SEQUIM –– After being poked, prodded and primped, dogs of all shapes and sizes pranced around Carrie Blake Park on Saturday, seeking ribbons, affection and, mostly, treats.
Dogs, their owners and professional handlers from all over the country are at the Sequim park at 110 N. Blake Ave. for the Hurricane Ridge Kennel Club’s All Breed Dog Show, which began Friday and continues from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. today.
“I saw Tony Carter showing earlier. That guy is, like, my hero,” Angela Perrone of Roseburg, Ore., said to one of her friends.
Carter is an acclaimed handler of show dogs. He was showing several dogs over the weekend, including Skipper, the top-ranked Parson Russell terrier in the American Kennel Club this year.
“He’s a great dog,” Carter said while grooming Skipper. “He loves doing this. He has so much fun out there.”
Dogs of all breeds were inspected by judges, who ranked them according to the American Kennel Club’s standards.
“It’s a chance to prove to the world that somebody else looked at this dog and how it stands up to those standards,” said Joe Larson, the Hurricane Ridge Kennel Club’s chairman of the dog show.
Owners then use the show results to market their dogs, such as Larson’s shelties, for breeding.
More than 700 dogs were competing in all-breed obedience and rally trials this weekend.
And the event has brought in thousands of people, many of whom have parked their RVs around the show ring.
In addition to the show judging, the kennel club’s weekend show includes classes and obedience trials.
For more information, visit the club’s website at www.hrkc.org.
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Sequim-Dungeness Valley Editor Joe Smillie can be reached at 360-681-2390, ext. 5052, or at jsmillie@peninsuladailynews.com.
