My dog is the coolest because...
Guinness is our eleventh Irish Setter since 1972 but is the first show dog. At the time of adoption we had no idea of the exciting journey Guinness would be leading us on. Without Guinness we never would have joined so many great clubs like the AKC, Irish Setter Club of Milwaukee, Irish Setter Club of America and the Oshkosh Kennel Club. Without Guinness my wife and I would have never been elected to the board of OKC, Fast CAT Chairman for OKC, board member of ISCM & ISCM Fast CAT Chairman. Without Guinness we wouldn’t have met so many great friends. Without Guinness I would still have a small fortune in the bank.

His show career started at six months of age and lasted until we retired him when he became a “Veteran” when he turned seven. With the help of a lot of great people Guinness became a Champion. With that new title in hand and with our daughter home from college, we set our sights on the AKC’s National Owner Handlers Series. Which is just a fancy way of saying, no professional dog handlers allowed. Team Guinness collected NOHS points on a regular basis. The NOHS season ends in October and if you finished in the top 10 nationally you were invited to compete in the AKC’s NOHS National Championship in Orlando. Guinness was #5 four straight years in a row.

Somewhere in the middle of his show career, Guinness was introduced to the AKC sport called Fast CAT. Fast CAT is simply a 100 yard dash that is an electronically timed event. Guinness took over the #1 spot as the fastest Irish Setter in the nation and held that title for over two years. He has not run in over three years and still ranks as the #2 Irish Setter in history.

It is the Mission Statement of the Irish Setter Club of Milwaukee to fundraise on behalf of the AKC Canine Health Foundation to find a cure primarily for cancer and epilepsy but other diseases also. Guinness is the mascot for all of the fundraisers that I host. In 2026 we will be hosting a three day Fast CAT event July 10-12 and a Dog Run/Walk on a Saturday in June (date yet to be determined). Our motto is “Running For the Health of It” or “K9’s Kicking Cancer’s Ass”.

Now we are both retired and turning gray and like to lay around moaning about our aches and pains.

My photo of Guinness is of him running Fast CAT and when his coat was perfectly groomed for the show ring.