The days before Valentine’s day usually mean hunting for the perfect card, getting reservations at a special restaurant, or ordering gifts for that “special someone” online. For Dog lovers, it means time to watch the Westminster Dog Show on TV. I have never been to a real dog show, but the Westminster is the Super Bowl of Dog shows in US.
I used to assume it was just a “beauty pageant” like Miss America, but it is so much more now. There are separate Agility and Obedience competitions also. Last night, the Standard Poodle won the Best in Show section. Siba was an outstanding examine of a standard poodle, even with the crazy hair cuts that are the breed standard. She was beautiful and “floated” around the ring. I was rooting for the gorgeous merle Sheltie or the crowd-pleasing Golden Retriever, but the poodle won. After over 30 years in vet practice, I have a profound appreciation for the sturdiness and intelligence of poodles in general, even though I see many more Toy Poodles than Standards.
I also enjoyed watching highlight of the Agility competition. I personally took a Agility class with my Sheltie, Sarge, when he was younger. It was so much fun, but it was exhausting to do outside in June in Texas. Sarge loved it though. He could hardly wait for his turn to run the course.
On a similar note, my husband and I attended the Fort Worth Stock Show last weekend, on the last day. There weren’t many critters there, but my favorite thing was watching the Sheep Dog competition. We saw dozens of border collies, working 3 scared sheep around a large sand area, working only from the owner’s voice or whistle. They had to listen, read the sheep’s body language, and move a group around a course, around barrels, though a fenced area, and ultimately into a small 10’x10’ pen, all by himself. We saw several overexcited dogs be disqualified to nipping at the sheep. But in their defense, some of the sheep were pretty stupid and didn’t stick together. Sometimes it reminded me of trying to herd cats. Or the movie Babe about the pig.
Overall, it has been a pleasure watching dogs do what they were bred to do, whether it was herding, agility, or a beauty pageant. Dogs are amazing.
Westminster Best of Show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yh8Bot1OfkE&t=1s
Agility Championship https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZn7oWMHD90
Sheep dog competitions https://www.texassheepdogassoc.org/