This article will describe facts and information about the oldest and most famous dog show of all, The Westminster Dog Show that is held in New York City each year. This show is an event about purebred dogs that have gone through dog training NYC or dog training Philadelphia to become one of the top dogs in their specific breed to compete in this famous event. Many people have seen this show which is nationally televised immediately following the Thanksgiving Day parade in New York at some time in their life. And no matter how old you are, the Westminster Dog Show is older.

The Westminster Kennel Club created the dog show in NYC in 1876. This year’s event will be the 144th annual dog show. That makes it the 2nd longest continuously held sporting event in the United States. The oldest sporting event is the Kentucky Derby which is only one year older than this event. Because of it’s longevity, it has been dubbed America’s Dog Show. People, particularly Americans love this strong sense of history that is tied to an event such as this one and it continues to succeed in ratings as far as how popular it is among Americans.

It originally was created by the kennel club to gather other people who have a love and admiration of purebred dogs and to help to bring out the optimal ability in each breed which will only make them grander for the future. Dog owners actually traveled from far away by train to go to and enter their purebred dog in the earliest shows. Some of the breeds that were represented back in the beginning either do not exist today or are called by a completely different name. A lot can change over the period of 134 years after all.

Today, there are more than 2,500 various champion canines from 173 different breeds or varieties. Americans have long been dog lovers and most American households have at least one dog in for their pet. It continues to happen in New York as it has the whole time is has existed and several years ago, the Madison Square Garden, where the show takes place, sold out completely for the 2 day event because of it is rising popularity.

In order to get a dog to qualify the Westminster Dog Show, it takes an incredible amount of work from the best dog trainers in the world. Usually, dogs are chosen directly from a litter to be show dogs and they live a life much like any other serious athlete. These dogs are used to competing at different levels of dog shows and fly all over the country for the opportunity to make it to the biggest show of all, The Westminster Dog Show. The ultimate prize is called Best in Show and that is the overall best dog of the event out of the whole competition. Last year’s winner was a beagle which was the first hound ever to win this title.