Life

The Dog Show Drinking Game You've Been Waiting For

by Leah Wynalek

Sure, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is a tradition (and hello! Taylor Swift is performing in it this year), but we all know the real excitement of Thanksgiving morning is watching the National Dog Show. My dad might fall asleep during the Broadway musical performances in the parade, but he won’t shut up when the sporting dogs parade across the screen in the American Kennel Club’s annual event — it’s truly a family affair in our house. The show always airs right after the parade at noon, and I can’t think of a better way to waste time while the turkey cooks than watching perfectly coiffed canines and poodles with pompadours prancing about beside their dead-serious handlers… unless there were a drinking game involved.

Which is why I’ve created the National Dog Show drinking game you didn’t even know you needed. Noon is a perfectly acceptable time to start drinking with your family, right? It is the holidays after all. So grab your beer of choice (Pumking, Christmas ale, Bud Light… family doesn’t judge), find a comfy couch, sit yourself down, and prepare yourself for a delightful, drunken game you’ll want to play every year. Aren't family traditions fun?

Requirements

  • Beer
  • Whiskey
  • A shot glass
  • A pint glass
  • Family and friends

Rules

1. At the start of judging for each new breed group (terriers, working dogs, hounds, etc.), everyone must take a sip of beer.

2. If two or more people go “awww” at the same time, they have to drink.

3. Every time someone compares a dog to a human, everyone has to yell “WOOF!” and take a sip of beer. The last person to woof has to chug the rest of his or her beer.

4. If an announcer describes a breed as “great with kids” or “a great family dog,” drink.

5. If anyone compares a Pekingese to Chewbacca, everyone must take a shot.

6. Whenever a dog breaks from its show dog persona and acts playful, take a sip of beer.

7. Whenever someone makes fun of a handler’s shoes, everyone has to drink.

8. If anyone quotes the movie Best in Show, everyone has to drink.

9. Whenever a dog is so hairy you can’t see its feet (or someone compares it to a mop), drink.

10. If your family dog starts watching the TV or barks at the screen, take a sip of beer.

11. If you correctly predict which dog is going to win its breed group round, choose one person to take a shot.

12. If you correctly guess the Best in Show winner, everyone has to take a celebratory shot.

Drink up, dog lovers! Of course if you're with your parents, you might want to take small sips.

Images: Tumblr (3); Giphy (4)