Purina's 2015 National Dog Show with the Winner "Charlie": Dog show Image via Best in Show Daily Facebook
For the last 14 years it’s been a Thanksgiving Day tradition with over 20 million folks tuning in to watch the Purina National Dog Show after Macy’s New York parade wraps up. This year was no different for the 2015 event airing on NBC Sports. When you think about it, what better way to spend the day before the feasting and football games take over the rest of the holiday intended for reflecting on all we have to be thankful for. For many of us, pets are high on our lists of the things we’re most grateful for. That’s why the dog show is such a treat.
2015 Purina National Dog Show
The 14th annual event featured co-hosts John O’Hurley of Seinfeld fame and expert analyst David Frei. Backstage commentators Mary Carillo, Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski were also reporting from the benching area as the dogs readied to compete. Both Weir and Lipinski are former Olympic figure skaters. The beloved show features all seven group competitions and Best in Show, highlighting the top dog of the night. If you’ve never seen it before, you may want to catch it next Thanksgiving.
The Hound Group
First up in our recap was the Hound Group. This segment of the competition had four beautiful winners from among the faithful hunting animals. Hounds are one of the oldest-type of hunting dogs among canines. Of the 29 competitors, here are the results:
Winner: Scottish Deerhound named Chelsea handled by Angela L. Loyd.
Second in Group: American Foxhound
Third in Group: Whippet
Fourth in Group: Bloodhound
Scottish Deerhound: A Scottish Deerhound named Chelsea took 1st Place in the Hound Group
The Working Group
Working dogs are those hearty, reliable animals best known for their utility status for helping guard livestock on farms and ranches and even hunting. They’re also known for their work as police dogs, firefighter dogs and for serving as guide dogs. There were 30 dogs in this category and the results are as follows:
Winner: Newfoundland named Winslow handled by Michael Scott
Second in Group: Samoyed
Third in Group: Doberman Pinscher
Fourth in Group: Bullmastiff
Purina's 2015 National Dog Show: A Newfoundland named Winslow took 1st place in the Working Group
The Toy Group
In the Toy Group is where we see the tiniest of the competitors and often the cutest. They’re basically known for being lap dogs bred solely for their companionship. They’re the canines no one expects anything more from other than just being an adorable friend. With 24 dogs vying for the win in this group, here’s how it played out:
Winner: Smooth Coat Chihuahua named Sonnito handled by Caroline E. Lanasa
Second in Group: Japanese Chin
Third in Group: Brussels Griffon
Fourth in Group: Yorkshire Terrier
Purina's 2015 National Dog Show: The winner in the Toy Group was a Smooth Coat Chihuahua named Sonnito
The Terrier Group
Few people realize the number of different terriers there actually are among the breed. They are primarily known for their feisty and energetic personalities and range in size from small to large. In this year’s event there were 32 representatives in all among the dogs. Here’s the top four for the Terrier Group:
Winner: Skye Terrier named Charlie handled by Larry Cornelius
Second in Group: Scottish Terrier
Third in Group: Smooth Fox Terrier
Fourth in Group: American Staffordshire
Purina's 2015 National Dog Show: The winner of the Terrier Group was a Skye Terrier named Charlie
The Non-Sporting Group
At one time the American Kennel Club (AKC) registered dogs as either Sporting or Non-Sporting. Eventually that changed with hounds and terriers split off from the Sporting Group and Toys and Working dogs split off from Non-Sporting. Then, to really mix it up, the Herding Group eventually split off from the Working Group. Now, the Non-Sporting Group is every single breed that’s leftover, resulting in a wide variety of dogs in all shapes and sizes. Here’s who won what:
Winner: French Bulldog named Ruby handled by Jodi Longmire
Second in Group: Coton de Tulear
Third in Group: Keeshonden
Fourth in Group: Lhasa Apso
Purina's 2015 National Dog Show: The winner of the Non-Sporting Group was a French Bulldog named Ruby
The Herding Group
Herding is a natural inclination in this particular group of dogs. For centuries humans have been taking advantage of this instinct on farms and ranches with herding dogs whose sole purpose is gathering and moving livestock from one place to another. Of the 26 competitors in 2015, these are the winners:
Winner: Bearded Collie named Zack handled by Katie Shepard
Second in Group: Australian Shepherd
Third in Group: Briard
Purina's 2015 National Dog Show: The winner of the Herding Group was a bearded Collie named Zack
The Sporting Group
The sporting or gun dogs, as they’re often referred to, were bred to aid in hunting game birds and waterfowl. A number of these sporting breeds perform multiple tasks, but it is generally the job of pointers/setters to point to and mark game, for spaniels to flush it out, and for retrievers to recover it. With 33 entrants, here are the winners:
Winner: Ascob Cocker Spaniel named Matt handled by Lisa Arnett
Second in Group: Gordon Setter
Third in Group: Wirehaired Pointing
Fourth in Group: Curly-Coated Retriever
Purina's 2015 National Dog Show: An Ascob Cocker Spaniel by the name of Matt took 1st place in the Sporting Group
Best in Show
The First in Group winners from among the seven competing dog groups eventually go on to compete against one another for the title of Best in Show. This is the animal judges feel is the overall best canine of all the contenders. Considering there are over 150 breeds recognized and partaking in the Purina National Dog Show, it is considered quite an honor to receive this title. It’s about this time I can’t help thinking about the hysterical 2000 mockumentary Best in Show, but I digress.
This year’s winner of Best in Show was none other than (drum roll, please) the little Skye Terrier named Charlie handled by Larry Cornelius from the Terrier Group. Charlie's win marks the very first win for a Skye Terrier ever in the history of the event, but it was the sixth time the Terrier Group has won Best in Show. Congrats, Charlie, may you wear your crown or sash proudly until next year!!!!
