It’s not the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. It’s more like a Deep Southminster Dog Show, but with the same goals — to promote pure breed excellence and crown the picks of the litters.
The annual Pensacola Dog Fanciers Association All-Breed Dog Show takes place Saturday and Sunday at the Escambia County Equestrian Center, 7550 Mobile Highway. The show is one of two the association puts on each year, and both are sanctioned by the American Kennel Club.
Event competitions include conformation — breed adherence like Westminster — and obedience and rally trials where dogs will be tested in their understanding of commands as they maneuver hurdles and retrieve various items.
“It takes a lot of work, but you really become a partner with the dog out there,” said Sue McClure, president of the Pensacola Dog Fanciers Association, which was established in 1936 and is licensed by the AKC. “There’s a special bond between all handlers, owners and dogs.”
McClure said dozens of dogs will compete in various breed group categories of the conformation portion of the program, which features handlers showing the dogs to judges for standard evaluation. Group winners will then compete for Best in Show. Prizes include some cash awards, ribbons and trophies.
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She expects about 500 dogs will compete in the two-day event.
McClure, who is also the area AKC delegate, said in past decades, there would be up to 1,800 dogs entered, but cited numerous reasons for the drop-off, including negative press and attitudes about dog breeding, and the trend to compete in larger dog shows in major cities.
“We’re one of the few clubs holding shows in our local community,” she said, noting that that local AKC club in Mobile, Alabama, discontinued its show and now members show and compete in Biloxi, Mississippi, while AKC clubs in Panama City and Okaloosa County now compete in Tallahassee. “Sometimes, we lose money, so it’s a sacrifice sometimes. But being in the community is important to us.”
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Other features of the All-Breed Dog Show include a Junior Showmanship Competition for young dog handlers and a chance for people and their pets to take the AKC Canine Good Citizen Test and receive a Canine Good Citizen certificate. There will also be an AKC-sanctioned competition for toy breed puppies under the age of six months.
“These are people who have a common bond with dogs,” said Debbie Petty, a retired teacher who has been showing dogs for about 30 years — her breeds are bloodhounds and Labrador retrievers. “Mostly, it’s just really fun — but it’s also social because you meet people from all across the United States, and you all have something in common as soon as you meet.”
Troy Moon can be reached at [email protected] and 850-435-8541.
Want to go?
WHAT: Pensacola Dog Fanciers Association All-Breed Dog Show
WHEN: Begins at 9 a.m. Saturday and 8:30 a.m. Sunday
WHERE: Escambia County Equestrian Center, 7550 Mobile Highway.
ADMISSION: Parking fee only. $5 per carload or $3 for one person.
DETAILS: Go to www.pensacoladogs.org.
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