Karandash the Clown loved going to dog shows. His dogs won medals at the shows, which not only made Karandash proud, but also made the dogs themselves proud. From the memoirs of Karandash's daughter, N.M. Rumyantseva: "And Klyaksa realized that her medals were the pride of the entire house. When they put the medal chain on her, she would jingle them and wander into one dressing room after another, something she never did on other days. She would listen to people say to her, 'Oh, Klyaksa, how posh you are today!' and then she would go into the next room!"

Karandash's main partners in the circus arena were Scottish Terriers. His first dog was named Pushok, and Karandash traveled with him through the war in a front-line circus brigade. All of Karandash's subsequent dogs were called Klyaksa in the arena, but they had different names at home.