Local youth show at prestigious Westminster Dog Show

For dog lovers and dog show enthusiasts, there’s nothing quite like the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.

Held in mid-February in New York City, the prestigious, 140-year-old dog show is the pinnacle of all dog shows.

“When you start showing at the junior level, Westminster is your goal,” says Kim Abbott, head of the Wiggles & Wags club, a Brush Prairie-based 4-H dog club that includes members from all over Clark County. “I’ve been there before and it’s incredible, but it’s also a lot of pressure. Even kids who are used to competing, who compete every weekend and are the best of the best, get nervous at Westminster.”

Abbott, 33, an award-winning owner-handler of German shorthaired pointers, knows what it takes to climb the dog show ladder of success. She joined 4-H when she was only 9 years old and has been a 4-H dog club leader for 17 years, and her dogs regularly take top honors at prestigious dog shows across the country.

Abbott’s children – 11-year-old Briar, 8-year-old Cohen and 5-year-old Tenley – are dog enthusiasts who have grown up with their mom’s pack of German shorthaired pointers in the Hockinson area, learning the intricacies of dog breeding, training and showing.

Members of Abbott’s Wiggles & Wags club have had great success at the regional, state and national levels – in fact, several members earned invites to this year’s Westminster Dog Show.

“Briar was one of the youngest to be invited,” Abbott says. “She really wanted to go, but, unfortunately, we were ill and couldn’t attend.”

Briar Abbott is a well-known figure on the junior dog showing circuit. 

“Briar has come out and been extremely successful,” Abbott says of her eldest child, who she says is naturally drawn to all animals great and small. “She went to the Clark County Junior Showmanship and won every year. She competed at state and was the grand champion overall in Washington State twice. She shows the German shorthaired pointers, but her heart dog, the dog she loves, is the English springer spaniel. She’s just an unbelievable talent, she showed in the AKC (American Kennel Club) ring when she was just 7 years old and beat the adults to get best of breed! I’m amazed by this kid.”

Abbott admits that her daughter’s first love is actually horses, which Briar also shows, but says her daughter has found a passion for breeding quality dogs and showing them at dog shows throughout the country.

“Briar is one of the youngest breeder-handlers,” Abbott says. “She’s been invited to Westminster twice, and we’re hoping to go next year.”

Other Wiggles and Wags members did go to the 139th Westminster Dog Show, though, and joined about 100 other “best of the best” dog-showing youth from around the country.

Raina Moss, 17, a senior at Battle Ground High School, was one of those members. Moss is no stranger to success, Abbott says.

“Raina is just incredible. She started in dog 4-H with an English springer spaniel, but then fell in love with the Clumber spaniels, which are not a typical junior show dog,” Abbott says. “But she stayed true to the Clumber and has done very well.”

In 2013, Moss made fourth overall at the Westminster’s junior show. Moss’ accomplishments are even more spectacular considering the breed of dog that she shows, Abbott says.

“Usually, juniors show shorthairs or English springers or goldens,” Abbott explains. “Raina’s dog, Dirk, is just adorable, but showing a Clumber is like showing a basset hound, it’s a low, heavy bodied dog and it’s not a common junior show dog. It’s a more difficult breed to show. But Raina has stayed true to the breed she loves.”

Another member of Abbott’s 4-H group, Lauren Weber, 16, of Camas, is similar in her affection for a breed not typically seen on the junior show dog circuit.

“Lauren fell in love with ‘Berners,’ or Bernese mountain dogs,” Abbott says. “She shows her dog, Glory, a 4-year-old Berner and she’s been doing so awesome. When she came to me, she had been struggling with another 4-H group and asked if she could join my group. We welcomed her in and she’s just blossomed. She qualified for the first time this year for the state fair in dog 4-H and won senior showmanship reserve champion and grand reserve champion overall at the Clark County Fair. She’s stayed true to her breed and it’s paid off for her.”

Two other teenagers who are not in Abbott’s group, but is in the Clark County dog 4-H program – Nicki Short, 15, of Camas and Mallary Ross, 18, of Vancouver – also placed high at the junior Westminster show this year. Short placed in the top eight with her dog Opal, an older Cardigan Welsh corgi and Ross made the first cut in her class, but did not go as far as Short in the competition, with her Doberman, Avril.

Racking up wins and honors is definitely exciting – and Washington state seems to produce an incredible number of dog show stars on the junior circuit – but Abbott says 4-H is about so much more.

“Clark County has such a strong dog 4-H program,” Abbott says. “The kids who are involved in 4-H are so well-spoken and confident. They’re like little sponges who just want to keep learning. In general, I’d say 4-H does amazing things for kids. It teaches them how to speak in public, how to apply for scholarships, and how to be successful in life. It’s just so good for these kids. And it’s not just about dogs. There are many other 4-H programs – they can learn sewing and baking, cooking and canning, and there’s a cat 4-H and even a guinea pig 4-H. It’s incredible how many clubs there are.”

Clark County’s 4-H program is run through the Washington State University (WSU) Extension office, offers more than 50 4-H clubs and is open to all Clark County youth ages 5 to 19. The 4-H year begins in October, but new members are accepted all year long. To find out more about the Clark County 4-H programs, visit http://ext100.wsu.edu/clark/4hyouthfamilies/. Interested in having your child join 4-H? Call the WSU Extension 4-H office at (360) 397-6060, ext. 5710 or email rachel.george@clark.wa.gov.