The Prince Albert Kennel and Obedience Club celebrates its centennial anniversary with a three day dog show that opened on Tuesday.
The club is hosting different breeds of dogs who are competing in different categories with participants coming from across Saskatchewan.
Leanne Brooks has been a member of the club for about 30 years and is also competing in this year’s event with three Rottweiler dais. She said the club has been great.
”I was introduced to the Club when I got my first Rottweiler (and) they welcomed me with open arms,” Brooks said. “I got registered in the puppy class and also did some obedience with her and from there I got other (dogs). The Club has showed me how to improve on my breed’s standards and helped me to be a proper breeder and member.”
For this year’s show Leanne registered with three Rottweilers: Tim, who is sitting on 8-10 points and a Canadian Champion, Timmy and Lily. All three are going for the Canadian Championship.
“For the show that we entered today my 11 month old, Tim took the breed(puppy breed) and the sister, Timmy, was picked for the female breed,” Brooks said. “The competition has been great, it has been fierce and the prizes usually includes ribbons, beautiful rosettes, medallions or sponsorships. We have one the top dogs in Canada.”
Other participants who also came out tops in the herding group include Zelda, a bearded collie owned by Mekghen Bobryk, who got her championship.
Judge Nancy Tibben said there are a lot of high quality dogs in Prince Albert for the centennial show, and that’s making life difficult for the judges.
“The show has been good so far and keenly contested, almost making it impossible to decide on a winner,” Tibben said. “I have enjoyed it and there are some really nice dogs in this show.”
Tibet has spent 40 years in the sport, including 25 years as a judge. Being involved in dog shows has taken her all over North America.
She said judges and dog owners are very strict about proper protocol.
“We have standards – correct bite, no missing teeth, proper movement, good posture, fairly good kick backs, sweet expressions, good chest. But the standards are dependent on the breeds,” she explained. “There are also disqualifications.”
The President of the club, Liana Maloney said they appreciated how many people attended the show’s first day. She’d like to see an even bigger draw on day two and a three.
In addition to dog shows, the club has different classes like puppy class, scent detection class, manners class, agility class, and conformation class.
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