Pet Tales: New York goes to the dogs
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Nothing says Valentine's Day like a dog show, and this one is the Super Bowl of the American Kennel Club dog show circuit. The 136th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show will be held Monday and Tuesday at Madison Square Garden in New York.
A total of 2,077 dogs from 47 states and 10 countries will be competing. The four-legged competitors are all champions and the top-ranked show dogs in their breeds.
Most of us won't be in Manhattan for the show, but we can watch on television. On Monday there will be live coverage from 8-9 p.m. on USA Network and 9-11 p.m. on CNBC. On Tuesday live coverage will be 8-11 p.m. on USA Network.
Monday night we'll see the group judging for hounds, toy, non-sporting and herding. Tuesday night is the sporting, working and terrier groups followed by the always exciting judging for Best in Show.
Throughout the day on Monday and Tuesday, judges will be picking the best dogs in each breed. Go to www.westminsterkennelclub.org to see video as well as lists of the winners.
Hosting the television coverage, once again, are David Frei and Mary Carillo. This marks the 23rd year that Mr. Frei is announcing and doing color commentary. He's a longtime breeder, owner and handler of Afghan hounds, Brittanys and Cavalier King Charles spaniels, and an AKC judge.
Ms. Carillo is an NBC sports commentator who covered the show last year. She's best known for her coverage of the Olympic Games, and she's a tennis analyst and ski reporter.
The running commentary of Mr. Frei is especially interesting and helpful, including his description of the history and traits of the breeds that compete. The AKC has been recognizing and registering more breeds in recent years. They're not really "new" breeds; they're just new to the AKC.
First Published February 11, 2012 12:00 am
