More than 600 dogs competing at Brockville, Ont. dog show

It's an event dog exhibitors have been waiting three years for, an international competition in Brockville, Ont. that's drawn in competitors from around the world.

More than 600 dogs have descended on the Elizabethtown Fairgrounds, for the return of the Thousand Islands Kennel and Obedience Club (TIKO) Shows & Trials.

"It's really good to be back," said TIKO President Ginny Kerr. "We've had an absence of three years as everyone knows for the pandemic, and we've also returned to the place of origin for this club."

The show is being hosted outside for the first time since the mid-1970s.

"A lot of the people who were founding members are extremely happy, and a lot of people started their show career here and find it really, really neat to be back here 40 odd years later," Kerr added. 

Breeder Marnie Layng is showing her Schipperkes, a part of TIKO since 1969.

"For a lot of us, it's our world," she said. "It's where we feel comfortable, where our passion is, and it's one of the oldest sporting events in the world."

Well over 100 breeds of dogs are being represented and are enrolled in different shows throughout the weekend, such as a sporting group and herding group.

"It's a process of elimination, you come in and you enter your dogs in whatever class they fit into according to the Canadian Kennel Club rules, and the judges go over the dogs," Layng said. 

First the males are judged, then the females, with judges picking the best in each class. 

"Then they go in against all the champions that are already well established and they get a best of breed," Layng explained. "Once we get a best of breed and a best opposite, best of winners, best of puppy, they go on if there's a competition for them."

"When you get the best of breed, they will then compete against the other 13 or 17 dogs that won their best of breeds and then they will pick the best four and the number one will go on to Best in Show," she noted. 

Competitors have travelled from as far as Florida to show their dogs, with others coming from the Northern U.S., New Brunswick, Quebec, and across Ontario.

A judg elooks over a Schipperke at the Thousand Islands Kennel and Obedience Club (TIKO) Shows & Trials in Brockville, Ont. (Nate Vandermeer/CTV News Ottawa)

There are also judges who have made the trip from Sweden. 

On another part of the fairgrounds, dogs also perform in the rally and obedience ring.

"It's harder than it looks," noted Kerr. "You're reading, you're walking with the dog you're performing the things all within time."

Judge Mary Monteith from Kitchener keeps a close eye, making sure a standard of perfection is met according to the rules that govern the sport.

"Our job is to distinguish the dogs who are absolutely perfect, between the ones that make a little mistake here and there," she said. "Or maybe their handler makes a mistake, and so we're judging against a standard of perfection in our head, comparing each dog."

"There's an awful lot of training that goes into preparing a dog to compete in any performance sport," Monteith noted. "I want to congratulate all of the handlers and the dogs that have worked so hard to get here. Every judges appreciates more than anything else all the work that goes into getting their dogs ready to compete and it's very challenging and difficult and I applaud all of them."

With temperatures hitting the low 30s on Saturday afternoon, dogs were being kept cool in many ways. 

"We have a pool for cooling their feet, everybody is spraying their dogs, and as you'll see some dogs have jackets on those are cooling jackets to wick the heat away and provide some coolness," said Kerr. "Lots of water, lots of shade, lots of rest."

"It's really nice to see a good strong purebred dog industry," Kerr noted. "Dogs became very important during the pandemic and we believe in a well bred, purpose bred dog from a breeder who is doing all the checks that need to be done prior to the dogs being bred, that's what these competitions are checking on, is how sound the dogs are in body and in mind."

Ribbons awarded in the rally and abedience ring at the Thousand Islands Kennel and Obedience Club (TIKO) Shows & Trials in Brockville, Ont. (Nate Vandermeere/CTV News Ottawa)

Layng says in order to compete at this level, there is a small piece of crazy in every dog owner, noting she's heard the comparison before. 

"Of course, I am (crazy). Its part of the criteria," she quipped. "And let's face it, if you have a relative who happens to be a master chess player or who collects butterflies, what do we say about them?"

"Not everybody understands other people's passions, you know, but for most of us, this is our passion," Layng said. "So if we can have an opportunity to get together and compete against one another and some of us win and some of us learn, because that's what you need to do when you lose, you learn, so it's an opportunity for us all to enjoy."

The show continues until Sunday with free admission. Spectators are welcome to come watch, but are asked to respect the dogs and shows taking place. 

"If you are going to come to the show, ask if you can touch a dog, and take a look and just enjoy. Ask questions of people that know," Layng said. 

"Come out and enjoy, join our extended family because that's what the dog show world is."