Lorain County continues to establish itself as a destination for inexpensive entertainment, and the recent two-day Lorain County Kennel Club Show did not disappoint, especially with a famous dog that wowed attendees.
Although the event was not the world famous Westminster Kennel Club Show, the Lorain County version was a big deal.
Participants from all parts of the country as well as Canada attended the Lorain County show.
Some of them even came early to camp on weekends.
This is just another example that Lorain County is a place where people come to have fun, enjoying the amenities of this area.
And Dr. Ilona E. Jurek, president of the Lorain County Kennel Club, was heartened by the turnout of people who attended the show to see the 800 dogs that participated.
The show attracted over 1,000 dog enthusiasts.
Jurek noted that people who visited Lorain County for the show had a great time.
It’s nice to hear.
But, Jurek pointed out that it was the sleuth named Trumpet who really made the show special.
Trumpet, who goes by the registered name GCHB CH Flessner’s Toot My Own Horn, was recently named the first sleuth in history to win the Westminster Kennel Club’s Best in Show division.
The bloodhound is 4 years old and is owned by former Berlin Heights resident Heather Buehner, along with Chris and Bryan Flessner and Tina Kocar.
Buehner showed Trumpet in the Best In Show class at Westminster, and here in County Lorain, and won both.
The trophy presented to Buehner after his big win with Trumpet was a handmade piece of art by Lorain County Kennel Club member Mark Yourich.
Yourich included a variety of exotic woods in his intricately hand-carved design.
Bloodhounds are one of the oldest dog breeds that hunt by scent.
And having a bloodhound that won the 146th annual Westminster Kennel Club show in New York was a real boon for Lorain County.
The iconic Westminster Kennel Club all-breed dog show is the second-longest continuously held sporting event in the United States.
And since 1948, it’s been the longest running nationally televised live dog show.
The Lorain County Kennel Club was founded in 1938 and has been at its facility on State Road 511 in Henrietta Township for approximately 28 years.
The club has been running canine events in Lorain County since 1939.
Since its inception, the Lorain County Kennel Club has aimed to promote all breeds of purebred dogs and encourage sportsmanship at events and related educational presentations at its meetings.
The Lorain County Kennel Club Show didn’t get much publicity, but having a dog of Trumpet’s caliber was a huge achievement.
Attendance was higher than last year.
And not to take anything away from Henrietta Township, the current venue for the Lorain County Kennel Club Show, but with renovations about to take place at the Lorain County Fairgrounds, it may provide a larger space for the show and could attract more people.
Lorain County Commissioners approved a $1.5 million grant Aug. 16 to help fund the $8 million Lorain County Fairgrounds Improvement Project that will make use of the facility from Wellington all year round, for just about anything.
The commissioners voted 3-0 to use funds from the county’s American Rescue Plan Act money.
The money will help pay for a $5 million, 45,000 square foot, enclosed, air-conditioned exhibit center that could host events — like the Lorain County Kennel Club Show — year-round.
The fair’s board of directors has raised nearly $2 million for the project, and fundraising is underway.
We don’t want the fairgrounds to be a ghost town for most of the year.
It should be used year-round, and one day the Lorain County Kennel Club Show might move in.
The Lorain County Kennel Club Show is very important and costs much less than traveling to New York.