Insights from Wood Wornall | 2024 MCKC Breed Judge

Interview with Wood Wornall | 2024 MCKC Breed Judge

1. What does it mean to be invited to judge at one of the most important dog shows in the world—Montgomery?

Wood Wornall: It is a sign of respect and appreciation for all of my years involved with Terriers, and for that I am appreciative and I feel a sense of responsibility as well.

2. Can you share your thoughts on your Breed assignments? Please be specific.

Wood Wornall: Yes. This year I was invited to judge Cesky Terriers and Welsh Terriers. The Cesky is a breed that I appreciate; I’ve done well for them in the past. I didn’t have a great deal of experience showing them (they weren’t recognized when I was actively showing dogs), but it is a breed that I appreciate, and I’ve always been very appreciative of good-quality entries. For that reason, I was invited to judge the breed. The numbers were small, which was unfortunate, but the quality was high. I was actually pleased with all; Winners Dog, Winner’s Bitch, Best of Breed. I thought they were all good representatives.

The second breed that I judged was Welsh Terriers. This is a breed that I was integrally involved with. I’ve owned Welsh Terriers and I’ve bred Welsh Terriers. I showed the top-winning Welsh Terrier of all time. I showed the Top Sire of all time. The top-winning Welsh of all time was a dog that won 100 Bests in Show. I showed, I believe, over 12 Best in Show winners, but predominantly this was a result of being able to show for so many quality clients. I am very passionate about the breed. I know exactly what I want in a Welsh Terrier—and I was not disappointed! I was very happy with my Winners Dog, with my Winners Bitch, and my Reserve Winners Bitch. My Best of Breed dog, my Select Dog, and my Awards of Merit were beautiful, and there were three bitches in among the awarded bitches that I thought were outstanding. It was an assignment that I will never forget. I appreciate the support of the breeders, and I am, as I’ve said, very appreciative.

3. In your opinion, what does the future hold for the Terrier breeds in America and around the world?

Wood Wornall: I think that from the looks of the dogs that I saw, the future looks good. Interestingly enough, the majority of my winners in Welsh Terriers were bred and came from foreign countries. Primarily, their breeding was American but the dogs themselves were bred in foreign countries. I think that there are a lot of talented breeders right now, and there are a lot of talented handlers right now. I mention the handlers because the hard-coated Terriers require a great deal of work. You have to be willing to put the time in, and you have to be enough of a perfectionist to do the presentation well. I find that there are a lot of handlers today who are doing the work. Interestingly, a lot of these handlers are from south of our border, whether they be Mexican, South American, or whatever. I’m seeing a great deal of involvement from these individuals. I’m a little bit concerned with Americans being willing and able to put the work in, but the breeders here are doing an outstanding job.

Another observation I have, after looking at the panel of judges, is that to be invited to judge at Montgomery County you need to have a strong Terrier background. That is the reason to be invited to judge, and that goes along with not only the honor of judging but with the responsibility of judging. I’m hoping that, in the future, judges who are invited to judge these breeds are judges with an intense Terrier background. I’m not trying to tell you that you can’t bring an Annie Clark, or a Jim Reynolds, or an Edd Biven to judge Airedales at Montgomery County and not expect them to do a great job. They could and they did. But I would like to think that you can get people who have either bred Airedales or shown Airedales to be able to go in there and do a really, really good job. It is too important a Terrier weekend!