Exhibitors with dogs are allowed in to the venue an hr (or more) before the general public , this should give you amply time to get your dog to its bench and safely away from all the crowds... You are not supposed to remove your dog from its bench (apart from showing and toilet breaks) so there is really no need to be walking your dogs around the congested areas of the showing lanes...unless as Sheree points out, if you need to fit your dog to an item, which in those cases its a mine field.

I cant really see how designated walking areas for dogs would work through the shopping halls

Exactly!! My Ben falls into this category. Someone wanted "a wolf", he had doubtless seen Snow Dogs and Dances with Wolves, and wanted one. The dog soon became a problem, and ended up living outside 24/7 with no shelter, on concrete, on the end of a running line. I doubt he was ever taken for walks. He never had any love, or discipline for that matter. His last home before us he was spoiled rotten, allowed to do exactly what he wanted to do! It has taken us a couple of years to get him into the well-balanced, obedient, but still gittish beautiful boy that he is today.

This is an excellent example of someone who bought a puppy because he fancied the wolfie look - without listening to the breeder, without doing any research, and ended up with a very big problem indeed such that the dog had to be chained 24 hours a day.

So do I. Should be cooking, but reading this is much more fun. Sorry hubby dinner will be late. Or am I being ellitist calling it dinner instead of tea? LMAO.