I spent the day there (Westminster Kennel Club Show) yesterday. I went to both watch the Obedience portion, and to help a friend out. The top ten dog go on to what they call a “freestyle” portion where the handler has to make up a routine which entertains the crowd yet contains certain required elements. Most people chose a theme for their routines (there were several Border Collies retrieving stuffed sheep over the high jump for example). My friend (who shows a Toller) did a Canada themed thing involving stuffed Canada geese and hockey puck scent articles. Some of these routines were quite elaborate with costumes and many props and since they are given a 2 minute limit to get their rings set up, most people brought along assistants (I was one for my friend).
SO fun to watch. The winner, Linda Brennan with Heart (black Lab) did a very entertaining freestyle with a magic theme. One of my favorite parts was when she sent her on a directed retrieve to a top hat, out of which Heart pulled a stuffed rabbit. My friend managed to come in 4th, despite her dog completely screwing up her freestyle by deciding that retrieving stuffed geese was more fun than doing what she was supposed to. She still managed to get all the required elements in though, and the crowd was VERY entertained as it was obvious the dog was having a great time not doing what it was supposed to.
All the dogs competing were among the top in the country (had to be to be invited), so it was fun to watch some amazing performances as well as to see that even fantastic OTCH dogs make mistakes sometimes too (makes those of us not there yet feel better!).