So the countdown is on!
For the Dog Show World, it’s the Super Bowl……or the Olympics…..or both combined!!
It’s the 140th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York City & reality is still setting in that I will be showing our little girl (Sophia) there. Did you know that this is the second longest running sporting event in U.S. history, behind only The Kentucky Derby? Me neither, until I started to do my pre-show preparation. Being new to the fancy of dog shows, my husband & I are simply thrilled to be invited. Really. The dogs that finish in the top 5 nationally in their breed point standings get invited. (Sophia was #5) After that, the competition is opened up to champions of record. I don’t know all the rules, heck, I’m not even sure how we got to this point. It’s been quite a whirlwind but I do know we wouldn’t have achieved this success without the help & guidance of our friends in the Crab Orchard Kennel Club (you know who you are) and some Coton de Tulear breeders, handlers & groomers that have helped us along the way. There really is more to it than walking your dog around the ring.
If you’d like to watch the top dogs from around the world competing, the Group competitions are nationally televised nightly Monday & Tuesday, Feb. 15 & 16. You’ll find the schedule here. http://www.westminsterkennelclub.org/2016/show/tv.html.
Don’t look for me & Sophia there. That’s only for the Best of Breed winners & we are what the oddsmakers would call “an extremely looooong shot”! You can watch us in the Breed Competition streaming live though. Our ring time is 12:45pm EST Monday. The breed is Coton de Tulear. Mi-Toi’s Flesh For Fantasy (her breeder named her after a Billy Idol song), call name Sophia & I thank you for your well wishes! Now, I gotta go start packing. Sophia doesn’t travel lightly!