A judge inspects a competing dog during the Prince Albert Kennel and Obedience Club’s Touch O' the Irish All Breed Championship Dog Show at the Dave Steuart Arena in Prince Albert on March 14, 2026. (Image Credit: Logan Lehmann/paNOW Staff)

By Logan Lehmann

Precious Pooches

Prince Albert welcomes hundreds of furry friends for annual all breeds dog show

Mar 14, 2026 | 6:26 PM

Hundreds of pooches and their handlers have descended on Prince Albert this weekend for the local Kennel and Obedience Club’s annual spring show. 

The Touch O’ the Irish All Breed Championship Dog Show began Thursday and runs until Sunday at Dave Steuart Arena, with competitors coming from across the country and from over the border.  

Liana Maloney, the Kennel and Obedience Club’s show coordinator, said there’s all types of dogs at this years show, including hounds, sporting dogs, working dogs, terriers, toy dogs, non-sporting dogs, and herding dogs.  

“All these different dogs that are bred for different purposes are in different groups according to the purpose that they’re bred for.” 

(Image Credit: Logan Lehmann/paNOW Staff)

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(Image Credit: Logan Lehmann/paNOW Staff)

Dogs aren’t competing in various competitions, but rather they’re being judged based on their appearance.  

“As a breeder, we’re given a blueprint of a breed standard on what the dog is supposed to look like and that’s on a score out of a hundred. So, everything from the length of the bone on their front shoulder to the angle of it, colour of their eyes, shape of their head, coat type, all these things combined to create what the dog’s function is.” 

She continued that a judge will judge a dog against a standard of 100 points, meaning the dog that the judge feels is closest to that standard is the one that’s going to win best of breed. 

“When you see the judge judging all these different breeds in the same ring, he’s really judging them all against themselves as a different standard. The best in show is the one that the judge feels was the one closest to the standard of all the breeds.” 

(Image Credit: Logan Lehmann/paNOW Staff)

(Image Credit: Logan Lehmann/paNOW Staff)

Competitors were drawn to P.A. from all over the continent, with dogs hailing from across the prairies and into the Maritimes, and from some places in the United States like Washington and California.  

Hosting the show in a building like the Dave Steuart Arena gives the competitors, and the show itself, a lot more space to move around, providing a more comfortable environment for the dogs and their handlers. 

“We’re very thrilled to have this venue, it’s absolutely perfect size-wise. It gives us bigger rings; movement is very important when judging dogs, and previously it’s been quite small rings for us, so to have this venue and this opportunity to have nice big rings – look at how happy all the exhibitors are. There’s room for everybody.” 

The show is free for all spectators and shuts down on Saturday night at 8 p.m. The show will be back on Sunday with doors opening at 9 a.m. and the show wrapping up at 8 p.m. A food stall is also set up inside, along with a few vendors selling dog related items. 

(Image Credit: Logan Lehmann/paNOW Staff)

(Image Credit: Logan Lehmann/paNOW Staff)

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loganc.lehmann@pattisonmedia.com