Downtrodden dog owners disappointed at the postponement of this year's Crufts competition can enter their pets in a cyber-space version of the event being held on the Internet.

Pocklington-based Pedigreedogs.co.uk have announced Cyber Show 2001, taking place this weekend, when the world-famous pooch platform would have happened, if it had not been for the foot and mouth crisis.

And the company, which set up the website containing all things to do with pedigree dogs in August last year, has signed up ex-Blue Peter presenter Peter Purves to judge the Best in Show from his home computer.

Many dogs which would have been at Crufts will be entering alongside many from overseas which will not need a pet passport.

And everyone who logs on during the weekend will have the chance to take part in the voting by choosing their favourite specimens from among the 180 plus breeds represented.

Sarah Rushton, spokeswoman for pedigreedogs.co.uk, which gets around 1,000 visitors a day to the site, is confident that the show will be well supported.

She said: "We have already received a couple of hundred entries and many offers of sponsorship. The postponement of Crufts has left a big hole in many canine lovers' lives this week.

"We think by organising this show now we can at least make up for some of the disappointment."

But what will stop competitive dog-owners from tampering with the computerised images of their favourite pets to make them look more attractive to the judges ?

Sarah said: "I think it would be quite hard to do that with a dog picture given the short time scales that we've got. I think they'd be a bit pushed.

"There are some nice prizes but it's a bit of fun really and we're asking the general public to judge for themselves."

To enter a pedigree dog is easy and is not limited to professional breeders.

A simple form is completed online at www.pedigreedogs.co.uk and automatically e-mailed to the show organisers together with an attached electronic picture of the dog.

Prizes include tickets to a special screening of the new film about the dog show world, Best In Show, being held in London by Warner Brothers Cinemas.

Updated: 10:21 Friday, March 09, 2001