Lake Forest dog has its day
They say every dog has its day. For one Gurnee pup that day was Monday, on one of the world's grandest stages.
Zacq, a 4-year-old American Eskimo, was one of only eight dogs in his breed invited to compete in the prestigious Westminster Dog Show in New York City.
(Thomas Delany Jr./News-Sun)
• Web site: Westminster Dog Show
Zacq and his owner, Kathleen Strunk, competed Monday in the two-day event, which culminates tonight at 7 on the USA Network.
Though he didn't win, Strunk said she was happy to be able to compete with Zacq, who is the sixth-ranked American Eskimo in the country.
Champion dogs are nothing new in the Strunk home. Both Kathleen, a teacher in Lake Forest, and her 31-year-old daughter, Stephanie Strunk, a pharmaceutical sales director in Niles, have raised International and American Kennel Club competitors.
It's a hobby that started six years ago when Stephanie got an American Eskimo named Sesi. The two took the dog around to various regional competitions, and despite not having a perfect bite, Sesi did well.
Not well enough to compete on a national level, but Stephanie and Kathleen were hooked. The weekly competitions and hours of grooming and training were fun to them. From there, mom got her own American Eskimo. Daughter got another, and before they knew it, they were raising and showing some of the finest dogs in the country.
In 2003 one of their Eskimos, Nicq, took seventh overall in the country.
A good dog will meet breed standards, meaning that its physical and personality traits best resemble what that breed should, Stephanie said.
Looks alone won't make a dog a winner, however. An upbeat personality is also key. Keeping Zacq at the top of his game is not easy, Kathleen said. There is a lot of training and maintenance for both dog and handler.
"There's more training for me than for him," Kathleen said. "I have to learn (the calls) and he follows what I do."
There is also a lot of travel. With shows nearly every weekend all around the Midwest, the miles can pile up. Since July Stephanie estimates she's put 20,000 miles on her, car driving to various competitions.
Stephanie is at the infancy stages of training with the family's newest dog. Skyy, a 6-month-old Siberian Husky, competed in his first show in January. His lineage is quite impressive, and Stephanie said she expects to compete for national titles in a few years.
Skyy is the Strunk's only dog, that's not an American Eskimo. The decision to go with a breed different from what her mother was showing was an easy one, Stephanie said.
"She's too competitive, and I was tired of getting my butt kicked," Stephanie said.
Those claims are true, mom says. When it comes to the American Eskimo breed, Kathleen says she wants her dog to be tops, even if the competition is family.
That competitive nature is fairly common in the dog show world, Kathleen said, likening the experience to the 2000 movie "Best in Show."
The eccentric behavior of dog owners portrayed in the movie "is so true," Kathleen said.
The eccentric characters, long cars rides and extensive grooming may seem like a burden, but both mother and daughter say they love it.
"Once you start doing it, you get hooked," Stephanie said.
