On Tuesday, I attended the 132nd Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. It was quite an experience, pretty chaotic, and a little bizarre. I still don't know the difference between a winning curly retriever and a losing curly retriever (they all look the same to me), but I nonetheless admire any group of people who can train their dogs not to bark.
The competitors have quite a rigorous schedule. During each day, judges choose the Best in Breed. There can be anywhere from three to twenty-five dogs in each breeding competition. The Best in Breed then moves on to the Group competition. There are seven Groups: Terrier Group, Hound Group, Working Group (ie-guard dogs), Sporting Group, Non-Sporting Group, Herding Group, and Toy Group. The winner of each group then goes on to the Best in Show.
I split the day up between the mid-afternoon session and the evening session. The competition actually began at 8am and ended at 11pm. Fifteen hours was far to long to spend at a dog show. So, in the afternoon I walked around the benching area. I visited with the some of the owners, handlers, and four legged competitors. I snapped a few shots while some of the dogs were getting their hair done.
In the evening, I attended the Working Group, Toy Group, Sporting Group, and The Best in Show. The toy poodle won the Toy Group - the bitch always wins. Eventually the Beagle won the whole shebang. He was really happy.
