On October 22, the Ojai City Council voted 4-1 to adopt a first-in-the-nation law that prohibits the breeding of dogs and cats with “congenital anatomical features” that are likely to cause the animal or its offspring to suffer pain, deformity, or difficult expressing natural behaviors, difficulty breathing, difficultly with physical exertion or exercise, or difficulty […]

Dog lovers all over the US have reason to celebrate news from the NAIA, which reported recently that the number of dogs entering US shelters has dropped significantly over the past few decades to new lows. Digging deeper into the matter, NAIA also learned that only about three percent of dogs in our country’s shelters […]

AKC Breeder Spotlight: Amy Shaffer of Crivitz Standard Schnauzers Each month the American Kennel Club profiles breeders to hear how they got started and learn about their breeding program and their experience with AKC Marketplace. We recently spoke with AKC Breeder of Merit Amy Shaffer of Crivitz Standard Schnauzers. Amy originally started with Irish Setters […]

>While in training, Belgian Malinois Jax was taught to respond to commands in both Dutch and German. Jax was 18 months old at the time and was largely chosen due to his suitable temperament. As we saw with Nikko, correct temperament is a critical characteristic of a successful police dog. In the breed standard, the […]

As a child and young adult, Laura Haas helped her family breed German Shepherd Dogs. But it wasn't until an encounter later in life with a whole new breed that re-ignited Haas's love of producing beautiful purebred dogs. “In 2008 while at an AKC conformation show, I met a Black Russian Terrier for the first time," […]

Deb Kidwell -Taylor lives in Sweetwater, TN, on three acres of fields and woods with her husband Ron and five Azawakh. Originally from Virginia, Deb has had Azawakh since 1989. She also raises super tall chickens known as Asian Fowl, jokingly calling them the “Azawakh of chickens.” She is an AKC Breeder of Merit and […]

PROGRAM SUMMARY In March 2014, the AKC Board of Directors approved the development of a program for all breeders. The program’s intent is to improve the health and well-being of purebred dogs by challenging breeders to meet health testing standards and participate in continuing education. The program will provide marketing and other support for those […]

-- The True Essence of AKC Breeders -- Eleven years ago, Ron Menaker, Dennis Sprung, and the good folks at Eukanuba created the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship and made celebrating our breeders an integral part of the event. In 2003, they added the Best Bred-By-Exhibitor competition and every year since then, many of our sport's top […]

-- Together We Are Truly the Dog’s Champion! -- At the Delegates Meeting in June, we spoke of the proposed new regulations to the Animal Welfare Act and the onerous impact on AKC Fancy breeders, like you and I. We were determined to act quickly and with great purpose to address this issue. And we […]

Dog lovers all over the US have reason to celebrate news from the NAIA, which reported recently that the number of dogs entering US shelters has dropped significantly over the past few decades to new lows. Digging deeper into the matter, NAIA also learned that only about three percent of dogs in our country’s shelters are purebreds. NAIA’s […]