ALEX COHEN, host:
And finally today, the Westminster Kennel Club's 132nd annual dog show starts next week at Madison Square Garden. By day hundreds of proud pooches will compete in categories like best hound and best terrier. By night many of them, along with their owners, will retreat to New York's Hotel Pennsylvania.
Jerry Grymek is doggy concierge at the hotel, and he joins us now. Welcome to the program.
Mr. JERRY GRYMEK (Concierge): Thank you very much. Welcome to New York's Hotel Pennsylvania.
COHEN: Well, thank you. Have the doggies started to arrive yet there?
Mr. GRYMEK: Yes, they've actually started to arrive as of Thursday noon in preparation for the show.
COHEN: And how many of them are you going to have there? Do you know?
Mr. GRYMEK: We're expecting close to a thousand.
COHEN: A thousand dogs at your hotel?
Mr. GRYMEK: Yes, it's pandemonium - dogdemonium.
COHEN: I'm sure it is. And I understand that you've unleashed a number of amenities for these guys? What exactly do you have there?
Mr. GRYMEK: We spare no expenses here at Hotel Pennsylvania. We cater to pooch relations. This includes a dog spa with a psychic readings paws, not palms; and she actually communicates with the owners and the dogs.
COHEN: I hear you've got doggy massage and his-and-hers relieving stations?
Mr. GRYMEK: Sectioned off to keep everyone happy.
COHEN: Indoors or outdoors? I'm almost afraid to ask.
Mr. GRYMEK: It's indoors. It's too cold outside - a little too chilly.
COHEN: I see. Now, how do the hotel guests who aren't there with dogs feel about all of this? It must a bit overwhelming, and loud.
Mr. GRYMEK: You know what? These are actually the best of their breed. These are show dogs. They're celebrities in their own right, and they are so quiet. They are so gentle. How could you not love a cute dog?
COHEN: Mr. Grymek, I know you've done this for years now. What are some of the more interesting requests you've gotten from dog owners.
Mr. GRYMEK: How does seven cheeseburgers for a dog sound?
COHEN: Seven?
Mr. GRYMEK: The owner wanted seven cheeseburgers delivered in pre-prep for the show so the dog feels comfortable.
COHEN: What kind of dog was that?
Mr. GRYMEK: It was a pug.
COHEN: And it could actually eat seven cheeseburgers. Amazing.
Mr. GRYMEK: Well, I didn't stay for the entire seven. After two, I think I left. But...
(Soundbite of laughter)
COHEN: I think many of us remember there was a great movie spoof about the dog show world, the movie "Best in Show." There's one scene where a dog owner, played by Parker Posey, completely freaks out on the hotel staff because she can't find her dog's favorite toy.
(Soundbite of move, "Best in Show")
Mr. ED BEGLEY JR. (Actor): (As Hotel Manager) It's a lot of agitation over a dog's toy.
Ms. PARKER POSEY (Actress): (As Meg Swan) A dog's toy?
Mr. BEGLEY: (As Hotel Manager) Yes, that's what we're talking about.
Ms. POSEY: (As Meg Swan) Well, you don't know my dog.
Mr. BEGLEY: (As Hotel Manager) A lot of energy on a dog...
Ms. POSEY: (As Meg Swan) You obviously don't know my dog.
Mr. BEGLEY: (As Hotel Manager) There's a pet store right downstairs. Why don't we go down...
Ms. POSEY: (As Meg Swan) A pet store down the stairs?
Mr. BEGLEY: (As Hotel Manager) Yes.
Ms. POSEY: (As Meg Swan) What are you a wizard? A genius? Why didn't you tell me that before? Thanks for your help, you stupid hotel manager.
COHEN: Mr. Grymek, do owners ever become this unpleasant to deal with?
Mr. GRYMEK: No, they actually - because we cater to them so well - with the dog spa, with the welcome treats, with the welcome post cards - it's been pretty easy with them. We've catered to their needs, and they've been happy.
COHEN: I'm trying to picture this in my head. Can you describe what the lobby looks like when you've got hundreds of these beautiful, pampered dogs hanging out in your lobby?
Mr. GRYMEK: So you've seen a check-out line or a line to a theater where it's all sort of zigzagging in and out. Now, imagine that full of dogs, and they're all standing there. It's as if that Beatles cover of them crossing the street - you see the dogs crossing the street - you just see this line-up, this sea of dogs coming into the hotel.
COHEN: God forbid a cat should enter into that fray.
Mr. GRYMEK: I'm looking forward to the cat show in the near future, if there is one.
COHEN: Jerry Grymek is the doggy concierge at Manhattan's Hotel Pennsylvania. Thanks so much for talking with us, and good luck this year.
Mr. GRYMEK: Thank you very much.
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