Copyright The Associated Press. All rights reserved. They run, weave and go airborne. And they went all out for this weekend's championship. Sorry — no, they're not the Chiefs or the Eagles.
They're the agility dogs at the Westminster Kennel Club show , which began Saturday by showcasing agility and other dog sports. Dog folk often call Westminster the Super Bowl of dog shows, and the comparison might be especially fitting this year. The United States' most prestigious canine competition opened on the same weekend as pro football's Super Bowl , which features the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
The rare coincidence comes after both competitions' dates shifted in recent years. The Westminster of football? Well, Westminster is 90 years older than the Super Bowl, after all. Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Morgan Fox co-owns a French bulldog who came within a smushy-nose length of winning at Westminster in and was a finalist the following year.
Whatever the analogy, being at Westminster was a triumph for Guster the rescue pug. He and owner Steve Martin took up agility after Guster started wagging his tail and tilting his head while they watched the Westminster agility contest on TV several years ago. A border collie named Vanish won the contest, which featured about champion-level canines. While Klarman said the win initially left her speechless, Vanish had plenty to say, barking enthusiastically. Westminster added agility in , marking the show's first event with mixed-breed dogs since the s.
Last year saw the first mixed-breed agility winner , a border collie-papillon mix named Nimble, who competed again this year. She's an intentional blend of two top agility breeds. But the sport also draws rescue dogs such as an Australian cattle dog mix named Sawyer, or Soy Sauce for short. His owner, Dr. But she made time for agility after realizing she'd adopted a super-energetic dog who opens cabinets, unzips things and otherwise causes domestic mayhem when bored.
