Handsome Hickory

I can't get the winner of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show 2011 out of my mind. Hickory (shown above at the award ceremony and afterward at Sardi's being fed filet mignon) was the 1st Scottish deerhound in the show's 135-year history to take home the top prize. And home for Hickory (full name "Foxcliffe Hickory Wind") will be the farm in Warrenton, Virginia, where co-owner and breeder Cecilia Dove and her husband Scott live. Hickory will be retired from show and bred to have puppies of her own. She will have plenty of deer to chase and a pack of 12 other hounds for companionship. “They’re a large breed and need to be raised carefully. They’re very gentle, and they’re the dog world’s best kept secret - until tonight,” said Dove on the day of the 5-year-old's historic win. The judging was also witnessed by Hickory's other co-owner Sally Sweatt, whose focus on the dog helped her overcome the breast cancer she was diagnosed with last spring. So Hickory is an award-winning show dog and an inspiration, but she's no prima donna. Says handler Angela Lloyd (shown in the photos), “She’s a wonderful dog to live with. I’m going to miss the nose nudge in the middle of the night.”