The best of Chiswick House Dog Show 2026

Photograph Abbie Elliott

By Jan Preece

It was great weather for this year’s Chiswick House Dog Show, held last Sunday (20 September) on the cricket pitch in Chiswick House grounds.

More than 500 dogs – and their owners – entered into the spirit of the show and took part in one or more of the 17 classes.

This year the show was jointly sponsored for the first time – by Dog Town and by Wolfe Vets – both Chiswick-based independents. Each also sponsored a ring with support from Butternut Box as the sponsor of the third ring.

Photographs Graham Hodson

The very popular Doggy Dash was back again and run by the Dogs Trust (Harefield branch), manned by their own DT volunteers as well as some of the Dog Show volunteers.

Our other dog show volunteers (x 150) were responsible for marshalling and stewarding the classes, for photographing the class winners (PhoDOGraphers), for setting up and taking down the show (Dogsbodies), and for generally keeping the dog show site clean and tidy (Sheep Dogs).

Some of the Dog Show’s army of volunteers taking a breather; photograph Abbie Elliott

The Dog Show ‘Barking’ Bar (sponsored by Whitman & Co) did a roaring trade, thanks to the weather, as did the DogBola (sponsored by Barlow & Co).

The Registration Desk, this year again supported by Killik & Co, was kept very busy by those registering their dogs for a class on the day, and – another first – Orchard House School sponsored the Volunteers’ Desk AND the show guide.

Sam Harrison and his Sam’s Waterside were responsible for the Green Room and for providing refreshments for the judges before and after their arduous (and often controversial) judging stints!

Some of the many stalls: Top – The Cookie Mill, Paws & Reflect; Free Range Jane; Sipsmith; Pets As Therapy; photographs Abbie Elliott; Bottom – Dog Town; The Country Dog Hotel & Spa; photographs John Fegan

There was the usual wide range of stalls with Sipsmith, Chiswick Art School, the Hogarth Health Club, Chiswick Cinema, Rose Canine Massage and Chiswick Salon representing local businesses, and then a whole raft of different stallholders selling dog food and dog treats, collars and leads, candles and carpentry, pet portraits and tea-clothes PLUS an eclectic mix of catering stalls.

Photographs Toby Rea

Added to these were various animal charities such as Pets as Therapy, Battersea Dogs Home, Animals Asia and All Dogs Matter.

The Dog Show is organised and run by a committee of 12 dog-loving volunteers, and all proceeds go to the Chiswick House & Gardens Trust specifically to help improve and maintain the trees and shrubs and to make the grounds and gardens a safe place in which to walk – with or without a dog!

Best In Show Pia, with owner Alex Usher; Photographs Graham Hodson

Best In Show

Best in Show – judged by James Bennett from Wolfe Vets, Adam Gibbins from Dog Town, and Xanthe Arvanitakis, Director of Chiswick House & Gardens Trust – was won by the handsome Pia, a Petit Bleu de Gascogne, owned by Alex Usher, and the winners of the other classes were as below:

Winners of all classes

Class                                                                Dog                             Owner

Waggiest Tail                                                  Agamemnon                Lowri Betz-Vals

Prettiest Bitch 5-8 years                                  Sophie                         Carol Fletcher

Handsomest Dog 5-8 years                             Biscuit                         Stephen Butterworth

Best Rescue                                                     Libby                            Chris Harker

Best Youngster Dog 1-2 years                         Duke                            Sherrilee Doyle

Best Youngster Bitch 1-2 years                        Kylie                            Laura Archer

Best Young Handler 7+                                    Barci                            Ava Milburn

Prettiest Bitch 3-4 years                                  Pia                               Alex Usher

Handsomest Dog 3-4 years                             Ronin                           Isabella Cole

Best Puppy Bitch under 12 months                 Daphne                        Fred Stevens

Fancy Dress for adult + dog                            Joy                               Oleksandra Vestrykova

Fancy Dress for child + dog                             Cooper                        Arabella Facemire

Best Puppy Dog under 12 months                  Arlo                             Ollie Marsden-Ridley

Best Veteran Bitch 9+ years                            Dotty                           Ian Plummer

Best Veteran Dog 9+ years                              Buddy                          Charlotte Stoute

Best Groomed Dog                                         Finch                            Dawn Bailey

Best Groomed Bitch                                        Fawn                            Mary-Joy Langdon

My Dog’s Got Talent                                       Pretzel                         Alexander Montier

Naughtiest Dog                                               Alfie                             Monika Fryzicka

Photograph Graham Hodson

Jan Preece is the chairman of the organising committee of the Chiswick House Dog Show