Dog Show Coming to Valley College

Valley College will host the “West Coast Westminster,” a.k.a. the Burbank Kennel Club’s All-Breed Dog Show and Obedience Trial, on Saturday and Sunday.

Although not quite as prestigious as the better-known, stuffier Westminster Dog Show, the American Kennel Club-sanctioned show has its own Hollywood-style elan, with celebrity look-alikes roaming the event and a secret finale worthy of the Oscars. Over the course of two days, the show is expected to draw about 2,500 canines of every shape, size and breed, not to mention the humans who love them.

“You are going to see the very best of the best at this show,” said Valerie Yale, treasurer of the Burbank Kennel Club. “This is not a match you would see at your local park.”

The dogs--130 breeds in all--will compete for best in show, based on their conformation to ideal breed standards of proportion, musculature, movement and the like. “It’s tremendously competitive,” Yale said.

Popular trials at the show include agility courses--where dogs are timed as they scramble through tunnels, scamper over teeter-totters and spring over hurdles, and the fly-ball relay race--where a team of dogs jumps hurdles carrying tennis balls in their mouths.

“A lot of people go to dog shows just for the entertainment,” Yale said. “Other people are actually families looking for the right breed of dog for their households. This way, they can bring family members to actually interact with the dogs once they’re done competing.” There will also be food and vendors selling hard-to-find dog note pads, mugs and breath spray at the event.

The show runs between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. both days on the Valley College grounds, 5800 Fulton Ave. The event is open to the public, but closed to dogs that are not entered in the show. Admission is $5 general and $3 for seniors and children 12 and younger.