So excited: I'm going to Westminster

[roadie gal]

The dog show. We just got tickets. I want to see and pet at least 100 of the breeds. My family thinks I'm nuts, but I haven't looked forward to something this much for a while.

My friends have all been requesting pictures of their favorite breeds. I'll have to buy a new SD chip for the camera just for this show.

Wheee!

[indysteel]

I have always wanted to go so I don't think you're nuts! Have a great time!!!!

[jobob]

Nice! Have a great time!

Leebob and I love to watch it on TV. It's fun to guess which dog will win its category.

(There were many dog breeders & dog show people in Lee's family so he knows a thing or two, but me, I just guess)

[snapdragen]

That is very cool, I love watching it on TV. It's a benched show isn't it? Will you get to walk around and see all the dogs?

Jealous snapdragen

[roadie gal]

That is very cool, I love watching it on TV. It's a benched show isn't it? Will you get to walk around and see all the dogs?

Jealous snapdragen

Yes, that's the best part!

I want to see them all! Of course I'll have to check out the collies (my breed). But I want to see all of the strange breeds that you never see "in real life" up close.

[maillotpois]

I think that's just fantastic!!

[Aggie_Ama]

I am jealous! When I was trying to figure out what breed to get I researched every dog breed. The funny thing is I still love what a chose (miniature schnauzer) but I would rather see the rarer breeds. Even an Afghan Hound is rare to me because I haven't seen one in person. My vet where I went to college had an Irish Wolfhound, what an impressive breed. DH hates that I record Dogs 101 on Animal Planet but I love learning about the breeds. Have fun!!!

[jobob]

Roadie Gal, did you go to Westminster? How was it?

I watched it on TV, but that must be nothing compared to the real thing.

[Wahine]

I want to hear about it too. I've always wanted to go.

[Selkie]

Did you get to see Captain Crunch (the German Shepherd)? I was cheering for him!!

[roadie gal]

It was a BLAST! We got to see a bunch of the breed rings (bearded collies, collies, goldens, Finnish Lundhunds, Akitas, viszlas). They were a lot of fun. Then we went to the benched area. That's where the dogs are supposed to be "on display" when they're not being shown. Because of the renovation at the Garden the benched area was small, crowded and totally chaotic. But we were still able to see, and pet a lot of dogs.

In the morning, while they were still showing, the breeders were too stressed to chat, but in the afternoon, after the breed rings but before the evening show, they were very friendly. We spent a lot of time chatting with folks. I made a total fool of myself talking with a Beauceron breeder. I've been sort of researching the breed for a while. So I was SO excited to see one in person that I was like a little kid.

We looked at everything, from the toys to the immense mastiffs. There was a Dogue de Bordeaux that had a head the size of a basketball, no exageration.

We had general admission seating, so we were up in the nosebleed section. But, for a change, we'd remembered our binoculars, so it was still fine. It's amazing how much more you see in person.

The GSD who won was nice, but he didn't move all that well. We were completely floored that he won over the Belgian Turvuren. The Doberman that won the sporting group was spectacular. We'd seen her close up earlier. She should have gone Best in Show. I guess it's good that I'm not a judge...

I would go again. But I would wait until the renovations are done. A bunch of the breeders mentioned to us just how chaotic and discombobulated the benching was this year. Usually it's much more organized. We did have a hard time finding some dogs.

This is getting long, so I'll stop here. If anyone wants more details I'd be happy to run on...

[missjean]

Oh, that sounds like a lot of fun!
They had quite a report on NPR about the show & the dog that won. It's quite the production getting these dogs ready.

[malkin]

My aunt took me to a couple small local dog shows when I was little. It was a lot of fun. I love looking at the breeds and finding out about them, but if I ever get a dog, I'll almost certainly go rescue.

[roadie gal]

My aunt took me to a couple small local dog shows when I was little. It was a lot of fun. I love looking at the breeds and finding out about them, but if I ever get a dog, I'll almost certainly go rescue.

There are some really nice breeds out there and some that we just had to shake our heads over. Honestly, except for color there are a lot of terrier breeds that looked exactly the same to us.

One of the fascinating thing about seeing the dogs in person was seeing their relative sizes. You just can't tell that on TV. For example, the bearded collies are a lot smaller than we expected and the otterhounds are much larger.

We have 2 purebred collies (Lassie type collies, not border collies). When we decided to get a dog we had very specific needs and wants. Among other things, we needed a dog with little or no prey drive since we have cats. All of the rescues up here are mixed with huskies or wolves or other high prey drive breeds. We just couldn't take that chance with our cats. So we decided to go with a purebred dog with the thought in mind that we'd have a better chance of getting what we needed in terms of personality and drive. This worked out well for us. Under other circumstances we'd probably have gone for a pound puppy. (I'd never heard of a breed rescue until I got the first dog and got interested in dogs in general.)

[7rider]

The Doberman that won the sporting group was spectacular. We'd seen her close up earlier. She should have gone Best in Show. I guess it's good that I'm not a judge......

I was rooting for that Doberman - and I'm not really fond of Dobies. Bummed about the winner. . Not a Peke fan, either.