It's Official! Tenth Straight Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show 'Best In Show' Winner 'CJ' Is Fueled By Purina Pro Plan

ST. LOUIS, Feb. 17, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- For the 10th straight year, a Purina® Pro Plan®-fed dog has been named "Best in Show" at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show*. The streak continued as the 2016 winner, GCH Vjk-Myst Garbonita's California Journey, or CJ for short, a German Shorthaired Pointer handled by Valerie Nunes-Atkinson, took home the prestigious title last night at the 140th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Purina Pro Plan has a rich history in conformation and the sport of purebred dogs and has been the food of choice for many of the world's elite dogs, fueling them to victory through innovative products and outstanding nutrition. In fact, 96 of the top 100 AKC All-Breed Show Champions are fueled by Purina Pro Plan¹. In addition to the Best in Show winner from the Sporting Group, the remaining six Group First winners also are Pro Plan-fed dogs.  

"For over 25 years, Purina Pro Plan has been providing outstanding nutrition to champions in the ring – as well as the champion dogs in our own lives," said Christi Maginn, Brand Director, Purina Pro Plan. "We're proud to have played a role in helping these dogs achieve the ultimate level of success for the last decade and are thrilled to congratulate CJ and Valerie, on their victory."

"What I like about Pro Plan Performance is that it is high in protein, and because CJ is a very active dog, it gives him what he needs," said Nunes-Atkinson. "Pro Plan has a lot of formulas that work well for the individual needs of my show dogs."

Beyond the world of conformation, Purina Pro Plan is proud to be the food of choice for millions of dogs around the world, offering more than 80 formulas across five distinct nutritional platforms to meet the nutritional needs of individual dogs.

The nine previous Westminster Best in Show winners who were fueled by Purina Pro Plan include:

• 2015 – GCH Tashtins Lookin For Trouble ("Miss P"), Beagle
• 2014 – GCH Afterall Painting The Sky ("Sky"), Wire Fox Terrier
• 2013 – GCH Banana Joe V Tani Kazari ("Banana Joe"), Affenpinscher
• 2012 – GCH Palacegarden Malachy ("Malachy"), Pekingese
• 2011 – CH Foxcliffe Hickory Wind ("Hickory"), Scottish Deerhound
• 2010 – CH Roundtown Mercedes of Maryscot ("Sadie"), Scottish Terrier
• 2009 – CH Clussexx Three D Grinchy Glee ("Stump"), Sussex Spaniel
• 2008 – CH K-Run's Park Me In First ("Uno"), Beagle
• 2007 – CH Felicity's Diamond Jim ("James"), English Springer Spaniel

For more information on Purina Pro Plan, past champions and the nutrition that has fueled a decade of Best in Show winners*, visit www.proplan.com.

*The handler or owners of these champions may have received Purina Pro Plan dog food as Purina ambassadors.

About Purina Pro Plan:
Purina Pro Plan is the food of choice for the past 10 Westminster Best in Show winners.* Our goal is to give your dog the nutrition to be his absolute best, helping him to be energetic and resilient, and maintain an ideal body condition, healthy skin and a stunning coat.  Because being the best he can be means something different for every dog, our wide range of dry and wet foods, snacks and supplement bars, sold exclusively at pet specialty stores, can be found in five specialized categories formulated for a dog's unique needs. For more information, visit www.proplan.com or follow @ProPlan on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Vine or Google+. The brand is manufactured by Nestle Purina PetCare, which promotes responsible pet care, humane education, community involvement and the positive bond between people and their pets. A premiere global manufacturer of pet products, Nestle Purina PetCare is part of Swiss-based Nestle S.A., a global leader in nutrition, health and wellness.

About Westminster Kennel Club
The Westminster Kennel Club is America's oldest organization dedicated to the sport of purebred dogs.  Established in 1877, Westminster's influence has been felt for more than a century through its famous all-breed, benched dog show held every year at New York City's Madison Square Garden. Today, America's dog show has expanded into Westminster Week which includes the Masters Agility Championship at Westminster and the Masters Obedience Championship at Westminster at Piers 92 /94. More than 3,000 dogs from the US and abroad makes Westminster Week like no other. Westminster. There's only one. Visit us at:  www.westminsterkennelclub.org, @WKCDogs

About The American Kennel Club
The American Kennel Club, founded in 1884, is a not-for-profit organization which maintains the largest registry of purebred dogs in the world and oversees the sport of purebred dogs in the United States. The AKC is dedicated to upholding the integrity of its registry, promoting the sport of purebred dogs and breeding for type and function.  Along with its more than 5,000 licensed and member clubs and its affiliated organizations, the AKC advocates for the purebred dog as a family companion, advances canine health and well-being, works to protect the rights of all dog owners and promotes responsible dog ownership. More than 22,000 competitions for AKC-registered purebred dogs are held under AKC rules and regulations each year including conformation, agility, obedience, rally, tracking, herding, lure coursing, coonhound events, hunt tests, field and earthdog tests. Affiliate AKC organizations include the AKC Humane Fund, AKC Canine Health Foundation, AKC Reunite and the AKC Museum of the Dog.  For more information, visit www.akc.org.

¹ AKC Top Dogs All Breed Competition through 12/31/2015

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SOURCE Nestle Purina PetCare