Paws for thought as Birmingham prepares for Crufts

NEW figures released ahead of Crufts, which returns to the NEC Birmingham from March 9 to 12, show new trends in dog ownership in the city.

Celebrity favourite, the French bulldog, which is tipped to become Britain’s most popular breed by 2019, has already overtaken the Labrador retriever as Birmingham’s top dog, for the first time this year.

Other breeds favoured by celebrities and often used in advertising, such as the pug and bulldog, have shot up in popularity in the last 10 years. Old favourites including the Labrador, cocker spaniel and Staffordshire bull terrier are falling out of favour in the city. English springer spaniel has been knocked out of Birmingham’s top 10 favourite breeds and has been replaced by the miniature schnauzer, a German breed, and the drogue de Bordeaux, a French breed.

Crufts is the world’s greatest dog show and this year will see around 22,000 healthy, happy dogs competing for the coveted ‘Best in Show’ title as well as in the many other competitions that take place at the show, from agility and flyball to the hero dog competition, Eukanuba Friends for Life and Scruffts Family Crossbreed of the Year.

TV coverage of the entire competition will be shared between Channel 4 and More 4.