He ’s untried , silken , inky - black — and just see at those awesome supercilium !
In a victory befitting his exquisite eyebrows , Bayou , a 3 - yr - oldgiant schnauzer , realise Best in Show at the American Kennel Club ’s twenty-first National Championship last month — not that his proprietor were expect it .
Holly Reed , one of Bayou ’s owners atLagniappe Giant Schnauzersin Port Allen , La. , initially wondered if she ’d misheard judge Dana P. Cline award her puppy Best in Show ( and the accompanying $ 50,000 prize ) .
Winter Churchill Photography
" It was a true shock , " Reed tells Daily Paws .
Considered North America ’s largest dog upshot , the 2021 AKC National Championship presented by Royal Canin was held in Orlando , Fla. ,on Dec. 18–19and aired on ABC this past Sunday . Cline pick out Bayou as " America ’s National Champion " out of more than 5,000 entrants from 50 state and 13 countries after a weekend of acute canine rivalry . Last year ’s honorable in Show success wasBourbon , a whippet .
A member of the working group , Bayou’sofficial registered nameis GCHG CH Lagniappe ’s From The Mountains To The Bayou . He ’s co - own by Holly and Chris Reed and Laurie Mason and Mike Mason of Port Allen . He was breed by the Reeds , Maryann Bisceglia , and Mike Reese .
TheNo . 1 - ranked giant schnauzerbeen a in use boy the past two years , making appearances at the 2020 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show , where he received an award of merit , and again in 2021 , when he won best in stock . His frequent placements in local and regional effect admit Best in Show and speciality wins , leading up to this year ’s AKC National Championship .
How Did Bayou the Giant Schnauzer Win the AKC National Championship?
During the twelvemonth , show dog contenderslike Bayou compete in a series of purebred conformity events . According to the AKC , those shows can be little display featuring one stock or largeall - breedshows that feature grand of dogs like the AKC National Championship .
Here ’s how confirmation register work — and how Bayou won :
In the Best in Show ring with Bayou for the twenty-first yearly event were Reserve Best in Show winner Beacon , aGerman wirehaired pointer(sporting group ) ; Clancy , agrand basset griffon vendeen(hound group ) ; Boom , asmooth dodger terrier(terrier radical ) ; Fortune Cookie , aPekingese(toy group ) ; JJ , anAustralian shepherd(herding mathematical group ) ; and Thor , abulldog(non - sporting group ) whowon well in Show at the 2019 National Dog Show .
Reed says she and the rest of Team Bayou were thrilled he even made it out of the strain stage , so finishing third or quaternary in the Best in Show hoop alongside such plastered competition would be " icing on the cake . "
So how did Bayou take home the top prize ? Reed says he and his manager , Alfonso Escobedo , were both live in the instant , not weighed down by any insistency or expectations to win . perhaps that had something to do with it .
" Both of them were pretty relaxed , " Reed says .
you may watch courtly , collation - fuel Bayou and Escobedo gain their expectant prize in theBest in Show section from AKC.tv .
Up Next for Bayou: Westminster (and a Birthday)
We wo n’t have to wait long to see handsome Bayou again . Reed confirmed that he ’s entered in the 146th annualWestminster Kennel Club Show , slate for later this twelvemonth .
But before all that , this large gent will reverse 4 on Jan. 19 . Here ’s hop his proprietor and manager gift him a car drive to McDonald ’s for water ice emollient — one of his favored things outside the show annulus .
Additional reporting from Daily Paws ' Austin Cannon
