Nancy and I attended on Pier 54 in Manhattan. “This is a one-time event for us.” The $35 entrance fee suggested to me that THIS BETTER BE GOOD! “Just once to get an idea.” Nancy added. Up to this point, I haven’t paid much attention to dogs. In fact, I have tried to avoid them after the day I toured the Babylon Animal Shelter to consider becoming a volunteer. It only took an hour to decide that being in the same building with 24 of the fiercest looking pit bulls I’ve ever seen that I’d pass. Taking nature walks in Gardiners County Park close by was another reason. It is a popular dog walker’s park. As I pass leashed dogs or they pass me, I gave wide birth…pretending to be afraid. I was trying to tell adult humans that I wanted this park for nature, not dogs, forgetting that yes, dogs too are part of nature.

It did not take too long to see dogs in a new light. Here, they are the center of attention. The show layout was L-shaped. One leg was the bench area, the other the ring area. There’s also a gift shop and exhibition area, and food court.

The bench isles are the staging area where dogs, owners, and handlers get the dogs ready for competition. Dogs are groomed by teasing and combing, blow drying, cutting, talking to, patting, and penning. Some dogs are sleeping. Many are on small platforms with leashed necks so they can be attended to. The bench area is organized by breed. There are over 200 breeds and 3000 dogs. Each bench contains the paraphernalia necessary to make their dogs glamorous.

At lunch time, many bench areas were crowded with friends toasting with wine and champagne, fancy foods, laughter, and dog talk. Visitors were photographing dogs. I overheard conversations with the words “magnificent” “cute” etc.

Handlers are constantly rewarding with tiny treats. They pass the treat so as to attract the least attention. The treat is placed right next to the dog’s mouth so all they have to do is simply slightly open and swallows. The handlers align the rear feet of the dogs so they look like statues. They constantly talk to their dogs and touch them. No dog ever turns down a treat. The whole affair is the treat. The dogs are constantly paying attention to their trainer, handler, breeder, owner for the next treat. The handler is in complete control. The competition is as much about the handler as the dog. At all times, in ring competition, the handler is handling. The handler is the treat dispenser. There is a prize every time the dog obeys. All the dogs want to do is please their handler, that way, they are rewarded.

We moved to the ring area to watch judging. Milling among the crowd was interesting. The dog show was an opportunity for a fashion. Many well-dressed men and women walked about. Showing dogs is an expensive hobby. Judging is done by breeds. The handlers and their dogs enter the ring. Handlers crouch until the judge signals them to circle the ring one pair at a time. The handler runs alongside the dog and maintains the speed of the dog. The handler holds a thin leash that circles the upper neck of the dog for more control. Treats are flying. There are some men handlers, but most are women. Many wear sparkly outfits. As soon as a circling is complete, the handler drops to the floor and immediately aligns the rear and front legs of their dog to show them. The handler wants the judge to remember that the dog is like a robot and places their legs in the exact spot that the handler wants. The treat is a way to hypnotize the dog. The dog will do anything to earn a treat. Handlers hike the treats and as their hands moves to get a treat, the dogs are right on it focusing totally on what’s to come.

We watched the competition of whippets which look like small bloodhounds. These dogs are odd looking to me. Their tails are long and skinny. Their chests are large, their head is quite small for the size of their body. The judges look for agility as they pitter patter around the circle. The handler picks up their dog and puts it on a small table so the judge can check out the dog by “handling” first the face, next, ears, then back, and finally rear legs and groin. This is all very serious and the tension doesn’t build until the judge separates out five pairs near the end. The jusge stands there looking. The audience is quiet. Finally the judge points to the winner. The audience claps and it’s over. There are remote control video cameras with large screens for the overflow crowd.

All this boils down to one dog…best in show. How the judges arrived at a German shepherd, I have no clue. Between bench and ring area, in a large plastic case, the silver trophy prize is displayed at the grand prize. Each owner had a folder with the “papers”, the lineage, the pedigree to prove that their dog was NOT A MUT. Each handler had their little package of treats without which there would be no dog show.

When I was a kid, my family had dogs, a pointer named Chrissy, a beagle named Bruno. The logo of the Westminster kennel club is a pointer that reminded me of the chrome ornament on the head of a 1952 Pontiac. Many of the names of the dogs led me to believe that they came from royalty. I came away having a new respect for dogs, their owners, their breeders, their handlers, and the snooty kennel club which sounds like the Abby in London. I decided to start a check list of the dog breeds I see since I stopped doing this for birds.

This essay is accompanied by a prose poem titled THE WORLD OF DOGS MUSEUM