Ruff Competition as Dogs Are Prepped for the Annual Westminster Dog Show

Primping for a dog show can be hard work. From shaving, to trimming and blow drying, handlers at the 136th Westminster Kennel Club dog show gave pooches the royal treatment on Monday.

David Frei, communications director for the Westminster Kennel Club, said dogs competing for the Best in Show title at the all-breed dog show, have a lot to live up to. "All the dog people come whether they're bringing dogs or not. All the great dogs in the same place at the same time, we have every single one of the top 36 showdogs in the country. We've got 108 returning best of breed winners from last year, five returning group winners, so it's very competitive."

This year six new breeds of dogs will be competing in the show. Whippet owner and breeder William Dvorjak, brushed his dog Snowhill Beatrix Soul Delight and gave her a quick trim before she heads on to the floor. Dvorjak is lucky, he said, because in comparison to other breeds, Whippets are easy dogs to groom. "We don't have it as tough as the poodles or a lot of the other breeds. We're real lucky. Basically, just to make sure she's very clean. She's had a bath and she's been cleaned and just to make sure her coat is nice and shiny. We make sure the ears are kind of trim just to give it a nice profile a nice finish. And we make sure that if there is any sleep in their eyes or their noses are nice and clean and that she just looks the best she can to represent her breed."

Silver Standard Poodle owner Lori Gillespie said she spent more than two hours getting her dog ready for the carpet, and also spent three hours the night before washing and brushing "Magic Castles Pretty In Pink." "She's ready to show, we just gotta get up there without getting our hair wrecked," she said as she teased and sprayed the dog's hair in place.

Dachshund owner and handler Cheryl Snedaker-sins said preparation for her two-year-old Dannica begins before they ever arrive in New York City. "Lots of conditioning before we come here. We actually go to the mall twice a week and walk to keep her in tone and muscled and so forth. We live in New Hampshire so it's hard ot exercise outside. Luckily for me she's a bitch that loves to show. She loves people and so all of the chaos that goes on here doesn't fray her too much," she said. Not all the dogs handle the attention as easily as Dannica.

Afghan hound handler Lindsey Kuhn said for some dogs, like Ringer, all the attention can be stressful. "It's very hard on the dogs, all the stress, especially this breed because they're very aloof and not so much into all the people so it's tough on the dogs. But it's wonderful all at once." The two day show takes place at Madison Square Garden on February 14th.