World-Class Canine Athletes Return to St. Louis to Compete in the Purina® Pro Plan® Incredible Dog Challenge®
Oct 5, 2016
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Winners from this year’s Western Regional in Huntington Beach, Eastern Regional in Atlanta and the 2015 National Finals met at Purina Farms in Gray Summit, Missouri, Oct. 1 to participate in the 19th annual Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge National Finals event.
The event featured dogs of all ages, breeds, and sizes competing in several “Olympic-style” events, including high-flying disc routines, head-to-head weave pole racing, large and small dog agility courses, Jack Russell hurdle racing and the crowd favorite – dog diving – where dogs take a running leap off of a 40-foot dock into a 19,000-gallon pool of water.
The Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge has become a nationally renowned event known for attracting world-class canine athletes in a multi-city tour that culminates each year with a nationally televised championship (each regional event is taped and broadcast across the country in syndication).
Purina Pro Plan’s goal is to give dogs the nutrition to be at their absolute best, helping them to be energetic and resilient, and maintain an ideal body condition, healthy skin and a stunning coat. Purina Pro Plan SPORT® product portfolio offers three formulas to fuel athletic dogs based on activity level.
This year, Pro Plan kicked the competition up a notch and partnered with Misty May-Treanor, three-time Olympic gold medalist, to create the Purina Pro Plan “Incredible Dog Science” video series. The three-part series explores the physics, evolutionary advancements, and mechanics of the canine body with in-depth analysis provided by experts Dr. David Raichlen, Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Arizona, and Dr. Brian Zanghi, Research Nutritionist at Nestle Purina, as May-Treanor competes against Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge competitors.