America's Top Dog

Last updated
America's Top Dog
America's Top Dog Season 3 Intertitle.png
Intertitle since Season 2
GenreReality
Dog show [1]
Directed byAlex Van Wagner
Presented by David Koechner
Curt Menefee
Starring Rachel Bonnetta
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes27
Production
Executive producersDan Cesareo
Lucilla D’Agostino
Jordana Starr
Holly Wofford
Elaine Frontain Bryant
Shelly Tatro
Sean Gottlieb
Brad Holcman
Production locations Santa Clarita (Season 1)
Simi Valley (Season 2 & 3)
CinematographyMarc Carter
Editors
  • Tony Nigro
  • Bryan DeBlasio
  • Jamil Nelson
  • Sean Gill
  • Mark Hervey
  • David S. Tung
Production companyBig Fish Entertainment
Release
Original network A&E
Original releaseJanuary 8, 2020 (2020-01-08) –
present (present)
Related
Live PD [1]

America's Top Dog is a television series that premiered on A&E in January 2020. [2] The show is hosted by actor David Koechner and sportscaster Curt Menefee, while Rachel Bonnetta serves as the sideline reporter for the show. [3] The first season was filmed at Sable Ranch in Santa Clarita. [4] The second and third seasons were filmed back-to-back in Simi Valley. [5]

Contents

Format

Season 1

In the show, five dogs and their handlers—usually four police K-9 teams and one civilian team—compete in a three-phase competition. The first phase, the Canine Combine, is an obstacle course that includes the car slalom (where the dogs jump in and out of cars), the fire escape (where the dogs pull down the doors to get to the next level), the high jump (where the dogs jump over walls, or in some cases, crawl under them), the rope bridge (where the dogs run across an unstable rope bridge), and the splashdown (where the dogs swim across a small pool to the finish). The fastest four dogs through the Combine advance to the next phase. The next phase is the Boneyard, a scent detection test, where the dogs try to find as many scented objects as possible (out of five), and alert their handlers to the find, in a maze of rooms in five minutes or less. For each dog's run, the scent used is whatever the dog is most familiar with. The two dogs that find the most objects (or that find them the fastest, in case of a tie) advance to the final phase. In the last phase, the Doghouse, the dogs and handlers make their way through a "house," including knocking down the door, climbing through the window into a spider-web of bungees, low-crawling, climbing boxes, running through a duct-work tunnel, breaching two doors (with the dog pulling the door open), and finally apprehending a "suspect," including taking him down and then releasing on command and returning to the handler. The dog that completes the phase the fastest wins the title of "America's Top Dog," $10,000, an additional $5,000 donated to the animal charity of their choice, and the opportunity to compete in the grand finale, which has a $25,000 prize.

Season 2

Season Two features a new format, with dogs facing against each other in head-to-head matches across classes of working dogs, police K-9 dogs and "underdogs". The winners of the three classes then face off against each other, with the final winner receiving a $10,000 cash prize and a choice to donate $5,000 to an animal charity of their choice. The final contest features winners of the previous weeks going head-to-head for a cash prize of $25,000. [6]

Contestants and winners by episode

Season 1

Episode NumberEpisode NameAir DateDog NameHandler Name
1Raising the WoofJanuary 8, 2020Falco (winner)Dave Cochran
DaxJohn Forlenza
MakerJohn Kuendig
DucoNathaniel Anderson
MaverickCasey Skelton
2The Fast and the FurriestJanuary 15, 2020Bear (winner)Dan Rhoades
KatoCharles Duvall
BonitoDawn Jauernik
RockoStan Smith II
DukeEd Soares
3Small Dog, Big BiteJanuary 22, 2020Minion (winner)Amanda Caldron
MurphyPatrick Newbill
BlitzRandy Stein
SkootAlexander Lindsay
DemiJared Backey
4Double Down on the UnderdogJanuary 29, 2020Mattis (winner)Mark Tappan
FuzeSarah Cole
RiddickAmy Leishman
WolverineOtto Sturm
MotoJill Viggiani
5Young Dog, Old TricksFebruary 5, 2020Django (winner)Heather Vanhemmert
RicoTim Bradley
CapoJuan Rivera III
LeonittisAlex Chavarin
TangoJordan Jones
6Country Boys and Rescue DogsFebruary 12, 2020Eddy (winner)Todd Thompson
CamJustin Wilmot
KumaMichael Victorino
JagoMark Grube
ScrappyKristi Kummer
7Are You Not Entertained?February 19, 2020Bowie (winner)Bob Schwarting
PeleT.J. San Miguel
CrixusJohn Shahor
TaterChuck Mehr
BalaDaniel Salander
8The Battle of the Garden StateFebruary 26, 2020Kai (winner)Mike McMahon
Hunter (Top Overall Boneyard Time)Stan Balmer
RogueApril Vaillancourt
BlizzardAaron Peterman
MesaJoseph Benke
9Young Pups and Silver FoxesMarch 4, 2020Bane (winner)Jesse Matthews
KobeCandice Snyder
KyraBrian de los Santos
MacieMegan Devoe
BulletLance Montee
10Gaga for DogglesMarch 11, 2020Rony (winner)Brad Larsen
SimonMichael Garber
Casus BelliTodd Mona
BruceSandy Reeves
GarryAaron Steere
11It Ain't Over Until There's a Top DogMarch 18, 2020Kai (winner)Mike McMahon
MattisMark Tappan
RonyBrad Larsen
EddyTodd Thompson
DjangoHeather Vanhemmert
FalcoDave Cochran
MinionAmanda Caldron

Season 2

Episode NumberEpisode NameAir DateDog NameHandler Name
1Premiere PoochesJune 29, 2021Theo (winner)Dayna Winter-Nolte
KruegerShea-La Gatz
ScarChris Don
VaderEdgar Valencia
MonkeyOmar von Muller
SueSara Chisnell
2Cute But Means BusinessJune 29, 2021Chase (winner)Mike Elezovic
SaintAolanis Fonseca
FrankAlexa White
RexChad Miller
EmitDana Rochat
EnvyPatricia Howell
3Pulling A Fast OneJuly 6, 2021Capone (winner)Danny Casson
RebelAndrea Fergerson
MacAllison Bilinski
QuelleMadison Sperry
CreasyGary Pigott
Magnus AresSinead Mbaro
4Beauty, Brains, and BarkJuly 13, 2021Chase (winner)Joey Burns
VarroLisa Berry
MurphChrissy Garzon
BonnyKristine Hunter
EnvySophia Kalfayan
KaneWhitney Ostrom
5Tricks, Trials, and TakedownsJuly 20, 2021Greymane (winner)Cheyanne Green
KnotsAndrea Reid
MattisAdam Laprade
BannerGary Herrero
NikoAllison Case
RiotLauren Cabanaw
6The Tall, the Brave, and the EngagedJuly 27, 2021Chewy (winner)Rachel Clark
MinaOtto Sturm
JJKristi Kummer
PumaBen Gatton
MoganJoseph Garcia
DemoChris Collier
7The Comeback DogsAugust 3, 2021Creasy (winner)Gary Pigott
SaintAolanis Fonseca
JJKristi Kummer
NikoAllison Case
KruegerShea-La Gatz
KaneWhitney Ostrom
8Title Match to Top Them AllAugust 3, 2021Chase (winner)Joey Burns
ChaseMike Elezovic
ChewyRachel Clark
GreymaneCheyanne Green
CaponeDanny Casson
CreasyGary Pigott
TheoDayna Winter-Nolte

Ratings

Season 1 (2020)

No.TitleOriginal air date [7] Rating
(18-49)		Viewers
(millions)
1"Raising the Woof"January 8, 20200.3 [8] 1.18 [8]
2"The Fast and the Furriest"January 15, 20200.3 [9] 1.16 [9]
3"Small Dog, Big Bite"January 22, 20200.3 [10] 0.86 [10]
4"Double Down on the Underdog"January 29, 20200.2 [11] 0.87 [11]
5"Young Dog, Old Tricks"February 5, 20200.2 [12] 0.87 [12]
6"Country Boys and Rescue Dogs"February 12, 20200.2 [13] 0.63 [13]
7"Are You Not Entertained?"February 19, 20200.2 [14] 0.62 [14]
8"The Battle of the Garden State"February 26, 20200.2 [15] 0.63 [15]
9"Young Pups and Silver Foxes"March 4, 20200.2 [16] 0.68 [16]
10"Gaga for Doggles"March 11, 20200.2 [17] 0.57 [17]
11"It Ain't Over Until There's a Top Dog"March 18, 20200.3 [18] 0.84 [18]

Season 2 (2021)

No.TitleOriginal air date [7] Rating
(18-49)		Viewers
(millions)
1"Premiere Pooches"June 29, 20210.1 [19] 0.39 [19]
2"Hometown Favorites"June 29, 20210.1 [19] 0.41 [19]
3"Pulling a Fast One"July 6, 20210.1 [20] 0.36 [20]
4"Beauty, Brains and Bark"July 13, 2021——
5"Tricks, Trials and Takedowns"July 20, 20210.1 [21] 0.31 [21]
6"The Tall, the Brave and the Engaged"July 27, 20210.1 [22] 0.36 [22]
7"The Comeback Dogs"August 3, 20210.1 [23] 0.30 [23]
8"Title Match to Top Them All"August 3, 20210.1 [23] 0.27 [23]

Season 3 (2021)

No.TitleOriginal air date [7] Rating
(18-49)		Viewers
(millions)
1"New Season, New Dogs"September 18, 20210.0 [24] 0.20 [24]
2"Can't Keep a Good Dog Down"September 18, 20210.1 [24] 0.24 [24]
3"Off Course Canines"September 18, 20210.0 [24] 0.21 [24]
4"Super Dogs"September 18, 2021——
5"Super Mutts and Super Sniffers"September 25, 20210.0 [25] 0.19 [25]
6"Pound Pups to Top Dogs"September 25, 2021——
7"Redemption on the Line"September 25, 2021——
8"One Top Dog Left Standing"September 25, 2021——

Remake

The German TV channel RTL acquired rights from A&E for remaking the show into a six-episode series titled Top Dog Germany (German: Der Beste Hund Deutschlands). [26] It premiered on July 23, 2021. [27]

See also

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References

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  2. ↑ "A&E's K9 Competition Series "America's Top Dog" Premieres Wednesday, January 8 at 9pm ET/PT". The Futon Critic . November 20, 2019. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  3. ↑ Hussey, Megan (July 21, 2020). "Representing Brooksville on America's Top Dog". Hernando Sun. Archived from the original on September 4, 2021. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  4. ↑ Alvarenga, Emily (January 2, 2020). "The underdog goes nose-to-nose". The Santa Clarita Valley Signal. Archived from the original on September 5, 2021. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
  5. ↑ Rob, Owens (July 22, 2020). "Fresh off Kansas City Big Slick, David Koechner goes to the dogs — and 'Dating Game'" . The Kansas City Star. Archived from the original on September 5, 2021. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
  6. ↑ "A&E Network's Canine Competition Series "America's Top Dog" Returns for Two New Back-to-Back Seasons Premiering Tuesday, June 29 at 8PM ET/PT" (Press release). May 6, 2021. Retrieved September 14, 2021– via The Futon Critic.
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