10 Questions ...

Profession: Retired dog-magazine publisher

Dog-sport involvement: Publishing and non-professional handling

Hometown: Ojai, California

Astrological sign: Capricorn

1. Do you have any dog-show superstitions?  

No. Instead I’ll give you my dog-show philosophy: “You can’t win if you don’t go."

2. TV-show guilty pleasure? 

I have lots of TV pleasures and I don’t feel guilty about any of them. Besides “Survivor,” period dramas/comedies and agricultural shows like “This Farming Life” reel me in.

3. If you were president of AKC for one day, what would you do?  

Figure out how to change the current trend to more, smaller shows and get back the number of shows we had in the ’70s (less than half as many all-breed shows as we have today). Instead of clubs holding more shows with fewer entries to survive, there would be far fewer shows so that they aren’t competing with each other the same weekend for entries. Clubs would go back to one show per year and pair up with another club for a weekend of two big shows. There would not be competing shows within driving distance so entries would grow. With bigger entries, clubs could hire more specialist judges instead of basing judge choices simply on how many groups they can do.

4. Most valued material possession?

Our house, because not only is it our home, it has also become my retirement activity with gardening, orchard work and animals (a collection of exotic pheasants and birds).

5. What is something no one would guess about you? 

I think most dog-show people don’t know my background or interest in the agricultural world. One of my most listened-to podcasts is BBC’s “Farming Today.” Ask me anything about the dire state of today’s pig sector in the U.K.!

6. Who would you compare yourself to? 

I’ll leave that to others.

7. What are you “famous” for? 

I don’t know about famous, but “notable” for starting Poodle Variety magazine in 1977 and publishing it very successfully for 42 years until selling it and retiring in 2019. Before that I started The Afghan Hound Review in 1974, and in 1997, with Bo Bengtson, I started and published Dogs in Review magazine. In fact, starting with working for The Doberman Quarterly and National Dog magazines when I was 19, the only industry I have ever worked professionally in is dog-magazine publishing. As a teenager, a long, LONG time ago, I worked as an assistant for a couple of professional handlers, Larry Worth and Marvin Cates.

Also, I’m very involved in rowing, and for a few years topped the list of world’s fastest times for my age (60s) at various distances on indoor rowing machines.

8. What website do you visit most often?

After a 45-year career in publishing, I’m online very little these days, but like most people, Facebook is probably it.

9. What was more memorable, your most satisfying win or disappointing defeat? And what was it? 

Best in Show at Santa Barbara KC in 2005 with a Whippet was the most surprising, but the most satisfying was winning the Rhodesian Ridgeback National held with Santa Barbara KC in 1973. I was working for handler Marvin Cates, and while he was in the Saluki ring I took our Ridgeback special in the ring. This dog, Ch. Batoka’s Rooibaadjie, had already won the National twice, so I felt a lot of pressure. Marvin never made it to the ring, so there was great satisfaction when we won Best of Breed.

10. What do you wish someone would ask you? 

“Tell me more about the dire state of the pig sector in the U.K."