As the second-longest continuously run sporting event in the United States, the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show presented by Purina® Pro Plan® has been around even longer than the AKC. Over the last 150 years, the show has seen new breeds, growing entry numbers, and multiple different venues. Learn more about this dog show with these Westminster fun facts.
Breeds Represented at Westminster
In 2025, over 200 dog breeds are recognized by the American Kennel Club. But the very first show in 1887 had only 35 breeds represented, along with a Miscellaneous class. As more breeds become recognized, more are competing for the title of Best in Show at Westminster – so the competition only gets stiffer!
A Bedlington Debuted as BIS Winner on TV
The 1948 show was the first Westminster show to be broadcast on TV, twenty years after the first programs were broadcast on television in the U.S. in 1928. The official commercial launch of broadcast TV, however, was in 1939 through NBC. CBS Sports covered the event on their broadcast from the 1960s to 1980s.
Bedlington Terrier Ch. Rock Ridge Night Rocket, the winner of the 1948 show, was therefore the first Best in Show at Westminster to be broadcast on television. The dog was owned by Mr. and Mrs. William A. Rockefeller.
One Breed Has the Most Best in Show Wins
Wire Fox Terriers have won Best In Show at Westminster 15 times. The first Wire Fox Terrier winner was Ch Matford Vic in 1915 and the most recent was GCH Afterall Painting The Sky in 2014.
Other breeds that have many wins under their belt still haven’t hit double digits. Scottish Terriers have won eight times and English Springer Spaniels have won six times.
The Oldest and Youngest Dogs to Ever Win
Ch Clussexx Three D Grinchy Glee is the oldest dog to ever win. The Sussex Spaniel was 10 years, 2 months, and 10 days old when awarded Best In Show in 2009. The dog was owned by Cecilia Ruggles, Beth Dowd, and Scott Sommer.
The youngest dog to ever win was the 1929 winner, a nine-month old Collie named Laund Loyalty of Bellhaven.
Most Winners Have Come From This Group
Groups were solidified and recorded as part of Westminster’s Best in Show statistics by breed since 1907. Terriers have taken home Best In Show 47 times, the most of any group. The latest winner of the Terrier Group was a Wire Fox Terrier in 2021.
The Sporting Group comes in second with 20 winners, then the Working Group with 15, Toy with 12, Non-Sporting with 13, and Hound with seven. The Herding Group has only won Westminster Best in Show twice!
One Judge Has Judged Westminster BIS Three Times
One of the greatest honors as a dog show judge is to be asked to be a judge at Westminster. Even higher of an honor? To judge the Best in Show competition and crown that year’s winner and Reserve Best in Show.
Only one individual in history has judged Best in Show at Westminster three times: William W. Brainard Jr. Brainard Jr. judged Best in Show in 1958, 1972, and 1976. Eight judges throughout history have judged Best in Show at Westminster twice, but Brainard Jr. is the only person to do it three times.
Multiple Best in Show Wins
To win Best in Show at Westminster already means besting thousands of other dogs. So to do so even once is an incredible achievement. One dog won Best in Show at Westminster not once or twice but three times in history – and even won three consecutive years in a row.
Smooth Fox Terrier Ch Warren Remedy, owned by Winthrop Rutherfurd, won Best in Show in 1907, 1908, and 1909.
Different Venues Over Time
The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is known to be held at Madison Square Garden, but it didn’t always look how you’d think. The show has been held at all four different Madison Square Garden venues – and it’s the only event that has.
Only a handful of shows in Westminster’s history were not held at the Garden. In 2021 and 2022, the show was held at Lyndhurst mansion in Tarrytown, New York. In 2023 and 2024, the show was held at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, before returning to MSG in 2025.
For the Love of Judging
One Westminster fun fact is that sometimes, judges throughout history are married! Three husband-and-wife pairs have judged Best in Show so far in the run of the show.
Beatrice and Major Godsol both judged Best in Show: Beatice in 1958, and Major in 1968. Dorothy and Chester Collier judged Best in Show closer together: Dorothy in 1997 and Chester in 2000.
Most recently, Edd and Irene Bivin judged Best in Show at Westminster: Edd in 1999, and Irene in 2003.
A Dual-BIS Household
Winning Best in Show at Westminster and having that trophy in your home is an incredible honor. But one couple has two. Bob and Jane Kamp Forsyth are the only husband and wife to both win Westminster Best in Show as handlers.
Bob won in 1964 with Whippet Ch Courtenay Fleetfoot of Pennyworth, and Jane in 1970 with Boxer Ch Arriba’s Prima Donna. They’ll always have this incredible thing in common!
The 150th annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show has crowned its Best in Show winner! Catch reruns of the coverage on demand and learn more about one of the most famous dog shows in the United States at westminsterkennelclub.org.