Westminster Kennel Club highlights Chinese-origin dog breeds ahead of Lunar New Year

NEW YORK - In honour of the upcoming Chinese New Year, Westminster Kennel Club on Tuesday (Jan 30) highlighted breeds of Chinese origin like chinese cresteds, pugs, shih tzus, pekingeses and chow chows.

"It's in recognition of the Chinese New Year, which is Feb 16, right after our dog show," said Westminster spokesman Gail Miller Bisher. "And of course it's the Year of the Dog in 2018, but at Westminster every year is the Year of the Dog to us."

Now in its 142nd year, the show is the second-longest continuously running sporting event in the United States after the Kentucky Derby.

"This is the one time of year where the dogs take over New York City, and we have over 3,200 dogs coming to compete in three different events, and then we also have dogs from all 50 states and 16 other countries," said Ms Bisher.

After judges select the best of each breed out of thousands of dogs, top dogs go to the main event at Madison Square Garden on Feb 12 and 13 where they are narrowed down to the best of each group - hound, toy, non-sporting, herding, sporting, working or terrier - which then go on to compete for the "Best In Show" title.