Crufts 2023: Meet some of the many dogs and owners who have descended on Birmingham’s NEC

Crufts 2023 has taken over the NEC in Birmingham this week, and thousands of dogs will be taking part in events over the coming days.

Irish red setter, Jensen, has been brought to Crufts for the very first time this year. Owner Iris brought him along for his first experience. Donna, who owns an adorable golden retriever called Jordan, described the atmosphere at Crufts as ‘electric’.

Crufts is well known for its events, including agility courses and the coveted ‘Best in Show’ title. The events will be taking place right through until Sunday evening - with the ‘Best in Show’ announced in the final award of the weekend.

Although it may seem like it from the outset, Crufts isn’t all about individual competition. Teams of dogs will take part in events throughout the weekend at the NEC.

One such team is from West Midlands Police. Police dog handler Kelly Knox is part of the team at Crufts 2023.

She said: ‘We’re here today to showcase what we do as a police force on the dog unit. We have general purpose dogs, drugs dogs and explosive dogs.

“I think when people see the police they don’t really understand that level of what we do. We’re all here to talk about that and to showcase what we do because we are proud of it.”

Live coverage of Crufts 2023 will continue on Channel 4 and More4 if you miss out on any of the action. If you want to rewatch any of the competition in full or relive some of the biggest moments, check out the Crufts 2023 coverage on Four on Demand.