Dog Shows in Canada

Dog shows in Canada are supported and regulated by the Canada Kennel Club (CKC), which is similar to its counterpart in the United States, the American Kennel Club (AKC). The CKC regulates 170 dog breeds for its 40,000 members. It offers guidelines and regulations for pure breed dog shows across Canada. Dog shows occur at a regional level throughout a year and culminate at the annual Purina National Dog Show in Toronto. Dogs from outside Canada are welcome to register and show in Canadian events.

  1. Preliminary Competition

    • Male dogs compete first and separately from female dogs. Judges first view Junior Male Puppy Dogs, then Senior Male Puppy Dogs. Juniors are six to eight months old, and Seniors are eight to 12 months old. After the male puppies, judges choose winning dogs in the following categories: Canadian Bred, Bred by Exhibitor and Veteran categories. Dogs that have competed and won in the past can only compete with other dogs that have won in the past, and are labeled Veterans. In each class, ribbons are given in first, second, third and fourth place. Once the judges have completed judging the males in each of these classes, they start again with Junior Female Puppy and work back up to the same set of classes with female dogs. Again, dogs win first, second, third and fourth place medals.

    Breeds and Groups

    • After the first rounds, judges see dogs within the 170 CKC designated breeds. Winners in each breed are awarded "Best in Breed" designation. For further judging purposes, the CKC organizes the 170 breeds into seven groups: sporting, hounds, working, terriers, toys, non-sporting and herding. In each of the seven groups, a "Best in Group" emerges from the "Best in Breeds" competing. As with the preliminary rounds, the judges give medals for first, second, third and fourth place in each of the seven groups. These winners then compete for the coveted "Best in Show."

    Best in Show

    • The seven competing winners from the group competition show finally in front of the "The Best in Show" judge. From the seven group winners the judge chooses the "Best in Show" winner. After the "Best in Show" choice, the judge chooses "Best Puppy" from the original competing puppies.