I'm glad Uno the 15" beagle won and when he won he kept howlin just like a beagle, including, mine does.

The people running around the ring are "light" on their feet, aren't they? Rent the movie Best in Show. Captures the whole scene.

It's disappointing to see what the show people have done to some of the hunting breads. Irish Setters, Weimerainers, Golden Retrievers, Cocker Spaniels etc. They don't look like the same dogs any more. I had a cocker as kid, a great dog. Now they have big clumber heads and bugged out eyes that secrete fluid all the time, an impractical long coat and pee every they get excited and are dumber than a box of rocks. I still see some good cockers every now and then at test or trials but not what people are selling.

The hunting and working breeds were developed over time with a purpose to be productive and useful to man. A companion with a purpose.

Today most breed for just the looks as apposed to function and disposition. There is way to much inbreeding going on today for short term gains and profit in both show and trial.
I've got a setter, Field trial stud book registered. He can really do it, a ball of fire, except........... he's hypoglycemic. So to be able to hunt him any length you have to starch him up and carry stuff with you to keep him from having seizures. This dog would kill himself in order to hunt. That is all he want to do. However vet's have said the inbreeding in what's cause his hypoglycemia.

The Amish are big into the Puppy mills. Cranking out product for the pet stores