Officials and exhibitors have reflected on the mixed outcomes of the championship dog shows held at Millicent’s McLaughlin Park on Friday afternoon and all day Saturday.
Instead of players chasing a round ball, the Millicent United Soccer Club grounds welcomed around 300 pedigree dogs to its playing arena.
This was 50 more than the 2023 number of entries.
On the downside, the Sunday morning show had to be cancelled owing to the hot weather policy.
The Millicent Kennel Club hosted the shows and its secretary Julie Allan explained why the date was changed.
“We had to change our usual November date as this fell at the same time as the Portland dog shows,” Ms Allan said.
“The December date meant we had more entries as there are fewer shows in Adelaide at this time of the year.
“Millicent will go back to its November date in 2025.
“The Dogs SA hot weather policy applied on Sunday as the forecast temperature was above 34 degrees.
“The Millicent Kennel Club is grateful to Wattle Range Council for mowing the grass and supplying bins.”
Ms Allan is a longtime exhibitor as she owns Shetland Sheepdogs but none were ready for showing.
Other key staging roles were filled by club president Wayne Pratt and treasurer Tania Huitema.
The event was named the Ann Walker Memorial Show to honour the Millicent Kennel Club president who passed away in the past 12 months.
The club also commissioned a special rosette from Adelaide in the club colours of red, black and white.
The rosette was presented to the Best in Show.
The out of town exhibitors provide a boost for the local economy with accommodation and hospitality venues welcoming the extra trade.
For many years, the dog shows were held within the showgrounds and coincided with the annual Millicent Show.
However, the move was made to the Millicent United Soccer Club at McLaughlin Park more than a decade ago and the club has assisted with catering and staging chores.
The caterers this year came from the Mount Burr United Football Club.
The judges came from South Australia and interstate and the shows were conducted under the rules of the South Australian Canine Association.
The Millicent Kennel Club marked its 60th anniversary this year.
