PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Dog lovers will spot some new competitors at the National Dog Show in Oaks, Montgomery County this year.
Three new breeds will join the American Kennel Club’s annual show this November.
“We call them new breeds,” explains 25-year host of the show David Frei. “They are not really new. Some of them have been around for thousands of years in their home country, but we just haven't had enough of them in this country to bring them into competition with the AKC.”
The trio—the Basset Fauve de Bretagne, the Russian Tsvetnaya Bolonka and the Teddy Roosevelt Terrier—will join nearly 200 other breeds in AKC competition for the first time on November 14 and 15 at the Philadelphia Expo Center.
As one of the only remaining benched shows in the country, handlers are required to stay in the venue with their dogs, allowing spectators to meet dogs that they may never see elsewhere.
Across the two days, roughly 2,000 dogs will compete, with the show broadcast several days later on Thanksgiving Day on NBC.
Read more about the three new contenders below.
Basset Fauve de Bretagne
The Basset Fauve de Bretagne.American Kennel Club
The Basset Fauve de Bretagne is a French variant of the Basset Hound.
“It means they are low to the ground,” explains 25-year host of the show David Frei. “They have short legs. Fauve, in this case, is that it’s a fawn color and Bretagne is the French area known as Brittany.”
The AKC says the breed is “smart, courageous and determined.” Like most hounds, they are natural hunters, but are great companion dogs and happy around children and other pets.
Russian Tsvetnaya Bolonka
The Russian Tsvetnaya Bolonka. American Kennel Club
The Russian Tsvetnaya Bolonka is “a great little toy dog with lots of hair,” Frei says. “Great with children.”
True to its name, which translates as “Russian colored lapdog,” the Tsvetnaya Bolonka is officially recognized in more than a dozen colors—from black to red to golden. Part of the Bichon family, Bolonki were almost extinct until after the Cold War.
They were bred to be apartment house pets and are characteristically friendly, intelligent and eager to please, but are more independent than many other toy dogs.
Teddy Roosevelt Terrier
The Teddy Roosevelt Terrier.American Kennel Club
Known as the Type B Rat Terrier until 1999, the Teddy Roosevelt Terrier was renamed in honor of the 26th President of the United States, who owned a different kind of terrier during his time in the White House.
Like other terriers, the small-to-medium sized Teddy Roosevelt is an eager hunter happy to chase down squirrels and rats, but is happy along families, other dogs and even cats.
In addition to keeping the property rodent-free, Teddy Roosevelt Terriers are happy to play and run, and they are eager to spend time with their owners and families.
