Several dogs walked elegantly in a circle with their suit-clad owners leading the way. A group of onlookers—families and couples who enjoy the plethora of breeds and sizes—watched the furry competitors walk their walk. The ceiling soared high above them in the McCormick Place hangar-like exhibition space at  2301 S. Lake Shore Drive. Below, a community of vendors and owners gathered around man’s furry best friends for the International Kennel Club of Chicago’s Dog Show.

Owners, breeders and the pet care industry met at the yearly event. More than 150 breeds were represented in the different competitions, with up to 3,000 individual dogs competing. Before the show, owners prepared to make their pets champions with the proper diet, care and the best products available. Conveniently, the vendors that sell such products bordered the fenced-off competition spaces.

In the back corner of McCormick Place’s show space, among the rows of dogs that rested in anticipation of their shot at glory, sat a 240-pound English mastiff named Broker. A tiny border terrier played with the weighty canine, getting the big guy to roll onto his back. His owner, Matt Drozdoff, a mastiff breeder from Portage, Ind., watched over his dog and talked to show attendees when they stopped to stare. Despite the large size of Drozdoff’s dog, his needs are still the same as any other’s.

“Feed them, walk them, give them lots of attention,” Drozdoff said. “We feed twice a day. They get walks five times a day and they spend a lot of time on the couch with us.”

Drozdoff said mastiffs were bred to be big. Historically, they are guard dogs. However, Broker’s disposition is more of a gentle giant than a voracious hound. He kissed one woman as she leaned over to pet him.

Drozdoff had three other dogs competing in this year’s show. It was his sixth competition and he said his animals are champions. He said the draw of the competition for him is to be able to show off what he has made.

Up three aisles in the hangar sat Emily Parr, 17, holding the leashes of both her dog and her mother’s. This is her first trip participating in the Kennel Club Dog Show. She grooms, handles and cares for her dog in order to turn her into a competitor. Suffice to say, the show exhausted both owner and pooch.

“It’s a long day,” Parr said. “It takes about an hour drive from where I live. We gotta get the dogs, figure out where we got to be at which time and who’s handling them. It was just absolute craziness.”

Parr said all the work was worth it, and it brought her closer to her canine companion.

“I’m her main trainer, so we’re very close.” she said. “At home, she always sleeps at my feet and tries to steal my food. So I feel very privileged.”

Parr said people may have the wrong image in their minds about the dog show. It is, she said, about having a happy, healthy dog that’s well trained and well taken care of.

At the show, the numerous vendors selling dog food, canine-themed jewelry, grooming equipment and even dog resorts were ready and willing to help. The pet care industry is a large one, filled with both brawny competitors like Purina—the company was one of the event’s sponsors—and other smaller operations. Outside of McCormick Place, a number of brick and mortar stores are available to Chicagoland dog owners.

South Loop denizens can get their pet groomed and washed at shops such as Soggy Paws, 1912 S. State St. For health-conscious pet owners, all-natural premium pet food store Kriser’s has multiple locations in Chicago and sells health-minded dog chow. Owners who need a helping hand when they aren’t able to keep a watchful eye over their furry friends can also use premium dog-watching shops like Mutt Hutt Inc.

Joseph Giannini owns Urban Out Sitters, a local Chicago doggy day care service. His business started 10 years ago as a dog walking service and has since grown into a lucrative kennel and boarding service. Giannini said the key to success in the industry is customer service—for the person just as much as the dog. Dogs haven’t developed the ability to spend money just yet.

“One of the things I’ve learned about this business is it’s not like a cup of coffee,” Giannini said. “If you want a cup you can get it anywhere. Coffee is coffee. Day care is not that way. [Customers] usually select us because they feel a certain comfort level.”

Giannini said his business stays competitive through its customer service. Their hours are long and they offer a taxi to get dogs to day care if the owner is occupied. Giannini said while people can be excessive in the amount they spend on their dogs, it isn’t a problem unless it’s affecting other aspects of their life.

“Their dogs become more their children than their pets, so I think people start looking for the services as they would for their child,” Giannini said. “Is it spending too much money? I don’t know. If you’re avoiding your other bills or other things in life to take care of your dog, then maybe you have an issue.”

Giannini said he buys his own dogs Burberry dog collars. He doesn’t buy any Burberry products for himself.

“I’m not a fashion diva,” Giannini said. “I don’t wear anything fancy for the most part … It just becomes another one of those things for us as humans to indulge [in], spend our money. We do it for our dogs and it makes us feel good.”

He said the reason people form such strong bonds with their dogs is because the dogs love their owners unconditionally. That, coupled with the fact that dogs are helplessly dependent on their owner for food and shelter, makes him or her feel needed. Giannini said that’s where much of the strangeness comes from about dog owners.

“At the end of the day, they’re still our pets,” Giannini said. “They’re not human although we treat them like it. I certainly don’t discriminate against that person. We try to clear that up right off the bat. They are dogs. They play like dogs, they don’t play like kids. They bite. They do all the nasty things dogs do.”

Giannini said Urban Out Sitters is practical, so any dog owner that wants a pet to be held once every hour most likely will not get their wish. That is not to say the company dismisses the owner’s bond with a beloved pet. Giannini said part of the reason he started his business was because he wanted to provide the care he would want for his own Rottweilers, whom he said he loves to death.

Corey Brashinger, operations manager at Mutt Hutt Inc., was a veterinarian before working for Mutt Hutt. She said she sees nothing wrong with people spending a large amount of money on their dogs if they’re taken care of.

Mutt Hutt Inc. is a full-service pet care shop and offers grooming, pet products and boarding. They specialize in small, senior, nervous and “differently-abled” dogs. Brashinger said while owners can choose to spend excessively on pet products, generally they are looking out for their pets. Doggy clothes for example, as strange as a dog wearing fleece may seem, do help the pets that weren’t born with the coat of a husky.

“Most people, when they buy something like that, they’re looking for something they would also find fashionable,” Brashinger said. “That’s where the lines get a little skewed, but at the same time I don’t see many people inappropriately dressing a dog that’s already prepared for the weather.”

As varied as canines can be, Brashinger said the same is true of their owners.

“The way that I think no two dogs are alike, I feel the same way about pet owners,” Brashinger said. “They all, at least our clients, I can say they’re all really looking out for the needs of their dog; which is what we hope for them because we’re all dog people.”