The Blue Heron Fair is going to the dogs.
At least it will be for the six shows when President Choice Superdogs perform their Bow Wow Factor show on Aug. 10 and 11 at 1, 2:30 and 4:30 p.m. at the Barrhead Sportsgrounds main baseball diamond.
Superdogs operations manager Amy White said the idea for the show came from Torontonian Herb Williams 40 years ago.
“He loved dogs and was active on the dog show circuit, but he knew they had so much more to offer people,” she said. “And although the show has changed a lot since then what hasn’t is people’s love for dogs, which is why our show remains so popular.”
Today the show has 195 trainers and about triple the number of canine cast members which perform close to 200 events annually across North America.
Since the show’s incarnation, the Superdogs have performed for more than 30 million people, mostly in large urban centres.
White said in recent years they have worked at making their show more accessible.
“That’s a great thing about our show. It is completely scalable,” she said. “No matter what the venue or community we have a show to fit, that way more people can see just how amazing our trainers and dogs are.”
The Superdog show coming to Barrhead will include eight trainers and 30 canine cast members.
As for what Barrhead audiences can expect, White said there will be a mix of everything.
“There will be tremendous athletes. People will be awed by feats they can do, how quick they are, how high they can jump, but then there are dogs whose role is to be comedians and add levity to the show,” she said, noting there are also very emotional portions of the show.
“Our motto at Superdogs is to love, play and communicate with your dog, and in the show, there are moments where you will see that these are people’s pets and are part of their family and how bonded they are with them.”
White added that although the show is more than worth the cost of admission, people’s favourite part of the Superdogs experience is often the Pat N’ Chat where the audience gets a chance to meet their favourite performers.
“This allows people to see that the Superdogs, while they are all special and extraordinary in their own right, are just regular dogs,” she said.
In fact, White said more than half of the canine performers come from troubled pasts.
“Dogs that people find too energetic, are hyper and are always jumping on things — that is the type of energy we are looking for,” she said.
That being said, not every bright, energetic dog can be a Superdog. Every year they hold auditions to add to their ranks and replace retiring dogs and handlers, the majority of which come from the world of dog sports.
