The saying, “It’s a dog’s world,” couldn’t be further from the truth when the 102nd and 103rd Detroit Kennel Club Dog Shows are held February 28 and March 1 at Cobo Center in Detroit, MI. The two-day Celebration of Dogs, presented by Purina, allows dog lovers up-close and personal time with breeders, owners, handlers and more than 2,000 dogs from the 161 breeds recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC).
Tickets are affordable at $12 for adults, $8 for children (under 12) and senior citizens (60 and over), and free for children under the age of two. Family packs (two adults, three children) are also on sale for $35. Tickets will be sold separately for each show and are good only for that day only. Group rates are also available.
Dogs will be on display to the public and demonstrations will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Best in Show will go into the ring approximately 6 p.m. each day. Special guests on exhibition at this year’s shows include: “Uno,” recent winner of the 2008 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York and the yellow lab, one of the stars of “Marley & Me.”
The February 28 Best in Show evening will be taped for later broadcast on ESPN and ESPN2.
“We are very excited to present this year’s show,” said Detroit Kennel Club President Erik Bergishagen in a statement. “These shows are so much more than competitions; they are a tribute to the relationship between master and dog and the role that dogs play in everyday life. Many of our visitors are families that may not be ready for a dog but come to do their homework and to be entertained. Times are tough right now, and we made sure that the show is a true value. Annually, our goal is to send our guests home thinking, ‘I’d like to try that with my dog or when I get a dog I would like to do pet therapy, compete in agility, conformation or whatever,’ if we achieve that then we have served our community.”
Demonstrations include AKC agility trials, pet first aid and CPR, K-9 officer demos, Leader Dogs for the Blind, terrier racing, pet therapy, Dog Scouts of America, herding, retriever and field training, breed seminars and Gazehound demonstrations.
The DKC Dog Shows are one of only six benched American Kennel Club shows left in the United States. The others are in Chicago, IL; Philadelphia, PA; San Francisco, CA; Portland, OR; and New York.
