Day One at Crufts 2013

For the next couple of posts I (Leigh) will take over posting for Magic who is resting in preparation for her big day - hopefully some time next week...more on that to come! However here are some pictures and information about my time at the first day of Crufts yesterday. First port of call was the  stand of Samsung who are one of the sponsors of this event. They have been doing lots to promote responsible dog ownership in Korea and setting up the first Guide Dogs for the Blind there too. There is a large display with a video showing the work being done there:

The area has lots to see and do for families and their dogs and was officially opened yesterday by the model and TV personality Jodie Kidd (with canine companion :-):

The stand is very large with lots of the most up-to-date electronic gadgets to try out and has seats laid out like a giant paw-print - their logo for this year's Crufts:

But time for some dog watching :-)

These dogs were demonstrating their Kennel Club Good Citizen training.

And this Pointer was trying to keep fit on the walking machine.

Not that you need a machine to keep you fit on a visit to Crufts - the show is not just the biggest in the world in numbers of dogs competing (more than 25,000 from all over the world!) but the NEC has 5 huge halls filled to capacity with show rings, activity rings, literally hundreds of trade stands and stalls and the Arena where the Best in Show finale will take place on Sunday. There is something dog-related everywhere and even one whole day is not enough to see it all.

Organisations that use dogs for health and welfare work like this medical detection dog can demonstrate the work they do. Some dogs can be trained to detect the subtle changes in scent of a person who is about to have a seizure or can tell if a cancer is developing in someone. 

And dogs like this one help people with disabilities to be more independent.

And then there's the show ring. This young Airedale seems to be enjoying the attention!

and a Scottie dog posing for the judge. More Scottie photos to come in a few days for our Australian friends :-) but I will keep a few more photos for tomorrow when I should have news of Crybbe and Trilby's trip to Crufts as well.