A stunning East Tennessee sight hound competed at the 144th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show for the first time ever.
The American Kennel Club posted on its website an article about a dog named Nuri from Sweetwater, Tennessee.
Nuriyah, or Nuri, is from an ancient breed of dog from West Africa known as an Azawakh. She and her owner Vicki Williams traveled to New York for the competition to compete in the Hound Class for the first time ever.
This was the first year Azawakhs were formally recognized by the American Kennel Club, making them eligible to compete for the first time.
The show started Saturday and ends Tuesday at Madison Square Garden.
Nuri joined five other dogs vying to become the show's first best of the Azawakh breed. While she did not win, a judge did give her an Award of Merit for being an outstanding dog, all the same. The award is given on a judge's discretion to outstanding entries that were not deemed to be Best of Breed or Best of Variety.
When not competing, Williams said she and Nuri love taking treks on the many trails in the Smokies.
