Morris & Essex Kennel Club show Wins "Show of the Year" Award

Feb. 28, 2012 - PRLog -- Every five years, a very special dog show appears, and we are transported to a gentler time honoring the heritage of one of the dog show world’s most devoted benefactors and the Show’s founder, Mrs. Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge.

The 2010 Morris & Essex Kennel Club show, which was held October 7, 2010 at Colonial Park in Somerset, New Jersey, was recently named “Show of the Year” from among over 2,500 American Kennel Club dog shows held during 2010/2011 at the Purina Pro Plan’s Show Dogs of the Year dinner held February 11 in New York City.

“A large part of the credit for the success of our spectacular show is due to the well-manicured grounds and special show site we have at Colonial Park,” Morris & Essex Kennel Club President Wayne Ferguson said recently. “We are so grateful to the Somerset County Park Commission for their support of our show.”

In 2010 more than 3,090 entries of the world’s finest show dogs, the largest dog show of that year, descended upon Somerset, New Jersey with top dogs and judges from around the world. This very special show featured spectators and exhibitors dressed in a variety of period costumes, a gourmet sit-down luncheon prepared for judges and box lunches for exhibitors, and an international Dog Art Show. Proceeds of the dog show benefitted various canine charities including the Franklin Township Animal Shelter, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine, the American Kennel Club Canine Health Foundation, Take the Lead, and St Hubert’s Giralda (the animal shelter that Mrs. Dodge herself founded).

Every five years, since its revival in 2000, the elegance, glamour, style and high level of judging quality last seen at Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge’s original dog shows of the 1920’s through 1950’s held on her polo fields in Madison, NJ are brought back to life for a new generation. In its 1937 heyday, more than 50,000 dog-loving spectators descended upon sleepy Madison, New Jersey with 4,104 dogs shown at the Morris & Essex Kennel Club show.

“The Dog Fancier of the Century”

M&E’s founder, Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge was known as “The Dog Fancier of the Century.”
Mrs. Dodge's contemporary counterpart, M&E Club President Wayne Ferguson, may well be the “Dog Fancier of the 21st Century”. A well-known entrepreneur and philanthropist of animal causes, Wayne Ferguson, founded Cherrybrook Pet Products in 1969 and revived the Morris & Essex Kennel Club show to its original glory with planning begun in 1997. Mr Ferguson was presented with a “Winkie” award and induction into the esteemed Anne Rogers Clark Hall of Fame as its “Man of the Year” during the Purina Pro Plan’s Show Dogs of the Year dinner held in New York City. This top honor is bestowed on only one individual in the dog show world each year. David Frei, of the Westminster Kennel Club, presented Mr. Ferguson's award.

Plans are already underway for the October 2015 show to be held in Colonial Park, Somerset, NJ. For additional information on the Morris & Essex Kennel visit www.morrisandessex.com Become a “Fan” of the Morris & Essex Kennel Club Dog Show on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/MorrisandEssexKennelClub

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Every five years, the Morris & Essex Kennel Club brings back the legacy of Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge's grand and elegant dog show held from 1927 through 1957. The last show was held on October 7, 2010 in Colonial Park, Somerset, NJ and plans are underway for the 2015 show. More information available at www.morrisandessex.com or become a “Fan” of the Morris & Essex Kennel Club Dog Show on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/MorrisandEssexKennelClub