Sarah: Here’s what happens next: we’ll see the dogs in the two remaining groups — the working group and the terrier group — choose their winners. And then the winner from each group will slug it out in the final round. So far, it will be the golden retriever vs. the Shetland sheepdog vs. the standard poodle vs. the Havanese vs. the whippet.

Andy: The problem now, I guess — and any golden owner will get this — is that they have to get a really excited golden retriever to relax for a couple hours now.

Sarah: Or the golden can just fetch his ball incessantly while using his tail to knock things off the grooming table.

Andy: Too bad he can’t go outside and dig a hole for a while. Or chew up a shoe.

Sarah: Goldens are not known for having every biscuit in the basket. But I shouldn’t talk. My dog, Hershey, loves his tennis ball more than perhaps anything else in the world. After playing for a bit, he gets thirsty and has a habit of dropping his ball in his (shallow) water bowl, and then looking at the ball with what appears to be total incomprehension until one of us goes and fishes it out.

Controversy!

The Irish water spaniel, looking a bit nervous, has been sent away by the judge!

Sarah: What just happened there? The spaniel seemed to lose his nerve and jump off the table.

Andy: It looks like he’s been excused by the judge, which is a very dog show way of saying he’s been kicked out without being judged.

Sarah: There’s a difference between being excused — essentially, released without charge — and disqualified. Dogs are disqualified when they do something very bad, such as bite the judge.