Editorial: August 8, 2025

No, it’s not Santa Claus: It’s the time of the year that the Purina Pro Plan Show Dogs of the Year Awards Dinner partnered with Dog News gets into high gear. Even though it’s months away, there is a lot of preparation that takes place to create that magical evening, which honors the dogs and people who have excelled in their respective areas of expertise. With more than half the 2025 calendar year behind us, we are carefully and with great interest watching the progress of the top dogs in each group. The ultimate winners will be honored for being the number-one dog in each of the seven variety groups with their breeders, owners and handlers at the dinner. In addition, we also recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of the number-one dog of all breeds for the year. Well-deserved recognition for the hard work to keep these dogs in show condition. Celebrating with those associated with those seven top dogs will be the nominees of the achievement awards in the categories of Breeder of the Year, Judge of the Year, Professional Handler of the Year, Owner-Handler of the Year, Cluster Shows of the Year and National Specialty Show of the Year. Of the three nominees in each of the above categories, the ultimate winners are voted on online by you, and the winners announced the dinner. The awards don’t end there: We also celebrate the successes of the top Junior handler and, in the performance arena, the top-winning obedience dog. Topping off the awards portion of the dinner is the presentation of the Golden Pooper Scooper Award, created by Purina’s own Corey Benedict to honor someone in our community for their uniqueness. The final award of the evening is the induction into the Anne Rogers Clark Hall of Fame, given to an individual who has contributed to help promote and support the purebred dog community. In its history of only honoring individuals, Take The Lead has had the honor of being the only organization to receive such an honor for the good works it has done for our community with its charitable services over the last 25-plus years. It is a great night of seeing friends from around the country, some of whom we haven't seen in a year’s time. It’s where we in the dog world celebrate the accomplishments of our peers in a beautiful environment that is Gotham Hall, where the black-tie event is held.