MRS . JOAN LUNA LIEBES of Peyton , Colorado , has been involved in Samoyeds since 1968 . Her family has bred over 80 champions under the Azteca prefix . Additionally , their dogs have sired over 40 champions , including multiple Best in Show , Reserve Best in Show , National Best in Specialty Show , Best in Specialty Show , Working Group winning , and top-breed-ranked Samoyeds of both sexes . A notable winner was MBIS , MBISS Champion Sitkin ’ s Simply Scrumptious , “ Scarlett ,” who was shown from 1988-1992 , earning over 70 Group placements , 7 Best in Specialty Shows , and Best of Opposite Sex at the 1990 Samoyed Club of America National Specialty .
Mrs . Liebes , who began judging in 1996 , has presided at the Samoyed Club of America National Specialty three times , including the Best of Breed competition . Internationally , she has judged Samoyed Specialties in Spain , Australia , New Zealand , and Ireland . She is approved to judge the Working , Herding , Non-Sporting , and Toy Groups , some Sporting and Hound breeds , Junior Showmanship , and Best in Show . This is her first judging assignment at Westminster .
MRS . BARBARA A . PESSINA of Putnam Valley , New York , has been involved in the sport of dogs since the early 1970s when she began training a German Shepherd in obedience and became hooked on the “ competition .” She discovered the Puli breed in the mid-70s and was instantly attracted to them because of her shared Hungarian heritage . Mrs . Pessina has focused on this breed since that time under the Moonshadow prefix . She has bred and owned multiple Best in Show and Best in National Specialty Show winners and top producers in the breed . In the early 1990s , she added Norwich Terriers to the mix . Currently , she lives with 6 Pulik and one incredible German Shepherd .
Mrs . Pessina is involved in several dog clubs , including the Puli Club of America , Putnam Kennel Club , the Saw Mill River Kennel Club , and is a past member of the Greenwich Kennel Club . She is approved to judge the Herding and Terrier Groups . She has judged the Puli Club of America National Specialty in 2002 , 2008 , 2014 , and 2019 as well as the Puli Championship Show in Great Britain and the Norwich Terrier breed at the Montgomery Kennel Club . This is her first judging assignment at Westminster .
MRS . MEGHEN RIESE-BASSEL of Social Circle , Georgia , and her family began breeding Welsh Springer Spaniels in the mid-1970s . She has bred / owned over 150 Welsh Springer Spaniel champions , including multiple National Specialty Best in Show winners , All-Breed Best in Show winners , and Best of Breed winners at Crufts and the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show .
Mrs . Riese-Bassel is the Judges ’ Education Chairperson for the Welsh Springer Spaniel Club of America . As an elementary school media specialist , Mrs . Riese-Bassel combines her passion for education with her love of dogs by taking a full-time therapy dog to school daily .
She has judged several National Specialties and has judged in other countries several times . Mrs . Riese-Bassel is approved to judge the Sporting Group and Junior Showmanship . This is her first judging assignment at Westminster .
MRS . POLLY D . SMITH of St . Stephens Church , Virginia , started in dogs early as her neighbor had a Chow Chow puppy that she let her show a few times . After college and marriage to Robert Smith , she returned to the dog show world with German Shepherd Dogs . When the Smiths moved to Kalamazoo , Michigan , they became American Foxhound fanciers and bred three generations of breeder / owner / handled Best in Show and five generations of group-winning foxhounds . Along with the American Foxhounds , they bred Welsh Terriers . Polly Smith became an all-breed judge in 2007 and has judged on five continents . This is her fourth judging assignment at Westminster .
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