Distribution of PRO PLAN Samples
Content
○ PRO PLAN Samples
○ Questionnaire

No. of Samples
○ PRO PLAN Samples (small bag) x 250 bags
○ PRO PLAN 1kg x 120 bags (for those answering the questionnaire.)

Person in Charge: Mr. Takahashi, Area Manager of Western Japan, Pro Channel
End of Distribution Time: 2:30pm

At the sampling corner, there was a long queue and people who received a sample were obviously very happy. Manager Takahashi commented that there were many enthusiastic people more than willing to cooperate in answering questionnaires.

On the Day of the Festival
The weather on the morning of 12th November was promising, and the festival enjoyed a good start with many people turning out with their beloved animals. Favored with comfortable temperatures, a great number of people were able to enjoy the Festival all 　　　day long. ‘Canicross’ and ‘musical canine free-style’ (dancing) were new additions to this year’s competition program as well as the long-standing ‘frisbee’, ‘agility’ 　and ‘gig-race’ (dogs run with bicycles) contests.
Contestants received, as participation gifts, a JFA official Frisbee for the Frisbee contest, a dog’s bandana for the agility and musical canine free style contests, and a harness and line for the gig-race. For the new contest, canicross, a specially developed waist belt and a harness was given out. (Hotta Corporation provided the bandanas, harnesses, lines and waist belts).

Opening
This time the event was held jointly with Kobe City Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. At the opening, the organization’s president, Mrs. Yada, wife of Kobe City’s Mayor gave a speech. She commented, ‘through such opportunities as this, I hope people will better appreciate the joy of living with loving dogs, the importance of life and need for improved coexistence between people and animals.’
Your president Mr. Hammer, as representative of the special sponsor, brought his dogs to the venue. The dogs, which he brought to Japan from Budapest, include Gee-Gee an Irish Wolfhound and Hanna a Labrador. Mr. Takayama, General Manager of the Customer Development Department accompanied them as well. They were introduced at the opening ceremony and were warmly welcomed by the audience. Everybody applauded enthusiastically, an expression of gratitude for all the years of support. Gee-Gee came in for special attention as Irish wolfhounds are very rare in Japan. Gee-Gee is a particularly magnificent example of this breed which is apparently the tallest dog in the world.

【Musical Ｃａｎｉｎｅ Free Style】
Until now, Musical Canine Free Style (dancing) has probably been more familiar as an exhibition sport. From this year, however, it has been restyled as a contest. We were, at first, concerned there might not be enough entries but the solo section attracted 13 entrants. This contest was held after all the other contests were over and, as a result, there was a large audience to see the results of the day’s efforts. Each entry pair had chosen their own music, costume and choreography. The audience was impressed by the liveliness and synchronization of the contestants and applauded loudly.

Store Booths
Under the big roof, there were various stores selling all sorts of dog related goods and foodstuffs. The atmosphere was lively. This year, some stores sold out of their product stock early on which provides another indication of the excellent turn out the event enjoyed.
There was a booth of photographs taken by a professional cameraman. The photographs captured many lively and happy expressions from both dogs and owners alike. Many owners could be seen eagerly looking over the collection to find photographs of their dogs. Those lucky enough to find their dog being used as a model received the framed photograph as a surprise gift at the award ceremony. There were several overjoyed owners as a result.