Icelandic Sheepdog Dog Names

Champion Eyjahunda Thorarinn, who goes by Thorri, became the first member of the Icelandic Sheepdog breed to win a best-in-show at the American Kennel Club in Portland back in 2011. Up until then, no other sheepdog had won the competition.

In fact, Thorri's win out of 2,500 dogs, many of them star-studded pooches who had already won multiple best-in-show championships, was shocking. He was essentially the underdog, no pun intended.

Thorri is one of four Icelandic Sheepdogs owned by Warnock and McDermott. The other pair rounds out the total of four Icelandic Sheepdogs entered at Westminster. What is even more exciting was that Guðrún Ragnars Guðjohnsen, considered one of the matriarchs of the breed, was present to witness Thorri's victory. She had kind words to say about the dog: "It was thrilling and unexpected. He is a very good representative of his breed with sound type and temperament.”

She went onto add that the Icelandic Sheepdog isn't for everyone. That there is a reason there aren't that many of them to begin with: that it loves to bark when herding or driving livestock in pastures, thrives on finding lost sheep, and absolutely needs an active family to stay happy. And frankly, most families just aren't active enough. Most tend to lounge about the day after work, or go out and leave the dog at home. And this breed would just shrivel up and die of boredom with that kind of life.

Or to put it more simply, as Guðjohnsen did: "It bonds very strongly to its ‘human flock,’ and flourishes when allowed to associate closely with humans. The dogs are true members of the group, participating in everything it does."

That speaks volumes about Thorri and his family then. In order for him to thrive and win such a big achievement, being the first of his breed to win a best-in-show competition, he has to have the family's support. A family who can keep up with him, challenge him to do better, and really incorporate him in their daily lives enough to make him feel loved.

When he won the competition, he was only 14 months old. His family wasn't expecting anything special, they just wanted him to gain some experience in the ring. But the thing is that he really knows how to sell himself to judges, with his charming personality and good looks. And it paid off very nicely, much to everyone's surprise!

So what can we learn from Thorri? That anything is possible with the right support system.