Ooty: The congregation of dog breeds is underway here at the three-day Annual Dog Show being organised here by the South of India Kennel Club(SIKC), as 'Borzoi' breed brings a rare Russian flavor to the meet.
A crowd-pulling event by all accounts during summer here, the dog show which began modestly on Friday with a specialty show for breeds like German shepherd, on Saturday saw different breeds competing for the honours.
Stating that the Ooty dog show, wherein the 128th and 129th championships are being organised this summer, is the one which the dog breeders across the nation always would look forward to, Ms. Nagina Reddy, secretary of the SIKC, said the dog show here is a reputed one over the century and is the event for the assembly of different breeds to showcase the canine grandeur, power and professionalism in dog breeding in the country.
“This year 346 dogs drawn from 45 breeds have entered for the fray. 'Bichon Frise', a toy dog breed of French origin, which is to take part in the concluding day session on Sunday, is the only new breed to have entered the competition this year. Various parameters such as structure, bone strength and gait are being adopted to different breeds to select the champion. The champion dogs help sustain breeding of very good blood-line,” she explained.
On Saturday's show, the Russia-based Borzoi breed, was one of the unique attractions as its coat that gives it a sheep-like appearance, besides height and posture has added Russian flavor to the show.
Mr Mahesh, from Coimbatore said that this belong to 'sight hound breed', which is good in guarding duty too.
“The fur formation is such that it helps this breed to brave extremities of cold. We are actually rearing this breed over the past two years in our house at Ooty to grow well in the cold weather here. This breed is silent, speedy, affectionate and easy to train” he noted with earnestness.
