Here is a guide to everything you need to know about the event, which began in 1877.
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What is the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show?
The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is an annual competition featuring nearly 3,000 dogs who are judged against their own breed’s standards. Basically, the dogs need to come as close as possible to what the event considers the perfect iteration of the type of dog.
Breed rounds take place at Piers 92 and 94, while Madison Square Garden hosts the Best In Show and group rounds.
The competition features seven different breed groups: hound, toy, non-sporting, herding, sporting, working and terrier.
The Best In Show competition, which includes the Masters Obedience Championship, isn’t the only bone the Kennel Club throws to vying contestants; before the two-day main event, the club also hosts a “Meet and Compete” event, featuring the Masters Agility Championship and a Meet the Breed Session.
History of the Westminster Dog Show
The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show predates the invention of the light bulb, the automobile and the zipper, and was initially held on May 8, 1877. The first show consisted of just gun dogs by a group of hunters who met regularly at Westminster Hotel. Original prizes for winning the show varied, with one such reward being pearl-handled pistols.
They formed the Westminster Kennel Club shortly after, and became the first club to join the American Kennel Club (AKC), formed in 1884. Popularity of the show continued to grow, eventually necessitating a cap of entrants at 2,800 and a move to Madison Square Garden for the main event.
The show began airing on television in 1948 and has been broadcast nationally since on USA Network, NBC or Fox.
Westminster Dog Show Winners
Terriers have been the most common winning breed of Best In Show, as that breed has won Best in Show 46 times. The second-most common is Sporting, with 19 wins, then Working with 15.
2017 DOG SHOW: Breed results, winners, Best in Show
Previous Best in Show winners
(Rumor, 2017 Best in Show winner)
2017 breed group winners
Westminster Dog Show 2018 schedule, TV coverage
Various stages of the show will air on select channels. Check our comprehensive TV schedule with live-streaming options. Here is the daily schedule of events at the Westminster Kennel Club (all times Eastern):
Meet & Compete
On Feb. 10, the Masters Agility Competition goes from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., while Meet the Breeds lasts from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Agility championship finals start later that night, lasting from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. with all events taking place at Piers 92 and 94.
Masters Obedience Championship
This event takes place Monday, Feb. 12, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Pier 94.
Westminster Dog Show
The show lasts over a two-day span, from Feb. 12-13. The daytime sessions last from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and take place at Piers 92 and 94, while the evening sessions, which include the Best In Show contest, last from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Other dog shows
If the Westminster Dog Show has you salivating for more canine shows, there are other options later in the year.
Crufts, in Birmingham, England, is the largest dog show in the world, lasting four days. This year’s competition begins March 8.
There’s also the National Dog Show, held in Philadelphia in November.
Lastly, the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship is held in Orlando, Fla., in December and is a slighlty bigger show than Westminster, hosting more than 3,000 dogs.
