On Saturday, Pat Murkland -- an Irish wolfhound fancier and Southern California-based Vivi supporter -- was thumbing through the catalog at the much-hyped Eukanuba/AKC National Championship when she came across Vivi's name.
The annual show is nicknamed the Invitational because it invites the top 25 dogs from each breed to compete. And this year, Vivi was included among the whippet invitees, though her absence was certainly not a surprise.
"Hurray for Vivi!" writes Pat in an email. "She was ranked No. 13 of 25 in whippet breed wins, according to the Canine Chronicle. The qualifying period was from Oct. 12, 2005, to Oct. 10, 2006. So she got ranked based on what she won between mid-October 2005 and Westminster 2006, and finished over others who competed throughout the remaining months of the qualifying period, which is the majority of the 2006 show season.
"Of course," Pat concludes, "the biggest win of all time would be getting hugged by her family again."
Comments (1)
Did anyone watched the wonderful shows 2 days in rows? (Saturday and Sunday)
I was thinking of Vivi, wishing she was there.
All different kinds of dogs are amazing!
I didn't sensed any bad happened to any of the dogs because they all are fine and healthy.
I don't know why Vivi was picked out then next day she was lost. It's hard to explained, it's more like gut-feelings. It was very rare.
Hopefully Vivi will be back home with her "family" soon. Keep the faith stronger!