A bit of background info for those of you who don't know. There are 7 groups of dogs, based on what they were bred to do. During the day, dogs compete with other dogs of the same breed. The dog that wins the Best in Breed then competes in the Best in Group with every other Best in Breed winner of that group. Then, the dog that wins the Best in Group competes with the 6 other group winners for Best in Show! And the rest is history : )
In the evening, the arena is no longer broken down into four individual rings...it's one large ring with a sign for each individual breed, where that dog stands. What I found interesting was that those signs are actually boxes in which handlers can put supplies in....drool rags, toys, treats. The audience fills the auditorium and I'll tell ya, when all of the dogs walk in for the Best in Group, it's awesome. Everyone cheers and all the dogs trot in and to their respective signs. We would watch as the judge looked over each dog, then picked his favorites to trot around the ring one more time, then Best in Group is chosen! The handler and dog is always so excited, what a feat to accomplish!
But the best part of the show, hands down, was Best in Show. The lights go down, each dog walks in individually as it's announced, and the crowd cheers loudly for their favorite! I'd lie if I said I didn't get chills. And for any of you who watched, you know the Scottish Deerhound, Hickory, took the title of Best in Show. I had been cheering for her all along, what a sweet dog, well deserving of the title!
The arena set up for Best in Group: Hounds
The ribbons for first, second, third, and fourth. Wouldn't that look nice hanging on the fridge?!
Hound Group entering the ring.
The judge looks over a Basset Hound.
Apparently the Beagle was bored...he entertained himself by jumping into the box...and then posed for pictures!
Waiting their turn.
The Scottish Deerhound wins the group!
The Toy Group was next with the Pug and Shih Tzu looking their best for the judge.
The Yorkshire Terrier strutting her stuff.
The Poodle in the Sporting Group. The poodles that we walk, Kelsey and Vinnie, don't quite look like this!
The Bearded Collie getting ready to get reviewed by the judge. He ended up winning Best in Group for the Herding Group.
Collie on the big screen!
Bearded Collie wins the group and everyone congratulates his handler.
I couldn't resist posting a picture of the Great Dane and his handler. She was dressed head to toe in "bling."
Time for Best in Show!
The ribbon and trophies for the winner.
Each dog entered the ring as he was announced. In the spotlight here is the Pekingese. Saying it took him a while to walk around the ring is an understatement!
The judge has the winner picked.
Walking towards the Scottish Deerhound.
The Scottish Deerhound, Hickory, wins!
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