NEW YORK—As she regrouped with her handler to rethink their strategy, the Pekingese Rum Dum, 2, was seen panting excessively and trying to catch her breath as the finals of the Westminster Dog Show entered double overtime Tuesday. “Tonight, we leave nothing on the floor—nothing—do you understand me, Rummie?” handler David Fitzgerald shouted as he squirted liquid from a Gatorade bottle into the dog’s mouth, her trainer rubbed a cramp out of her rear-right leg, and what may be the most grueling Best in Show in Westminster Kennel Club history dragged on, still locked in a seven-way tie. “We didn’t come here to lose to a goddamn terrier, did we? No, we came here to win, so that’s what you’re going to do. You’re going to get back out there, take it one lap at a time, and this time prance like you fucking mean it. No excuses!” At press time, Rum Dum had reportedly been eliminated for unsportsmanlike conduct after taking a shit on the show floor.
