by Sandra MurrayReprinted from: Essential Elements, ShowSight Magazine Any animal that lives within a tightly knit social group of its own kind has a “language.” Given that dogs are by nature pack animals, they have a rather extensive language that they use to communicate among themselves. Their language contains both physical and verbal components which […]

If you are a judge, do you find it harder to go from judging Great Danes to judging Yorkshire Terriers, or to go from judging English Cocker Spaniels to judging American Cocker Spaniels? In other words, is it harder to turn the page in your mind and adjust for the vast differences between two breeds […]

Photographs capture one second in time. And time is fleeting. It rushes forward without bias, emotion, or care. Perhaps that’s why photos mean so much to the dog fancy: They preserve the moment when a champion was at his best. Without them, such paragons would be lost to those who study the past before charting […]

No velvet pillows, hair ribbons, or French pedicures for these big bruisers. These are the no-nonsense, punch-the-clock-and-get-it-done dogs of the AKC Working Group, the Ford pickups of the canine kingdom. Many factors go into breeding dogs that work hard for their feed. Let’s consider a few, and then watch some well-bred workers in action. Physical […]

A Great Dane named George who is a service dog for 11-year-old Bella Burton is one of five recipients for this year's AKC Humane Fund Award for Canine Excellence, which honors dogs that have had a significant impact on their owners and communities. Bella, who suffers from the genetic disorder Morquio syndrome, received George a […]

Those who watched the 2008 Westminster Dog Show will fondly remember Best in Show winner Uno prancing around the ring bellowing the trademark Beagle sound, “A-roo!” Each breed has its own distinctive bark (or in the case of the the African Barkless Dog, the Basenji, more of a yodel). To highlight each of those unique […]

Did you know that in most of the animal kingdom, larger animals outlive smaller ones? For dogs, however, the opposite is true. Smaller dogs, like Chihuahuas, often outlive larger breeds, like Great Danes, by a number of years. As dog owners, we hate watching our dogs go through the often difficult aging process; we want […]

The American Kennel Club® (AKC®) and Royal Canin are pleased to announce the judging panel for the 2016 National Championship to be held at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida on Saturday, December 17 and Sunday, December 18, 2016. The 2016 event will showcase the top national and international dogs and will also […]

For 141 years, the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show judges have chosen one dog, and one dog only, as Best in Show. You would think that, with 141 different dogs being chosen, America's favorite breeds surely must have won a few times. You'd be wrong. Every year, the AKC ranks the breeds that are most […]

This past weekend, thousands of dogs and dog lovers descended on Orlando, Florida for the 2015 AKC/Eukanuba National Championship at the Orange County Convention Center. Here are a few highlights: New world records were set during the Elite Finals of Dock Diving. The winning jump was 30 feet 7 inches by a Labrador Retriever named […]