It’s been 138 years in the making, but authorities with the Westminster Kennel Club have finally said that yes, mixed breeds can enter the annual dog show and competition.
The show is set for Feb. 11 in Madison Square Garden. Typically, the well-watched competition draws only the best of the best breeds and their high-class handlers — no mutts allowed. But for the first time in the show’s 138-year history, mixed breeds will be given a show.
The mixed class will be included in the show’s new agility test, requiring competitors to weave around poles and jump through tires, according to the New York Post.
One caveat with the new mixed breed competition: The mutts can’t mingle with the full-breeds for the Best in Show award. Only purebreds can earn that top honor, the Post reported.
The club heads also added three new breeds to their competition: the chinook, the Portuguese podengo pequeño and the rat terrier.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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