NEW YORK — It’s no simple “sit” and “stay.”
At the Westminster Kennel Club’s first-ever obedience competition Monday, dogs had to sniff out and fetch a dumbbell their handlers had touched from a pile of identical dumbbells. They also had to sit in a group while their handlers circled the ring without them.
And that was just the first round.
A Labrador retriever named Heart won with a crowd-pleasing, tail-wagging display.
All 34 dogs competing in today's Masters Obedience Championship. #WKCDogShow pic.twitter.com/LBeV5yVbgd
— Westminster Dog Show (@WKCDOGS) February 15, 2016
Owner and handler Linda Brennan of Columbia, New Jersey, says the 3-year-old dog is “just amazing.”
And she says their final routine “had the cute factor”: It included fetching a few heart-print pillows.
Some 34 dogs competed. It was the first obedience event of any kind at the nation’s premier dog show since a non-competitive demonstration in 1956.
To see the full rules of the event, click here.
The Masters Obedience Championship is underway at Ring 10! #WKCDogShow pic.twitter.com/eD11DkwbnD
— Westminster Dog Show (@WKCDOGS) February 15, 2016