Bull Terrier Takes All!

Rufus, an adorable (and very aardvark-like) bull terrier, won Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club's 130th Dog Show last night. Rufus (real name: Ch. Rocky Top's Sundance Kid) beat out an English sheepdog (so fluffy), a Scottish deerhound (honestly, a little weird looking, if graceful), a pug (the crowd gasped when he freaked out during judging), a gorgeous Rottweiler (our personal favorite), a Dalmatian (not named Spot), and a golden retriever (very pretty). Gothamist watched the competition on TV and we were quite impressed with Rufus's pose and Best in Show judge Jamie Reynolds said he had "The classic profile of a colored bull terrier." Classic means "egg-shaped head," as all the papers have explained it. Rufus lives in Holmdel, NJ, and is just wacky: The Post reports that Rufus snacks on "chicken when he earns a treat for doing his patented 'hucklebacks'—whacking his rump against doors for fun." We guess that's what happens when his dad is "Einstein The Joker."

Terriers are the winningest breed at the dog show (over 40 of the 130 winners have been terriers), but the dogs most popular with American dog owners don't tend to win because they seem too common. We can intellectualize that, even though we were upset when the judges didn't pick a beagle to win best of the hound group. And the WKC is selling the DVD of this year's dog show.

Photograph of Rufus and handler Kathy Kirk from Matt Law