Sarah Benson had been showing in AKC Junior Showmanship for just over a year when she received a golden-yellow envelope in the mail.
The 13-year-old handler, from Nicolaus, California, was so new to the sport that she didn’t recognize the Westminster Kennel Club’s purple emblem. Inside, a letter congratulated Sarah for qualifying for the Junior Showmanship competition at the 2025 show.
“I didn’t even know what Westminster was until I got the invitation,” Sarah says. She had unwittingly earned her spot just under the wire — winning her seventh Best Junior on the last qualifying weekend.
Realizing her achievement, she seized the opportunity to compete at the prestigious show — and she hasn’t slowed down since. Sarah devotes nearly every weekend to dog sports, whether it’s competing in Juniors, running AKC Fast CAT, participating in AKC Rally, or assisting her mentors, breeder-handlers Robin and Monika Stachon.
“I’m not winning every weekend, but when you do win, it’s so fun,” Sarah says. “Even when you don’t win, it’s fun because you still get to go in the ring with your dog.”
‘A Dog-Obsessed Child’
Though Sarah is the first in her family to show dogs in conformation, her parents competed in flyball, agility, and obedience before she was born. Sarah’s love for dogs was apparent at a young age — her mom, Jennifer Akins, describes her as a “dog-obsessed child” who started asking for her own puppy at age 3.
“She absolutely loved PAW Patrol,” Akins says, “and when we got a rescue GSD, she named him ‘Chase,'” after the German Shepherd Dog character in the show.
At 7, Sarah and her family’s rescued Border Collie participated in Kidz Kamp, a free summer program hosted by AKC agility judge Ann McQuillen, of Competition K9 in Placerville, California. She learned foundational training skills and began training in obedience, agility, Rally, Barn Hunt, and tricks.
Seeing her passion continue to grow, Sarah’s parents finally agreed she was ready for a dog of her own at 10 years old — under the condition that she would train him herself.
Playing With Fire
Enter “Arson,” a 9-week-old, fiery red Australian Shepherd puppy. Sarah joined the 4-H dog project, where she learned about canine care, anatomy, and training. She later became the 4-H dog project junior leader and successfully lobbied the county fair to include AKC Rally at their event. As Arson matured, she showed him in 4-H at the county fair, and soon entered the world of AKC Juniors.
“I found AKC to be a little bit easier than 4-H in some ways,” Sarah says. In 4-H, judges quiz the kids on canine anatomy and sometimes require more complex gaits, such as the L-pattern. “It was hard, but I feel like it helps you learn way more when you get asked those types of questions and do those patterns.”
When Arson hit adolescence, he started getting distracted in handling class, Sarah says — so her instructor, Borzoi breeder Monika Stachon, suggested she practice with “Elf,” a 7-year-old retired champion. The two clicked, and before long, Elf became Sarah’s Junior dog.
“She’s so fun to show — I really love the breed,” Sarah says. She now co-owns Elf with the Stachons, and has her sights on more hounds — she’s considering an Afghan Hound as her next Junior’s dog, and aspires to one day be the top junior handler in the Hound Group.
“I like the way they move and the way they act … I like their whole demeanor. ” Sarah says of sighthounds. “They’re really an elegant breed. Everything about them is really cool.”
The Show Must Go On
Last-minute flight complications prevented Elf from joining Sarah at Westminster this year, heaping stress and uncertainty onto an already exciting experience. But Sarah is resilient, and the dog show community had her back. Her handling instructor, Jody Davidson, offered her Cesky Terrier, “Andi,” to use in Juniors.
“She was the sweetest little dog,” Sarah says. “I’d never handled a terrier breed before that, or a table breed in Juniors. So it was very stressful.”
Davidson coached Sarah on how to set Andi up on the table, show the bite, and groom the unique Cesky coat. While the team didn’t place, Sarah is proud of their performance, having never shown a table breed and meeting her canine teammate just one day before.
“It was super fun,” Sarah says. “Andi was so happy to work. She was just like, ‘OK, yeah, let’s go!'”
Today, Sarah shows a variety of breeds throughout California — plus the occasional goat in 4-H. She has also added another Australian Shepherd, “Cinder,” to her family and shows her Aussies in breed, Junior Showmanship, and Rally.
Sarah has already earned the minimum of seven Best Junior wins to qualify for the 2026 Westminster show and now enjoys showing different breeds to improve her skills as a handler. She assists the Stachons on weekends, sometimes traveling with them to shows, and is considering a future career in professional handling.
“It’s so fun just getting to work with all these dogs and getting to go into the ring a ton of times,” Sarah says. “Just walking the dogs and setting up ex-pens — I don’t know why, but that is so satisfying to me.”