Man’s best friend – make that thousands of furry, four-legged best friends – will overtake the Enumclaw Expo Center for an extended show featuring all things canine.
This year’s Olympic Kennel Club show brings back a bit of normalcy after a pandemic-altered 2020. A year ago, the OKC show was an abbreviated affair with everything staged outdoors and no visitors allowed. This year won’t quite be business as usual, however, as the OKC has partnered with the Sammamish Dog Club and will be bringing a joint show to town.
The two groups will fill the center’s exhibition halls and take over the grassy grounds. The event stretches over nine days and will see more than 6,000 dogs, representing more than 200 breeds, making their way to Enumclaw.
The show agenda kicks off Saturday, Aug. 14, with agility trials on the Expo Center football field as well as Junior Showmanship, where youngsters are introduced to the world of dog shows. The week includes seminars, specialty shows and obedience trials, is capped by “Best in Show” judging and wraps up Sunday, the 22nd.
The public is invited to attend; admission is free but there’s a $7 fee to park on Expo Center property.
ABOUT THE OKC SHOW
The Olympic Kennel Club show, now in its 77th year, is the largest “single club” dog show in the Pacific Northwest and is the fifth-largest dog show in the nation.
Here’s some OKC history, taken from the club’s website:
“The Olympic Kennel Club was formed in 1944 (after World War II). The early members were Weimaraner fanciers and the early shows were held in conjunction with other clubs, such as the Metropolitan Kennel Club, later renamed the Seattle Kennel Club.”
“Several dog clubs held their shows at the downtown Seattle Armory, now known as the Seattle Center. The dog shows in the former days were bench shows, where the dogs were on display so the general public had an opportunity to see what each breed of dog was like and had a chance to ask the breeders/owners about the breed of dog they were interested in. It was an area affording newcomers an opportunity to learn from the experienced breeders and owners.”
“Bench shows were labor intensive to put on. It required benching equipment and after the show it required storing the equipment until the next show. By the mid 1950’s most clubs had abandoned the bench show and went on to hold shows in the format we see them today.”
“It appears the club founders held their earlier shows indoors in the Renton area. From 1950 on, the shows were held in the Renton Memorial Stadium. In 1973, the school district installed artificial turf requiring Olympic Kennel Club to relocate its show site. The club was fortunate to find the King County Fairgrounds in Enumclaw, where our shows are still held today. This site is now known as the Enumclaw Expo Center.”
“Prior to 1979 the club was a two-day single show dividing the six groups, three groups each day, with Best In Show held on Sunday. Gradually entries declined. Handlers felt it was not economically feasible to attend one show in two days and at the same time, there was the gas shortage. It was at that time the club decided to hold two shows in one weekend, which provided to be a great success.”
This year, the combined specialty and all-breed show will take place Aug. 13-16.
