In its inaugural year, the New York State Canine Expo is set to take over the Cobleskill fairgrounds this weekend.
The event is scheduled to run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27 and Sunday, Sept. 28 for the general public, but competition will begin at 8 a.m. It will feature between 40 and 50 vendors, providing an assortment of dog-centered items like dog treats, toys, leashes and harnesses.
“The real emphasis of the expo is let us help you discover what motivates your dog,” said Lois Goblet, chair of the expo.
She said the event would not have been possible without the “full commitment” of dozens of people, including other members of the fair board.
Some dogs are multi-talented, she said, and can dock dive, barn hunt and do scent work. Other dogs see water and run in the opposite direction. She said the job of a trainer is to help people discover where a dog’s niche is.
Goblet said the marketing for the expo largely came from a $100,000 Empire State Development grant, a two-year grant. This allowed a professional web designer to be hired and for Mannix Marketing to do the expo’s professional social media marketing, Goblet said.
While Goblet said she did not receive word of the grant until March, but planning for the event began last October. She said there was a back-up plan for social media management should the expo not receive the grant, and if it did get the funding, it could “catapult us into Year 2.”
“The participation, the interest, the work shops, the lectures — we are where I thought we would be in Year 3,” Goblet said.
Although she originally thought it would only require a portion of the fairgrounds, she said the expo is now taking up every building.
The event will include numerous trainers and keynote speakers. What connects all of the speakers, Goblet said, is the relationship-based training philosophy they all have.
“You’re building your relationship with your dog, and how do you do it?” Goblet said. “How do you build that relationship? That’s what they’re here to talk about and to demonstrate.”
An AKC Fast Cat trial will be held both Saturday and Sunday, in which a dog runs from one point to another chasing a lure. Goblet said they do not compete against the other dogs at the event that day, but against a national database.
Dock diving also will be held through the North American Diving Dogs.
Barbara Buchmayer, an international speaker and award-winning author, is set to provide workshops on teaching a dog to herd by “building a relationship and doing positive reinforcement,” Goblet said.
There are more than 40 free lectures, Goblet added, covering topics from reading the side of a dog food bag to veterinary care. One of the lectures will focus on ethical breeding, which is a prevalent topic within the dog world, she said.
The event caters to several layers of people, including a competitive canine person, people just looking to have fun with their dogs and explore the different vendors and dog people who “don’t know what they don’t know,” Goblet said. A fourth layer, she added, is members of the general public who just want to attend a dog-centered event.
While she said it is impossible to predict how many people will attend across the weekend, Goblet said the Fast Cat trial is full, the dock diving trial is full and most of the workshops are full. A family is planning to attend from Maine with five dogs, Goblet said, as is somebody from Virginia with seven dogs and three families who are making it a family vacation and coming with multiple dogs.
Outside of the vendors, lectures and competitive events, Goblet said there will be a building called the Doghouse, where New York state beers and wines are served and people can listen to live music from different bands.
“My hope is to bring attention to the awareness that there are so many organizations out there that can help you give your dog a better life,” Goblet said. “That’s what I hope the impact is.”
Tickets are $20 and can be bought at the gate or in advance at https://tinyurl.com/38b9tk9h.