This was my fifth year wandering the halls of the Birmingham National Exhibition Centre to photograph Crufts, the international dog show which has been held in the UK annually since the late 19th century. At this point, the competition feels like home – if home had 155,000 people coming over to visit at the weekend and I owned 24,000 dogs, that is.
A four-year-old whippet from Venice, named Miuccia, was crowned best in show at this year’s show, beating more than 18,000 pooches for the top award. The competition is split into four days, each for a different category of dog. This year I visited on day one, Terrier and Hound: the exhibition centre was lined with stalls housing staffordshire terriers in their crates and excited norfolk terriers getting belly tickles, while afghan hounds milled elegantly around one of the judging areas, green floored squares where handfuls of almost identical dogs paraded about as Karrimor-clad judges scribbled in notebooks.
Friday was the ‘utility and toy’ day, made up of dogs like dalmatians, french bulldogs and cavalier king charles spaniels. Saturday was ‘gundogs’ day, for your labradors, cocker spaniels and irish setters. Finally, Sunday brought the ‘working and pastoral’ category, which saw border collies, german shepherds, boxers and great danes take over the halls.
With so many canines in one place, you might expect chaos. But for what is essentially the biggest doggy day care centre going, the whole place was pretty calm: the occasional argument kicked off between passing dogs, but largely the soundtrack was the hum of conversation and an occasional announcement. Most dogs were relaxed, cuddling on their owner’s laps, snuggling into the booths with bored teenagers or resting on the floor while breeders snack on wine and brie.
Aside from the competition, there is a huge ‘meet the breeds’ section where owners sit with incredibly patient dogs whose job it is to rep their brand. Every breed that Crufts recognises has a stall here, abound with snoozy, sloppy and smiling dogs licking faces and hands. In other words? It’s a paradise for pooch lovers.
Check out my photos of the event below.
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