Dog show sees best of breeds

Silicon City Kennel Club, Bengaluru, hosted the 117th, 118th and 119th ‘All India Championship Dog Shows’, on November 17 and 18 at Hockey Grounds, Veterinary College Campus, Hebbal.

The main highlight of the show was the showcase of eight major Indian breeds. In total, there were more than 500 pooches representing 50 different breeds from all over the county.

The event also had a ‘three breed speciality show’ which included Dobermann, Rottweiler and Indian Breeds.

“The Mudhol Hound, which was on the verge of extinction, was revived by the Kennel Club and it has also been inducted to the Indian Army recently. Many such rare breeds are present at the show,” said S Yathiraj, President of Kennel Club, Bengaluru.

Apart from the dog show, the event also included many stalls which provided information regarding the care and maintenance of dogs.

“This is a good platform for new dog breeders as they are taught the right ways of taking care of their pets, including their food, clothes and health,” added Yathiraj.

The judges were all KCI(Kennel Club of India) approved. The dogs were judged based on the Standard Breed Characters list. Prizes were given to the top three in each breed.

“Each of the breeds is meant for a purpose. There was a competition within each breed which was followed by the final competition, where the best of all breeds face each other,” added Yathiraj.

Talking to Metrolife, Hanumanth Nishyeshi from Bagalkot, who breeds The Mudhol Hound, said, “The Mudhol Hound is mainly used for hunting and guarding purposes. It gets its name from the Mudhol Taluk, where it originated from.”

“We used to feed him Cerelac as a baby. We now feed him everything but rice. Ragi, Godi, Jola are some of his favourites,” he said, adding that it was his eighth time at the show.

Another dog breeder Manoj Krishna, who is also the joint secretary of the Kennel Club, breeds Siberian Huskies and Chow Chow dogs. “They are a part of
our family now. We take them out for running, swimming and exercising,” he shared.

Kannada actress Maghana Raj was present at the show; she is also an avid dog lover.

The Silicon City Kennel Club conducts workshops in schools and colleges to create awareness about dog breeding.

“We educate young children and interested people about the dos and don’ts of pet care in our workshops,” said Yathiraj.