There will be a whippet named Bourbon and a Pekingese named Wasabi.
A French bulldog named Mathew — wait, shouldn’t that be Mathieu? — won the nonsporting group, and an Old English Sheepdog called Connor was judged the best of the herding entries. (He also looked big enough to eat a couple of them if the result had not gone his way.)
On Saturday night, the judges at the annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show whittled hundreds of entries down to four group winners. On Sunday — with judging in three more groups — the field will winnow to the final seven dogs who will compete for Best in Show.
But who is really best in show? Probably the dog you love most. And the ones in these photos.
This is Poncho, who is now free to judge all other mini bull terriers until 2022.
Wasabi the Pekingese won the toy group on Saturday, and then agreed — in the finest Pekingese tradition — to be carried off in triumph.
The feeling when you bring all the combs and brushes and clippers but leave the iron on the kitchen counter back home.
That’s a Lhasa apso, not a wig. Or hold on: Is it the other way around?
Flat-coated retrievers entering the ring. Wrinkly coated retrievers think they’re just showing off.
William, a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, after a Sunday afternoon blowout.
The age-old question: Who is walking whom?
Hounds, huskies and the tools of the dog trade.
A Spanish Water Dog brought some floppy style to the herding group on Saturday.
Handlers come in all shapes, sizes and colors, even when it’s hard to tell the hounds apart. It’s the judges who have the real eye for detail.
With the pandemic keeping the public from attending the festivities at the Lyndhurst Mansion in Tarrytown, N.Y., where the dog show moved this year from Madison Square Garden, there is plenty of room to run. But first you have to slip the leash.
No hair? No problem. Especially if you’re an American hairless terrier.
A Bichon Frise before the nonsporting group final. “How come that guy gets spots but I always have to wear white?”