The Purina Event Center Hits 10-Year Milestone

With the wag of a tail and a friendly bow-wow, the Purina Event Center at Purina Farms in Gray Summit, Missouri, turned 10 years old in 2020 during the country’s COVID-19 pandemic. The blue-ribbon venue has run at 90 percent-plus capacity since its opening, a testament to its popularity across the dog fancy.

Looking back, 2018 brought a record 39 National Specialties to the Event Center. Coincidentally, the Golden Retriever Club of America National Specialty in 2018 has been the largest with 2,072 dogs entered in all events. Some all-breed clubs and parent clubs come every year — frequent visitors who’ve made the place their home for shows.

Designed for clubs to hold dog shows and performance sports, the Purina Event Center located in the middle of the country touts a spacious exhibition hall with padded flooring, a benching and grooming area, area, and dog bathing room with stainless steel tubs. Situated on the 337 acres that make up Purina Farms, the Event Center offers specialized outdoor spaces for tracking, herding, lure coursing, earthdog trials, barn hunt, Fast CAT, and many more sports.

A regular exhibitor, show chair, judge and seminar organizer at the Purina Event Center, Eddie Dziuk of the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals, says, “Whenever I pull through those gates to the Purina Event Center, I feel like I’m coming home, and when I leave, I can’t wait for the next event.”