A Bloodhound Named Trumpet Wins Westminster Dog Show

By: Henry Wang

It was announced on Wednesday night that a 4-year-old bloodhound from Illinois named Trumpet won Best in Show during the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. Trumpet is a big, brown, wrinkled, and floppy-eared dog that had to outdo fellow dog competitors that ranged from a Samoyed, a Maltese, and a German shepherd.

Trumpet didn’t have much to say when he posed with the silver cup and sashes of ribbons. Nonetheless, Trumpet won, and he is the first bloodhound in history to win Westminster.

Trumpet’s handler, Heather Buehner says, “I was shocked.”

“There were seven beautiful dogs in that ring. You know, I feel like sometimes a bloodhound might be a little bit of an underdog. So I was absolutely thrilled.”

She says that January was the first time Trumpet competed in a dog show.

Winston, a French bulldog, claimed second place, also known as Best in Show Reserve at Westminster.

The show is usually held in Madison Square Garden during the wintertime but due to the pandemic, it has been moved to a country estate called Lyndhurst for the last 2 years.

However, this year is not an average year even with familiar sightings like Frank Sinatra singing “New York, New York” and the Empire State Building lit up with purple to recognize the dog show.

Trumpet didn’t seem like a first choice for the judges with his slow pace and mysterious manner. The judges seem to be more appealed to the more extravagant dogs. The biggest cheer was instead for Striker, a white Samoyed who was among one of seven group winners.

Striker was one of the finalists last year being an appealing white Samoyed but lost to a small Pekingese named Wasabi.

However, Trumpet was a charmer and snagged the win this year. Trumpet also had something special by coming from a winning stock. He also has a great-grandfather named Tigger who once held a Guinness World Record for the longest ears on a dog. His right ear was 13.75 inches long and his left 13.5 inches.

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