Countless dogs and their owners have been impacted by the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina. In the wake of the storm, the American Kennel Club and affiliated organization AKC Companion Animal Recovery (CAR) are working to provide relief where it is most needed by animals and the people helping them. We strongly urge all of our readers to visit AKC’s home page for information on how you can get involved in these much-needed efforts. Any support you can provide is greatly appreciated!

In other news, the Canine Legislation department was pleased to represent the American Kennel Club at last month’s National Conference of State Legislators in Seattle. Over 6,000 state representatives and their staff attended this year’s event, and AKC staff enjoyed the opportunity to hand out responsible dog ownership leashes and remind officials that AKC and the purebred dog community is THE resource when it comes to animal care and control issues. The Canine Legislation department regularly attends conferences such as NCSL as part of our legislator outreach program, but this event was particularly successful due to the time we were able to spend speaking with a number of Oklahoma and Ohio representatives about breed-specific and dangerous dog legislation. Both states are currently wrestling with these issues, but we believe the officials we talked to returned home to their districts with a better understanding about why reasonable dangerous dog laws are the most effective means of keeping communities and constituents safe. The success of these booth exhibits is just one more example of how the AKC is working to protect the rights of purebred dog owners.

Regards,

Stephanie Lane