Page 29 - ShowSight Presents - The Chihuahua
P. 29
“THE FIRST BEST IN SHOW VICTORY FOR
OUR BREED OCCURRED ON MARCH 22, 1951
BY CH. ATTAS’ GRETCHEN.
She was owner-handled by Mrs. Mike Attas of Texas.”
owned by Mrs. McClean of New Jersey. Other Americans began traveling in search of Chihuahuas. Two famous early Chi- huahua pioneers were Charles Stuart and Owen Wister of Philadelphia, Pa. One of the dogs acquired by them was “Caranza”, who was described as a fiery red long coat with a tail like that of a squirrel. Some famous pioneers of the breed include: Ber- tha Peaster of Lax Rex Doll Fame, Clara Dobbs, Ida Garrett, Paul Mourman, and famed breeder Mrs. Anna Vinyard of La Oro fame.
The first Best In Show victory for our breed occurred on March 22, 1951 by Ch. Attas’ Gretchen. She was owner-handled by Mrs. Mike Attas of Texas. It took the long coat a little longer to achieve this goal. On September 13, 1975, Ch. Snow Bunny d’Casa de Cris was awarded her big win while being shown by her breeder/owner/ handler Mrs. Martha Hooks. This little girl took the show world by storm and was awarded a total of seven Best In Show wins in the late 1970’s. This record for Best In Show wins for a long coat Chihuahua held for many years.
One very notable dog, Ch. Tejano Texas Kid, won his first Best In Show in 1954. He was shown by the late famed toy handler and judge, Miss Clara Alford. He became the top winning Chi- huahua in breed history with 15 Best In Show Awards. This record held for a good number of years. I recall well respected AKC Judge Maxine Beam saying that “The Kid” was one of the greatest dogs of all time.
Ch. Holiday Gold Jubilee, bred by Mary Myers, was shown by Joe Water- man in the 1980’s. This dog claimed the top spot with 16 All Breed Best In Show victories and had the honor of being Top Toy Dog for the year in 1987! “Doc Hol- iday” was a crowd favorite and brought down the house with applause wherever he was shown.
More recently, these records have been surpassed by other notable dogs. Ch. Bayard Believe It Or Not RJR, bred by Melanie Newell, set a new record for long coats in 1998 with his eighth Best In Show Award. Later his son, Ch. Nauset I Believe I Can Fly, bred by Mary Jane Fred-
erickson, was piloted to 25 such victories making him the top winning Chihuahua of all time. Both of these boys were shown by Kenny Saenz. In 2011, Ch Arywen Star Kissed Delight set a new record for smooth coats with her 17th Best In Show Award. She was breeder/owner/handled by Gloria and Art Johnson. The breed has been rec- ognized in the keenest of All Breed compe- tition and continues to be a force to reckon with at AKC shows.
In more recent years, Linda George of Ouachitah Chihuahua fame was rec- ognized as the first recipient of the Toy Group breeder of the year award nominee at the AKC Invitational dog show. Her Ch. Ouachitah Beau Chiene holds the record for being the Top Toy Sire of all time. Being the breeder/handler of many Best In Show winners, including the only Chihuahua to win the Toy Group at the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club, Linda made Chihuahuadom proud when she received this honor.
With a mysterious past and formidable present, our breed certainly looks forward to a bright future.
“THE BREED HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED IN THE KEENEST OF ALL BREED COMPETITION
and continues to be a force to reckon with at AKC shows.”
