’s guide to what’s happening at the dog show when you’re watching Breed judging. The Flyball Tournament is something new for us. We were looking for something to replace Dock Diving, which was a big hit at the tennis center but we were not able to bring a pool into Javits Center, so we decided to go with Flyball. We’ll have 15 teams (60 dogs) competing—and there’s a wait list! And the Human Agility Course is our attempt to create something fun to engage both adults and children, and give them a sense of what it’s like to run a course and maybe whet their palette to explore an activity that they can do with their dog at home. So, that’s the spirit of Saturday, which culminates with the Masters Agility Finals that will be broadcast live on FOX Sports from 4:30-7:00 p.m.
Dr. Donald Sturz: Anything that we do as a sport to raise awareness and celebrate the dogs in our lives is good for all of us. We’re living in a time when there are forces that would like to limit our ability to have dogs, and so it’s really important to counter that with coverage of all the things that dogs bring to our lives. I think it also serves an educational purpose around helping people understand how to access getting a healthy dog and being a responsible dog owner, and having a notion of all the things you can explore with your dogs. We balance the message of promoting purpose-bred dogs and their breeders with the “All-American” performance dogs that are just as valuable to their families. Westminster has been looking at this notion of wanting people to feel included. One of my go-to phrases to talk about Westminster is that it is an elite event but it is not elitist. Those are two very different things.
For us, we are committed to doing this, which is not always easy since there’s a lengthy amount of time for creating content and holding people’s attention. Take the fact that we’re broadcasting the Agility Finals on Saturday evening live from 4:30-7:00 p.m., and live streaming some of the performance events as well. Then there’s live streaming of all the Breed judging on Monday and Tuesday all day long, both days, and a live daytime broadcast on FOX from 1:00-4:00 p.m. on Monday and Tuesday. And then there’s the live broadcast from 7:00-11:00 p.m. on Monday and Tuesday night. That’s a lot of TV hours. So, to do it right, in a way that celebrates and honors the dogs and the competition and the event, we’ve partnered with FOX Sports which has done an amazing job producing the live broadcasts.
Dr. Donald Sturz: In the past, Westminster used some restraint with regards to putting forth educational information. But in more recent years, the club has started to look at things in terms of being an educational institution, utilizing our legacy brand with its certain amount of cache. So, I thought when it comes to people asking questions about how best to take care of their dogs, wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a resident veterinarian with the actual credentials to offer a professional opinion that Westminster supports and backs. Well, Dr. Diggs was our Veterinarian of the Year award winner last year and when I met him, he and I just immediately clicked. He’s got so much heart and he’s so compassionate and committed to his clients and their dogs. He’s also committed to his profession and his community. At the time, we had already started having conversations about this notion of Westminster leaning into its role from an educational point of view, and so that’s how this new Resident Veterinarian position came to be—timing and serendipity.
Dr. Donald Sturz: I love that! Much as we are talking about serendipity, it’s super-cool when things come together with other levels of significance. Having Paula Nykiel as our Best in Show Judge this year is an added perk to the storytelling as it’s representative of those kinds of connections. But, of course, Paula’s invitation to judge BIS was based solely on her own merits. As a judge, she is someone for whom I (and the sport in general) have a tremendous amount of respect. She’s a colleague and a peer, and I respect her so much as a judge. I’m really thrilled that she’s going to be having her moment—and having her moment at Madison Square Garden!
Dr. Donald Sturz: I hope everyone brings their pre-show excitement and stays in that mind-set, and revels in the fabulousness of the moment that the sport is going to have. This year’s return to The Garden didn’t come about easily and could very easily have never happened – and yet here we are. It’s a time for joy and it’s a time for gratitude. So, come and have fun, and look at this moment as one in which you can reminisce, lean into your feelings and your memories, get excited about the present moment you’re in, and get energized for what might happen in the future.
