On Saturday 7th October, a lovely sunny day, the very first Marble Hill dog show took place. It was a very popular first-time official event, with more than 110 dogs entering. It was organised by the Friends of Marble Hill and King Street Vets and hosted by English Heritage (at Marble Hill House). There was an entry fee of £5 per category, and all funds will be going towards the restoration of the historic clocktower on the Coach House Café. There were nine fabulous categories, the crowd-pleasers being ‘waggiest tail’, ‘best or most unusual trick’, and ‘looks most like owner’. The judges were: Alex Kingston, Graham Williams (from the Friends of Marble Hill), and Dr. Filipe Dias (a vet from King Street Vets).

One of the organisers from the Friends of Marble Hill, Rachel Morrison, shared some more information about this enjoyable event. It was a first-time event that they would love to grow into an annual one. The dog show is a lovely way to celebrate all the many dogs in our community, especially as the dog-walking community gives a lot back as they go to the café for morning coffee, which in turn generates revenue for the charity (English Heritage). This collaboration with King Street Vets was very important, as while the Friends of Marble Hill love dogs, they “wouldn’t know the ins and outs of a dog show”, so the Friends felt that the help and expertise from King Street Vets was vital. A funny story she mentioned from the day was that before the event started, whilst they were packing up the prize treat bags, a big dog snuck over and “snaffled all of them” (as in a whole treat bag!).

Additionally, Dr. Karmen Webbe, the owner of King Street Vets, explained that the practice was newly established, having opened 18 months ago, and they are trying to get more involved in community projects, so they were delighted to be a part of this joyful day.

After all of the category prizes were given out, the winners had the chance to be awarded ‘best in show’, and presented with a cup. This lucky dog was Cooper, a Labrador-cocker spaniel mix, winner of ‘best trick’, primarily for the trick of jumping through a hoop made by his owner's arms! This was a thoroughly enjoyable event and a great way to spend a sunny Saturday afternoon. The total amount raised on the day was £555. Thank you to Rachel Morrison and Dr. Karmen Webbe for the interviews, and thank you to Maureen Coyle, property manager of Marble Hill, for providing lots of helpful information. Keep an eye out on the websites ‘friendsofmarblehill.org.uk’ and ‘kingstreetvets.co.uk’ for all future events and hopefully another enjoyable, successful dog show. Keep practising your tricks!