Park Slope Breeder To Judge At Westminster Dog Show

PARK SLOPE, NY — An award-winning local dog breeder will cross over to the other side of the judge's table at the upcoming Westminster Dog Show, the Brooklyn Paper reported. This will be his first time as a judge for the famed competition.

Milan Lint, who has been a dog breeder for more than 40 years, was tapped to judge the Newfoundland and Portuguese water dog breeds at the February Westminster Dog Show in Madison Square Garden, according to the Brooklyn Paper.

"I’m excited and I’m honored to be judging," Lint told the paper. "It’s a very different perspective."

Before becoming a judge, Lint co-founded the Pouch Cove Portuguese Water Dog breeding and dog show program for around 25 years, which has bred multiple Westminster winners, according to his judge's profile.

Lint owned the top winning male dog in U.S. show history, Matisse. Matisse racked up 238 all-breed best show wins and is the cousin of President Barack Obama's pooch Sunny, the Brooklyn Paper reported.

He was set to enter his affenpinscher Fiona — one of the most award-winning female dogs in her breed — into this year's Westminster but had to make the decision to pull her from the competition to become a judge.

Lint first moved to Park Slope 25 years ago, then moved to Manhattan but returned to the neighborhood more than a year ago. The neighborhood's dog friendliness and proximity to Prospect Park drew him back after all the years, he told the Brooklyn Paper.

Lead image: Lint (center) with Matisse at the 2015 Westminster Dog Show. (Seth Wenig/Associated Press)