Watch CBS News

Pups Prep For 145th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show As Event Leaves Manhattan For The First Time

TARRYTOWN, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- The 145th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show starts Friday.

The show won't take over Madison Square Garden this year and no spectators are allowed, but still, the anticipation is palpable.

Dogs small and big loved strutting their stuff while tackling the tunnel or weaving the poles, proving they've got what it takes to be crowned champion.

The treasured preview of the show happened Tuesday.

In addition, to demos of agility and obedience, officials with Westminster Kennel Club introduced the four newly eligible breeds -- the Barbet, the Biewer Terrier, the Belgian Laekenois and the Dogo Argentino.

Joshua Faulkner, from Patchogue, breeds the Dogo. He says he was a big guy looking for a big dog 20 years ago.

"I never looked back. I've had 40 Dogos at one time, so I guess I'm Dogo crazy," he said.

"What's so special about this breed, other than he's a big guy?" CBS2's Vanessa Murdock asked.

"I think that the balance between their tenacity and their love is a really important part of their breed," Faulkner said.

This is the first time in its 145-year history that the Westminster Kennel Club has hosted the dog show outside of Manhattan.

This year, it's at Lyndhurst Estate in Tarrytown.

"There's a lot of history with dog shows and particularly with the Westminster Kennel Club," said WKC director of communications Gail Miller Bisher.

She says for 30 years, the stunning grounds at the estate hosted dog shows.

"The Jay Gould family, which was the last owner to live in Lyndhurst, his children actually bred the show dogs at Westminster in the early 1900s," she said.

The St. Bernard, the Pointer and the pug were amongst their favorite breeds.

The show will be returning to the Garden in 2022.

In the meantime, it seems the estate's gardens will more than suffice to keep the stars of the show happy.

This weekend, 2,500 champion dogs from every one of the 50 states and 10 other countries will travel to compete.

The show begins Friday with the Master's Agility Championship and concludes Sunday with Best in Show being crowned.

While no spectators are allowed this year, the events will be livestreamed, and social media will be packed with pics of the pooches competing.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.