Between feasting on chocolate eggs and massive hams, make time to feast your eyes on some ‘rockstar dogs.’
According to Maria Menounos, the second annual Beverly Hills Dog Show Presented by Purina is filled with them. The star-studded event, where newlywed Menounos is an official correspondent, airs on Easter Sunday, April 1, on USA Network at 6 p.m. EST/5 p.m. CST.
The host of Sirius XM’s “Conversations with Maria” gave PEOPLE the scoop on what to expect from this Hollywood event, which she describes as her “heaven.”
“It’s great viewing for families to get together to check out man’s best friends in their best form. You also have some stars from Hollywood popping in and checking out the festivities. It’s a different kind of dog show because of that element,” Menounos, 39, says.
Switching from interviewing human celebrities to slobbering canine contenders is a delight for the Menounous, who says she is more “starstruck” by the pooches she meets at the show than the actors she normally encounters on the red carpet.
“I am so glad the team had patience and understood my obsession with dogs, because I could barely get what I needed to get done because I was just always seeing a new dog I was obsessed with. All these weird voices were coming out. It brings me a lot of joy to be part of that day,” she says of her role at the event.
Steven Donahue/See Spot Run Photography
Menounos was also on the canine-filled carpet last year and had some important takeaways from the previous show: “This time I didn’t wear heels and I wore pants where I could lay down on the red carpet and hang out with the dogs in a more comfortable fashion.”
After all this face time with talented fidos, Menounos has a few favorites. She is a huge fan of two Great Danes who reminded her of black stallions and a belly rub-loving St. Bernard.
But Menounos’ true favorites are her own dogs. Her two rescue pups Maximus and Winnie and her 17-year-old Bichon Frise Benjamin.
“Somehow I have always come across the most stunning rescues in the world,” the proud dog mom said of her pooches. Because of this, she believes that her dogs could easily compete against some of the talent at the Beverly Hills Dog Show.
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But it’s not all about canine competition, in support of the show Purina has the “Every Dog is a Star” Program. Participation is open to all dogs owners and their pets. All they have to do is post a photo or video of their dog acting like a star to Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with the hashtag #BHDogShow and tag @Purina, and for each original post, Purina will donate five dollars (up to $25,000) to Mutt-i-grees, a program run by North Shore Animal League that is dedicated to showing schoolchildren the positive impact of animals.
To bring all this cuteness into your life on Easter Sunday, tune in to the USA Network at 6 p.m. EST/5 p.m. CST to catch every minute of cuteness from the second annual Beverly Hills Dog Show Presented by Purina, including which of the canines comes out on top and wins Best in Show.
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