Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show
The logo of both the Westminster Kennel Club and its Dog Show is based on a steel engraving by artist J. Wellstood of Sensation, a Pointer brought over from England by the organization in 1876 primarily for breeding purposes.
The prizes for these first shows included such items as pearl-handled pistols, which were of use to the hunters and terriermen who worked these dogs in the field.
The club donated proceeds from the fourth day to the ASPCA for creation of a home for stray and disabled dogs.
Following the tour, the winner makes appearances on nearly all television network morning shows and visits the Observation Deck at the Empire State Building.
[citation needed] In October 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, the 2021 show was postponed from its usual scheduling to June, and re-located from Madison Square Garden to the grounds of the historic Lyndhurst mansion in Tarrytown, New York, north of Midtown Manhattan.
Organizers stated that the changes were intended to allow for the event to be held in compliance with public health guidance.
[6] On December 30, 2021, citing the current surge of Omicron variant in New York City, it was announced that the 2022 show—initially scheduled for January 24–26—had been postponed indefinitely.
[8] The 2023 edition moved to a May scheduling, and was relocated to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, with Arthur Ashe Stadium serving as the main venue.
[9][10] After two years in Queens, it was announced in June 2024 that the show would return to Madison Square Garden and its traditional February scheduling in 2025, ahead of its 150th anniversary in 2026.
Because of the show's popularity and prestige, starting in 1992 the AKC limited entries by requiring that dogs must have already earned their breed championship before appearing at Westminster.
Later, the Westminster Kennel Club amended that rule; dogs only need one of the two required "major wins" towards their championship titles.
Since 2020, the requirement that a dog be a Champion was reinstated by the Westminster Kennel Club and the entry limit decreased to 2,500.
[14] The dogs are marked for Best in Breed and then proceed to compete in Best in Group, and finally in the grand prize competition of Best in Show.
The youngest dog to win was a Rough Collie named Laund Loyalty of Bellhaven, at nine months old in 1929.
From 2006 through 2016, the Monday coverage was aired on sister channel CNBC due to conflicts with WWE Raw on USA.
During USA's coverage from 1990 to 2016, David Frei co-hosted the event with partners, Al Trautwig (1990–1991,[22][23] 1993[24]), Bud Collins (1992[25]), Joe Garagiola (1994–2002[26]), Mark McEwen (2003–2004[27][28]), Lester Holt (2005, 2007–2008[29]), Debbye Turner (2006[30]), Mary Carillo (2009,[31] 2011[21]–2016), and Tamron Hall (2010[citation needed]).
In 2018, daytime breed judging was hosted by Kutcher, Kimberly Meredith, and Don Sturz, while Hoke joined the evening booth of Myers and Bisher.
The 2024 broadcast team consisted of 2016 champion handler Valerie Nunes Atkinson alongside Hoke and Myers, with Jenny Taft and Jamie Little as reporters.
