SuperDogs marks 50 years of entertaining crowds at Vancouver and Toronto fairs

Lisa Sun remembers seeing SuperDogs as often as she could at Vancouver’s Pacific National Exhibition as a child, drawn to the dogs’ speed, skill and comic relief. Fifty years after the first show, Sun is now performing for fair crowds with her three pugs, Mario, Luigi and Yoshi.

The pugs provide comedy, Sun said. Wearing sparkly pink bandanas, they turn left and right together and rise on their hind legs for what she calls a “pug hug.” Audiences may know the dogs will not be the fastest onstage, she said, but they bring personality and character.

Hundreds of dogs from across Canada have appeared in SuperDogs, including many rescues from humane societies and animal shelters. The shows are also held at Toronto’s Canadian National Exhibition. While some trainers and dogs travel to perform, most are local and return to their family homes after entertaining crowds that can reach the thousands.

Vancouver show writer and host David Acer called SuperDogs “pure joy from beginning to end,” saying it gives people a chance to put aside their worries. After a Thursday performance, he said audiences can include five-year-olds, 20-year-olds and 70-year-olds laughing at the same thing, at a time when every generation is feeling pressure and stress.

SuperDogs lore dates the show’s start to August 1976, when Herb Williams, a former teacher and advertising executive who became an entertainer, recruited several dogs to perform tricks in a PNE parking lot. The show now presents three performances daily at both the PNE and CNE, which close Monday. Dogs race, catch Frisbees, clear hurdles and weave through obstacles, and audiences can meet the dogs and trainers afterward during “pat and chat.”

Acer said the dogs are super in different ways: some are athletic, smart, cute or fast. The show’s inaugural “Paws of Fame” class, created for the 50th anniversary, recognizes 20 standout dogs. They include Pot Roast, an English bulldog dubbed the “slowest SuperDog ever” who performed from 1992 to 1998, and Demolition Derby, an old English sheepdog described as a big, lovable buffoon who brought true comedy to the show.

Sun’s first pug trio, Snap, Crackle and Pop, also made the honour roll, along with Flint, a collie that worked as a search-and-rescue dog with the Calgary Fire Department. Sun, who has worked with SuperDogs for 15 years, said it is gratifying to see how much joy the pugs bring. She said the half-hour show lets audiences focus on the dogs’ comedy, athleticism, Frisbee work, dancing and relay races.

Sun said dog owners should not underestimate their own dogs, describing each animal as an individual able to learn many things. Williams, now in his 90s and living in Ontario, made his final SuperDogs appearance in 2012. Suite Melody Care, which brings young musicians to hospitals and care homes, lists him as a director and says he and SuperDogs have entertained British royals and celebrities including Joan Rivers and Luciano Pavarotti.

After the PNE and CNE close, SuperDogs is scheduled to appear at fall fairs in Burns Lake and Rock Creek, B.C., and Uxbridge, Ont., as well as at a dog-focused event in Newmarket, Ont. Acer said the show’s ultimate aim is to encourage people to love their dogs, whether that means an extra hug, treat or Frisbee toss after returning home.