Canine competitors converge on fairgrounds

For dog lovers, the place to be this weekend is the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center.

More than 1,300 dogs will be there for the Spokane Kennel Club Dog Show, said Barbara Nelson, show chairman.

“It’s just like Westminster,” she said, with all the same breeds, and the same process of picking the best of breed and best of show.

“It’s a way for people to come and see a lot of breeds they don’t usually get to see,” Nelson said.

Spectators will be able to watch the conformation, or the beauty competition, as well as obedience trials – which are probably the more interesting part of the show, said Christy Swanson, president of the Inland Empire Golden Retriever Club, which is hosting its own show during the Spokane Kennel Club show.

There are three levels to the obedience competition. In novice, dogs are scored on “what every good dog should know,” Swanson said, including walking on a leash, sitting quietly when the owner stops, sitting and staying.

The open level “gets into more of the fun stuff,” she said, with jumping and fetching a dumbbell.

The highest level is utility, with scent discrimination (finding the object the owner touched), directed retrieve (dog retrieves the correct glove through verbal and hand signals) and directed jumping, which Swanson said is the trickiest thing to train.

“And to pass, they have to do everything right,” she said.

If watching the show gets you interested in showing a dog yourself, “We’re really lucky in Spokane; we have nonprofit dog training clubs” so it’s fairly inexpensive to take classes, Swanson said.

Kimberly Lusk

When: Today, Saturday and Sunday; find a program, with times for specific breeds, at www.onofrio.com/jp/SPOB1JP.pdf

Where: Spokane County Fair and Expo Center, 404 N. Havana St.

Cost: Admission is free; parking is $5.

Info: (509) 328-7652 or www.spokanekennelclub.com