Into the New Millennium

By the time the year 2000 dawned, Dogs in Review was firmly set on the path it would follow for the next half-decade. In the fall of 1999 I came on board to take Paul’s place working with advertisers; as the magazine continued to grow and prosper, Paul’s duties ballooned tenfold, and an additional dog person to help with ads was a must. And the magazine never lacked for news and editorial material; as Bo would say five years later, “The real strength of a publication like this lies in its contributors, and we have been very lucky in all the world-class writers who write for Dogs in Review on a regular basis.” Along with the glittering roster of monthly columnists, Dogs in Review was fortunate to have contributors such as coated-breed expert Earl Takahashi providing numerous articles on grooming, and Sue LeMieux and Susan Salladay who profiled some of the country’s most significant breeders and their kennels, among other worthy writers. One of the most often complimented elements of DR became the Breed Features that appeared in most issues, with historical information, photos, input from breed experts and advertising from the top people in the featured breeds.  Without fail over the next few years judges would consistently tell us that they read every word of these features and saved them for future reference.

The second issue of the new millennium, Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2000, was a milestone issue for the magazine. As Bo said in his Opening Space in that issue, “Without the support of the early subscribers and advertisers who realized the value of a readable dog show magazine, we could never have made it.” For the first time, Dogs in Review exceeded 200 pages, and by quite a margin at that, for 248 pages of great editorial content and classic, simple ads about dogs. As the editor said, there was a great deal of good material out there — stories, show reports, information, articles, photos — just asking to be printed.  But one, our readers had to help us by sharing that information, and two, those in the sport had to care enough to seek out our magazine and then keep coming back for more. As Bo also said, “To those who now tell us how unbelievably good Dogs in Review is, we say, thanks — it’s simply as good as you make it.” And although we sometimes worked around the clock to keep it going, the support and response from the fancy made it worthwhile for all of us.

The milestone issue featured on the cover, appropriately, the Standard Poodle, Ch. Lake Cove That’s My Boy, the dog that in the capable hands of Dennis McCoy and Randy Garren and under the ownership of the legendary Mrs. Alan Robson, was Number 1 of all breeds for 1998 and 1999, the top-winning Poodle of all time, all varieties, and would become the top-winning Non-Sporting dog of all time. ‘Treson,’ bred by Doris Lilienthal, was photographed for his cover by another legend in the sport of dogs, Missy Yuhl, whose photos graced several other DR covers through the years.

That February issue featured regular columnists Anne Rogers Clark, “Tatler,” the unidentified but always-on-target columnist who had been covering key issues in the sport for a year, Deb Eldredge on canine health, Richard Beauchamp with “Success in Show Dogs,” Simon Parsons on Britain, Harold Nedell, and World in Review, covering events in Finland, Australia and South Africa. There was the first report on the re-creation of Morris & Essex, scheduled for October that year. Also included was AKC news and Show Scene with reports from the Old Fort cluster and the Basset Hound National. Susan Salladay provided a kennel visit with the incomparable Majenkir Borzoi and DR profiled the Top 15 dogs in the country for 1999.

DR also welcomed Clive Davies, reporting on activity in the sport in Canada, and the West Highland White Terrier Breed Feature was a gem, with dozens of photos and input from eight breeder-judges covering the U.S., Great Britain and Sweden. In honor of the millennium, Bo Bengtson wrote “A Century of Dogs,” covering 100 years worth of major and minor news items from dog magazines, books and other sources. Most interestingly, our editor also created a survey and sent it to as many judges, breeders, handlers exhibitors and dog owners as he could, asking them about their memories, concerns and hopes and wishes for the sport of dogs at the turn of the century.  The response was overwhelming, and DR printed each of the over 100 answers received. The February issue also included the first two professional handlers sections in Dogs in Review, for Clint Livingston and the PaRay team of Paul Flores and Tray Pittman.

The year progressed positively. Part-time college student Tom Olson came on board, and veteran breeder-exhibitor Paula Pascoe joined the team as assistant to the editor, becoming an invaluable asset to Bo. Bob Busby, professional handler and Rottweiler specialist, distributed (and made legions of friends for) DR at shows in the east. The March issue DR presented a Breeders Forum in which six top fanciers  — Jean Hetherington of Hetherbull Bulldogs, Pat Trotter of Vin Melca Norwegian Elkhounds, Mary Ellen Fishler of Camelot Toy Poodles, Betty Marcum of Cairmar Cairn Terriers, Barbara Henderson of Whipporwill Whippets and Kadelia Hamilton of Halo Poodles — discussed breeding and raising dogs, from selection of the brood bitch, care and feeding of a bitch in whelp, whelping and raising puppies. The Breed Features for March and April were Siberian Huskies and Poms.

In the May issue we presented full coverage of the Westminster show including critiques from each of the judges and photos by John Ashbey, Gay Glazbrook, Chet Jezierski and Leslie Simis. The Garden winner that year was the Springer bitch, Ch. Salilyn N Erin’s Shameless, presented as always by Kellie Fitzgerald for Carl Blaine and Fran Sunseri. ‘Samantha’ was co-owned during her career by her legendary breeder Julia Gasow, who was lost to the sport in April of 1999. There was lots more to read in that issue, including a kennel visit with Marjorie Martorella’s Marjetta Pointers, the Great Dane feature, and a report that had arrived just at press time announcing the 2000 Crufts Best in Show winner — a Kerry Blue Terrier, Eng. Ch. Torum’s Scarf Michael. DR, and the whole of America and the world, would hear a lot more from ‘Mick’ in the future.

In the meantime, however, the June 2000 issue featured on its cover the Bichon Frise, Ch. Special Times Just Right! He was already the Number 1 dog of all breeds, and was shortly to win the 2000 Bichon National, all in the capable hands of Scott Sommer and under the ownership of Ceil Ruggles, his breeder Eleanor McDonald and Flavio Werneck. Jim Reynolds reported on his experience judging in Tokyo at the FCI Asian International Dog Show, hosted by the Japan KC, while Emma Greenway, another we would hear more from in later years, reported on the Metropolitan KC show from South Australia. Miniature Poodles were the featured breed. It was also in 2000 that DR began the practice which endures through this day of featuring each of the seven Variety Groups in one issue per year, with discounted advertising rates for dogs in the featured Group and in-depth articles covering the Group as well. The June issue was the first, featuring the Non-Sporting Group, followed by Hounds in July, Toys in August, Terriers in October, Herding in November and Working in December.

By the time the October 2000 issue rolled around, it was clear that our staff needed help with advertising design and Chris Baker and Rocki de Llamas added DR to the list of publications for which they created memorable ads. The October issue proved to be another milestone when it grew to 304 pages, and as Bo said in Opening Space, “This is by far the biggest issue we have done, and we hope you will enjoy reading it as much as we have enjoyed putting it together.” And the DR team was enjoying it. How exciting it was to be part of something of such great value, that had such potential to offer so much to the sport we all loved. This issue featured Terriers, including a Q&A with Terrier authorities Dr. Josephine Deubler, Ed Dalton, Sandra Goose Allen, Mareth Kipp and Ric Chashoudian. Paul Lepiane outdid that stellar cast, however, with his own in-depth interview with legendary Terrier man Dan Kiedrowski, who for almost 40 years had published Terrier Type and Schnauzer Shorts magazines. The featured breed for that issue was Cairn Terriers, and it became the most successful Breed Feature to date, with almost 20 pages of advertising from the best in the breed and 30 pages in all about the breed.

The rest of the year flew by, and in the December issue, DR reported on the reborn Morris & Essex show which was held the first week of October, at Giralda Farms just as in the old days. Darrell and Marilu Hansen’s Kerry Blue Terrier, ‘Mick,’ was Best in Show with Melbourne Downing judging the final, and many who were present at the old Morris & Essex shows felt that the event was amazingly similar to the original. The indomitable Kerry was also Best in Show at Montgomery that year, both wins from the classes. Bo Bengtson took a moment to reflect on how far the magazine had come in just four years: in 1997 the first 10 issues of DR totaled 558 pages; in 1998 there were 10 issues with 832 pages; in 1999 there were 11 issues with 1,196 pages; the year 2000 saw 11 issues of DR with a combined total of 2,230 pages. And as Bo said in closing, “The future looks bright: we have only begun to scratch the surface of all the fascinating subjects we want to explore. We are planning to continue the mix of glossy ads and in-depth, truly readable articles which has proved so popular.”

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