An Unconventional Route to Westminster

An Unconventional Route to Westminster

Unconventional has kind of been the route of my life. Thinking about what to write, when I thought about my story and how I made it to Westminster, I guess it starts when I was a small child.

My Mom has shown and bred Scottish Deerhounds my entire life (well over 40 years for her), and we still have a large kennel of them. She has done extremely well, and she’s been to Westminster with her dogs in the early 1990s. The things I’ve learned from her and the amount of knowledge passed down has been tremendous. I have spent a considerable amount of time whelping, grooming, training, and showing Deerhounds. They have a remarkable history and genetic make-up. It takes a long time to learn the details, but the details are where it makes a difference.

I have spent multiple hours throughout my life discussing the genetics and the breeding coefficients, the pedigrees, the ins and outs of all the different things that come along with a breeding program, the puppies and the forever homes, and the people we’ve met. It’s been tremendous.

When I went to college, I went to the United States Merchant Marine Academy in New York. I graduated with a license to sail cargo ships around the world. While I was on one of my first assignments, I was given the opportunity for us to have a mascot on the ship. I didn’t really give the details to the Navy at the time, but we applied for a mascot, and were granted, and so I bought a Chinese Crested. This breed was particularly close to my heart, as we’d had a rescue in my later years of high school, and they were originally bred to be on ships. The breeder that I got my first Crested from, Carol Martz, has been instrumental in my love for the breed and my understanding of the breed, and I still have that particular dog today—she’s almost 14. Raeli and I sailed all over the world and eventually made our way back to the United States, where I got married and had kids. My oldest daughter is now almost nine, and my goal was to have a Crested that she could use for Junior Showmanship when she was old enough, so I went on the hunt. Carol no longer bred, but she gave me the name of a woman who had some of her downline and would be interested in helping me with Junior Showmanship and showing the Cresteds.

That’s when Cindy Lackey entered my life. Cindy and I discussed my goals, she explained her breeding program, and we made plans for her next litter. And then I waited. About a year later, I ended up with a hairless little girl, Nessa. And Nessa is who I got to bring to Westminster this year. It’s the first Chinese Crested that I bought for myself, and the first dog of my own that I was able to put a championship on myself. Nessa has been instrumental in my own journey to learn the breed, the Breed Standard, and the community, and eventually have a breeding program of my own with these dogs. We have eight dogs at home and it’s a mixture between the Deerhounds and the Cresteds—I will say they both get along great with each other, though I’m always wary of Deerhound puppies with Cresteds.

When I was sailing on the Navy ship, the American Chinese Crested Club of America was very supportive of having a dog on a ship supporting the USA and sent us a Christmas package and multiple different holiday packages along the way. Since returning here and buying more Cresteds, the people I’ve met within the community have been more and more inclusive and more welcoming to me than I could ever have imagined. I had very little knowledge of that particular breed beforehand and they’ve taught me so much—I never would have been able to bring my dog here or have the support here that I do without these people. My hope is that other people who are new to the sport of dog showing are welcomed just as much as I have been between the breeds, and find the knowledge and the help to make themselves successful in the same manner. Being able to come to New York City and be in The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show was a huge dream of mine. It was possibly one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. From the U.S. Navy, to a Mom, to being back in New York City, I feel like I’ve come full circle in my life, and it’s pretty dang impressive.