Corona Virus Infection Cases Soar, Westminster Kennel Club Annual 2022 Show Postponed

Ilustrasi Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. (Wikimedia Commons/audrey_sel)

JAKARTA - The annual Westminster Kennel Club dog show is the latest event to be postponed or canceled in New York, United States (US) due to a spike in the number of cases of Coronavirus infection.

The club's board of governors announced on December 29 the postponement of the event scheduled for late January 2022 to the end of this year. The new date of implementation has not been announced.

"The health and safety of all participants in the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show are paramount," the group said in a statement, citing The Associated Press December 30.

"We appreciate the continued interest and community support, as we postpone the show to a time where we can safely assemble," the statement continued.

First held in 1877, this dog show attracts thousands of contestants from across the US and is usually held in February, with semifinals and finals at Madison Square Garden.

Last year, the event was moved to June and held outdoors at the Lyndhurst estate, a suburb of Tarrytown, north of New York City. Spectators are not allowed, while human participants must be vaccinated or recently tested.

A Pekingese named Wasabi won the best show, beating out a whippet, a French bulldog, an old English shepherd, a German shorthair pointer, a Samoyed, and a West Highland white terrier.

To note, with COVID-19 cases now exploding across the U.S., the postponement comes less than two weeks after more than 8,500 dogs, owners, and handlers gathered for another of the U.S. top dog shows, the American Kennel Club National Championships in Orlando, Florida.