Farm Bureau looks nationwide for Top Farm Dog of the Year

C’mon Texas! In a state as large and diverse as our own, full of so many great folks, we ought to be able to hold our own when it comes to impressive pooches, down on the farm.

You’d think so, anyway.

So why is it we’ve got to look back almost four years ago to find a winner for the Farm Dog of the Year Award? Are we just taking a break so folks in as other parts of the country don’t start getting complexes about their mediocre mutts?

I mean just look at the places the poor judges had to go last year: Florida (nothing but swamp puppies). Arizona (a bunch of desert dogs). Idaho (Spuds McKenzie? Nope. Just some potato peeler). New Hampshire (Really? We’ve got closets bigger than that place).

New York even bested us. New York, of all places — get a rope — meaning we just sat back and let some Yankee Poodle yap its way into finalist row.

Surely, we Texans can do better than that. 

As it stands, however, we better do it fast. We’ve got slightly more than a week left to submit nominations for the 2023 Farm Dog of the Year contest. Farm Bureau set a July 1 application deadline. 

Then, starting in October, be watching for your opportunity to vote online for your favorite dog in the People’s Choice Pup part of the overall competition. The People’s Choice Pup will win bragging rights and Purina products including one year’s worth of Purina Pro-Plan dry dog food. 

The winner of People’s Choice Pup, along with the Farm Dog of the Year and runners-up, will be announced in January at AFBF’s Convention.

The Farm Bureau Farm Dog of the Year contest provides a “working-class alternative” to the Westminster Dog Show, according to a Wall Street Journal feature article.

“Scrappy pooches that serve as work dynamos on farms and ranches across the country” are recognized through the contest, which helps the public connect with life on the farm. 

Supported by Purina, it celebrates farm dogs and the many ways they support farmers and ranchers in producing healthy and nutritious food for families and their pets across America. 

The grand prize winner takes home a year’s worth of Purina Pro-Plan dog food and $5,000 in prize money. The winner also will be recognized at a Farm Dog of the Year award ceremony at the American Farm Bureau Federation Convention in January 2023. Up to four regional runners-up also can win $1,000 in prize money.

“It’s exciting to partner with Purina for the fourth annual Farm Dog of the Year contest, providing the public with another glimpse into daily life on the farm,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall. “Farming and ranching can be stressful, even on the best days. Farm dogs can help ease the burden as they often play a dual role as both working dogs and companions to farm families.”

Rounding up livestock and chasing off predators are among the many tasks performed by farm dogs.

Fit, the grand prize winner in 2022, did both, helping move sheep from pasture to pasture and assists with feeding and other chores. Fit also assists in training younger dogs how to herd animals.

“Purina is proud to once again support the American Farm Bureau’s Farm Dog of the Year contest and congratulate this year’s winner, Fit,” said Jack Scott, vice president of sustainability at Purina. “We recognize the important role dogs play on farms and believe this is at the core of our purpose that people and pets are better together.”

Learn more and nominate your dog for the 2023 contest at https://www.fb.org/farmdog.