Blogging The Dogs
Category: Kitchen Sink...
Posted Monday, February 09, 2004 at 08:23 PM [GMT-6]

The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show got underway this evening. It's the 128th edition of this event, which has become an annual staple for viewing in our household. It's on the USA Channel, as if you didn't know.

As I type this, we're laughing at the Staffordshire Terrier, which resembles nothing as much as a mutant sheep with eyes set on the sides of his head. Except...no, that wasn't the Staffordshire after all. It was a Bedlington Terrier. I trust that all the Staffordshire owners out there in the blogosphere will accept my deepest apologies, and that all the Bedlington owners will accept my sincerest condolences.

Blogging a dog show isn't quite the same as blogging the Super Bowl. For one thing, the halftime show is bound to be less titillating <snicker>. Also, the winners of the dog show are generally better dancers than the football equivalents, and the losers are much better sports (although there's no telling what kind of rumbles the handlers get into, backstage. For more insight to this issue, I recommend renting "Best in Show."). However, many of the commercials have dog themes, much to the disgust of the catpeople viewers, who shouldn't be watching anyway, but who can't overcome their own feelings of envy.

Dog shows have their own secret and mysterious set of rules, procedures and protocol. If you're really curious - and insomniac - you get some orientation at "A Dog's Life," a blog maintained by a handler and dog show aficionado. Scroll down and look for the last set of entries in the right column. Just don't make any Borzoi jokes and I think you'll get along fine.