Lisa Van Driest-Gable, imagined with her dogs Millie (left) and Sage (right). Sage, a female Greater Swiss Mountain Dog, will appear at the 2023 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show on May 9. (Submitted).
A 4-year-old dog from a Concord Township farm will take a trip to New York City this month for her 2nd successive look at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, in what her owner anticipates to be her last entry prior to she retires from conformation occasions.
Female Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Sage will be contending on May 9, said owner Lisa Van Driest-Gable. Sage has actually received nationwide acknowledgment in her nearly-four year profession, consisting of the recent title of Gold Grand Champion from the American Kennel Club.
“We’re excited to go again this year,” Van Driest-Gable said, keeping in mind that Sage did not location at last year’s program.
She said that throughout the conformation occasion in which Sage will be contending, the dogs will be evaluated by how well they satisfy the AKC’s requirement for their types.
“Their height, their weight, their neck length, their head, everything is very specific,” she said. “And when you go into the conformation ring, the judge’s responsibility is to interpret what he sees as the best dog in the ring to the breed standard.”
Van Driest-Gable kept in mind that she had no experience with dog reveals prior to acquiring Sage.
“We have a farm, and one of the main interests I had in the Greater Swiss breed was that their origin is farm-related,” she said. “I wanted a majestic dog that would be the guardian to our farm but still is very much a family companion, and she fits that perfectly.”
Though she began taking Sage to regional programs “just for fun,” the canine “started winning and just kept winning.” She ultimately started to complete in AKC programs, which her owner said “was a huge learning process.”
In order to receive Gold Grand Champion status from the AKC, Sage needed to receive 400 points at different programs.
“We have traveled, the last three years, from Florida to Massachusetts multiple times, back and forth, to achieve the 400 points for her Gold Grand Championship,” she said, later on including, “We bought a new vehicle, and within a year we had, like, 50,000 miles on it.”
Van Driest-Gable approximated that she “invested two to three hours a day” walking and training the 100-pound dog. The canine likewise went through obedience training.
“We have handlers, professional handlers that present her in the classes, and I spend a lot of time conditioning her,” she said.
In addition to getting the Gold Grand Champion status, Sage likewise completed as the second-ranked female in her breed for the 2022 AKC National Championship.
This year’s Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is set to consist of 19 Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs, kept in mind a March 21 news release from the club, amongst more than 3,000 entries from 210 types.
“It would be an honor to have Sage recognized as one of the ribbon-participating entries to finish her career,” Van Driest-Gable said. “It’s really an absolute honor to be recognized by the judging and the breeds at Westminster.”
The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog falls under the AKC’s group of working types, and Sage’s owner means to put her to work around the family farm after she is retired from conformation programs. This consists of pulling carts, both around the property and possibly in competitors.
“They’re an incredibly strong-bred dog,” she said, keeping in mind that Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs were traditionally utilized to pull carts in the Swiss Alps.
She is likewise thinking about breeding Sage for puppies.
“Just because I say she’s retiring as a Gold Grand Champion, by no means does that mean that she’s going to live a boring life,” she said. “She has lots of things planned.”
Van Driest-Gable means to continue training future dogs for programs.
“I’m looking forward to starting over with our next puppy,” she said.
She kept in mind that she co-owns Sage with the dog’s breeder, Janelle Kaiser of Seneca Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs in Lafayette, Indiana. Sage completes in the AKC under the name Seneca’s Slopestyle, with Slopestyle showing her litter style.
“Just excited that she gets to participate,” Van Driest-Gable said. “It’s very special and you always hope for the best, and to have your animal recognized is quite an honor. I’m very honored that she has made her Gold Grand Champion title; that meant a lot to me.”
The 147th yearly Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show will happen on May 8-9 at the United States Tennis Association Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, which lies in Queens, New York. The press release kept in mind that the competitors acts as “a conformation competition for purpose-bred dogs.”
Live protection of the program will be available at westminsterkennelclub.orgon tv on Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports 2 and on the Fox Sports app. More information on the program’s schedule and seeing choices can be discovered under the Media tab on the kennel club’s website.
