The 2022 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show – traditionally held at Madison Square Garden – will be postponed due to soaring COVID-19 cases in New York City.
The decision to push the event back from January to later in the year was made Wednesday by the club’s board of governors.
“The health and safety of all participants in the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show are paramount,” the group said in a statement.
“We appreciate the community’s continued interest and support as we delay the show to a time when we can safely convene.”
The group did not immediately disclose a new date for the annual dog show.
Last year, due to the pandemic, the event was held in June at the Lyndhurst mansion, a property of the National Trust for Historic Preservation in the Westchester suburb of Tarrytown.
Spectators weren’t allowed at the 2021 show – and human participants had to be vaccinated or newly tested.
New Yorkers wait in line at a COVID-19 mobile testing site in Times Square on Dec. 27, 2021. Erik Pendzich/Shutterstock
A dog competes in the agility course at the 142th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in 2018. AFP via Getty Images
The Westminster Kennel Club’s board of governors has not announced when the annual show will take place later in 2022. TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images
The annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show was scheduled to take place in Madison Square Garden. AP Photo/Wong Maye-E
The Westminster Kennel Club’s board of governors delayed the annual show until they “can safely convene.” AP Photo/Kathy Willens, FileWith Post wires
