Illinois-Bred Trumpet Toots His Own Horn At Westminster Kennel Show

ILLINOIS — A brassy bloodhound from Illinois made a lot of noise at the Westminster Kennel Club Show on Wednesday night when Trumpet took home Best In Show honors at the annual event in New York.

Trumpet, who was bred in St. Joseph, is 4½ years old and is owned by Chris and Bryan Flessner, Heather Buehner, and Tina Kocar. Trumpet beat out more than 3,000 other competitors for top honors at the 146th annual event, which showcases dogs of all breeds over several days of competition.

Trumpet won the hounds round, and the Westminster Kennel Club classifies bloodhounds as “one of the oldest breeds of dogs that hunt by scent.” Trumpet became the first bloodhound in the show's history to take home Best In Show honors.

"I am so excited for Trumpet," Buehner, who handled the hound during Wednesday’s showing told reporters and characterized Trumpet as a "goofball." "He has a lot of attitude and he's a little crazy."

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She added: “There were seven beautiful dogs in that ring. You know, I feel like sometimes a bloodhound might be a little bit of an underdog. So I was absolutely thrilled.”

According to reports, Trumpet is the son of Nathan, who took top honors in the hound category in 2014 but failed to match Trumpet’s Best In Show award. The New York Times reported that Trumpet's great-grandfather, Trigger, once held the record for the dog with the longest ears, according to Guinness World Records.

Trigger’s right ear was 13.75 inches long, the Times reported and his left was 13.5 inches long. Now, Trumpet is next on the list of award winners in his family.

“I’m just ecstatic,” Buehner told reporters after Wednesday's win.

Trumpet took home the top honor ahead of six other finalists including Winston, a French bulldog that was awarded Best In Show Reserve honors.