AllAroundDogs AtTheFair By Fran Stephens
September in the Puget Sound area of Washington State means “THE FAIR.” The Puyallup, Washington Fair is one of the ten largest fairs in the world and runs for 17 days each September. Well over a million people will come through the gates each season to see the animals, crafts, arts, flowers, concerts, rodeo and carnival.
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or the second year, Puyallup Valley Dog Fanciers has organized All Around Dogs at the Fair to show the public what purebred dogs are all about. The goal is to show the general public that purebred dogs are excellent family dogs capable of engaging in many activities with their people. This year we had 30 booths in the large barn with representatives from specialty clubs, all breed clubs, 4-H, Guide Dogs, therapy dogs, field dogs, a community college vet tech program, and the acclaimed Purdy Prison Pet Program. For those that don’t know, Purdy is a women’s prison. Years ago they started taking shelter dogs and teaching the inmates to train and care for them. When the dogs graduate, they are placed in service dog organizations. There is an indoor ring and an outdoor arena where demonstrations were held. The US Army K-9’s showed the work that our military dogs are doing around the world. US Customs brought a contingent of their dogs who sniff out drugs, firearms, explosives, etc. at the airports, and other points of entry into this country. Richard Matzke, Tuxedo Kennels, did several demonstrations each day of bird dogs working in the field. He is a wonderful presenter and explains the different ways pointers, spaniels and retrievers are used in hunting. This year he has a white standard poodle retrieving live birds. He was able to emphasize that each breed was developed for a specific task. This fit with the core message of the whole weekCONTINUED ON PAGE 72
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