As reported previously, the Jefferson Parish Council has delayed their consideration of changes to the Parish’s animal cruelty ordinances. Instead, officials with the Jefferson Parish Animal Shelter and Animal Shelter Advisory Board will first hold a public meeting to discuss the proposed changes. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 10, 2015, at 6:30PM […]

South Dakota House Bill 1159 seeks to impose additional requirements on and to establish additional inspections for commercial pet breeding operations in the state.

AKC continues to monitor several bills impacting dog owners in Oregon. Below are the latest updates, along with contact information if you wish to comment on any of these measures. AKC GR will continue to provide individual updates and alerts when necessary.  Bills in Oregon Legislature: House Bill 2915 – Pet Choice Restrictions. Status: Passed […]

March 19, 2019 The Indiana House Agriculture and Rural Development Committee is considering a bill on Thursday, March 21, that would require any dog or cat being imported from a foreign country into Indiana be accompanied by a certificate of veterinary inspection or health certificate. Senate Bill 533 would require that any person who transfers […]

As reported previously, the Jefferson Parish Council has delayed their consideration of changes to the Parish’s animal cruelty ordinances. Instead, officials with the Jefferson Parish Animal Shelter and Animal Shelter Advisory Board will first hold a public meeting to discuss the proposed changes. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 10, 2015, at 6:30PM […]

An Illinois House committee is scheduled to consider a bill on Tuesday, March 7, that would allow the court to appoint a 'special advocate' to represent the interests of animals during cases that involve the animal's health, safety, or an injury.

House Bill 63, which would prohibit counties and municipalities from enacting breed-specific regulations, was passed unanimously by the House Health, Government and Indian Affairs Committee yesterday. The bill now advances to the House Judiciary Committee. The AKC strongly encourages New Mexico residents to contact the members of the House Judiciary Committee and ask them to […]

February 28, 2019 The Caswell County (North Carolina) Board of Commissioners is considering a proposal on Monday, March 4, that would license and regulate those deemed commercial breeders or “high-volume private kennels”. Those who reside in Caswell County are encouraged to contact the committee prior to the hearing, or consider attending the hearing on March […]

Florida dog owners breathed sighs of relief when the hard-fought 2023 Florida legislative session adjourned on Friday, May 5th. Several problematic bills did not advance, while positive bills passed in the state legislature and await action by the Governor. Possibly the most egregious state-level dog breeder bills (HB 1581/SB 1492) filed in the U.S. to […]

Maine LD 1192, sponsored by Representative Justin Chenette, will be considered by the Joint Committee on Insurance and Financial Services on April 25.  The bill seeks to prohibit insurance companies from cancelling, refusing to issue, or charging an increased premium for a property insurance policy solely on the basis of a policyholder's ownership of a […]

New proposed rules from the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) that seek to clarify Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) regulations regarding the transportation of service animals by air and that are intended the ensure that America’s air transportation system is safe for the travelling public and accessible to individuals with disabilities, are expected to be published in the Federal […]

The Illinois House and Senate continue to consider bills that would limit pet stores to sourcing dogs and cats only from shelters and rescues that have no affiliation with breeders. Yesterday, the House Consumer Protection Committee passed House Bill 1711, but there was a verbal commitment to negotiate on amendments prior to bringing the bill […]

SUMMARY Proposed changes to Greenville County, South Carolina’s Animals and Fowl ordinance are currently under consideration by the Greenville County Council.  Among its many changes, the proposal appears to require all “pet breeders”, including fanciers and enthusiasts who breed purebred dogs as a hobby, to register as a business and implement significant changes to their […]

March 30, 2015 A bill is scheduled for a hearing TOMORROW (Tuesday, March 31) in the North Carolina Senate State and Local Government Committee that would allow Raleigh law enforcement and peace officers to adopt the animals they worked with or handled during the animal’s service.  A companion House measure (HB 199) has passed committee […]

The Oregon Legislature has concluded its 2023 legislative session. AKC actively monitored and participated in numerous bills before the legislature this year. Some of the more significant bill proposals from 2023 are listed below. Notably, due to a walkout by the minority party in the state Senate, many bills (not just related to bills of […]

AKC Government Relations has just learned that New Mexico House Bill 63, which would prohibit counties and municipalities from enacting breed-specific regulations, is scheduled to be considered by the House Health, Government and Indian Affairs Committee tomorrow, Thursday, January 31. New Mexico residents are strongly encouraged to contact the members of the committee, as well […]

Indiana House Bill 1719, introduced by Representative Bardon, seeks to require that all dogs over six months of age be microchipped, that a new state-run microchip registry be developed, that owners of intact dogs be assessed a $50 annual fee, and that "Beware of Dog" signs be put up for every intact dog. If passed […]

No Good news for dogs as AKC announces its most popular breeds:  The picture painted of the American Kennel Club in a blog published by HSUS yesterday was filled with so many inaccuracies, we’ve decided to try to fix the inaccuracies section by section, rather than write a full rebuttal. –AKC. HSUS:    Last year, […]

Consideration of an overreaching proposed animal ordinance in DeKalb County that seeks to place restrictions on pet breeders and on individuals who transfer/give away/sell pets has been rescheduled for Tuesday, November 19, 2024. The County Operations Committee (OPS Committee) will meet to discuss the proposed ordinance at 1:00pm at 178 Sams Street, Decatur, GA 30030.  […]

Dogs from around the country put their best paw forward in high energy competition The American Kennel Club (AKC) is excited to announce that the AKC National Agility Championship will air on ESPN2.The two-hour competition will be televised on Wednesday, March 31, 2021 at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT. This broadcast comes on the […]

  The American Kennel Club® announced recently that Joseph Foster has been named a recipient of the AKC® Community Achievement Award for his dedication to responding quickly and effectively to canine legislation issues in his community. Foster is a member of the Wilmington (Delaware) Kennel Club (WKC.) He received one of three awards for the […]

The American Kennel Club® is pleased to announce the winners of the AKC® Pointing Breed Gun Dog Championships, sponsored by Purina and Tri-Tronics. The event was held April 28 - May 6 at the Red Rock Field Trial grounds north of Reno, Nev. This was the 15th running of this event, which has become the […]

Wayne Mowry and his diabetic detection dog (and best friend) Bretagne. Like AKC on Facebook and follow us on Twitter today for all the latest dog news! Written by Dr. Cindy Otto, DVM, PhD Requirements of a detection dog: fervent, keen, driven. Certain canine breeds have these natural instincts. And if there’s one thing experts […]

-Conference aims to examine possible solutions to the shortage of detection dogs- The American Kennel Club will host the 2019 AKC U.S. Detection Dog Conference Tuesday, August 27th - Thursday, August 29th, 2019 in Durham, NC to explore solutions to the shortage of domestic dogs for explosives detection in the United States. The Conference will bring together […]

-- Chicago, Seattle and Detroit Go to the Dogs While Baltimore, Philadelphia and Houston Are the Cat's Meow -- New York, NY – While both cats and dogs have been our faithful companions for centuries, it turns out that dog owners bark louder that cat owners purr when it comes to voicing their love for […]

New York, N.Y. – Eleven AKC® National Agility Champions were crowned this weekend at the American Kennel Club® (AKC®) National Agility Championship, held at the Reno Livestock Events Center in Reno, Nevada. The Championship, sponsored by J & J Dog Supplies, MAX 200, M.A.D. Agility and Voyce, drew a combined entry of more than 1,000 […]

2016 is already showing itself to be a year of opportunity and promise, as evidenced by a wonderful new documentary about our sport that you may know about.  For those of you who are not aware, a channel called AT&T U-verse Sports created a twenty-three minute show that went behind the scenes at the 2015 […]

-- Canine Health Always A Top Priority -- For more than a century the American Kennel Club®, its parent clubs, and responsible breeders have been dedicated to canine health. The very existence and continuation of breeds in this country depends on a foundation of healthy, sound and good tempered breeding stock. AKC takes very seriously […]

Every September, we take to our local communities with the rallying cry of responsible dog ownership and host over 600 RDO Day events across the country. Together with our participating clubs, we educate the public about everything we can offer them to put them on the path to being the best dog owners they can […]

- Highlights of 2011 - It was a pleasure to be with many of you in Florida this weekend as we enjoyed the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship, AKC Agility Invitational, AKC National Obedience Invitational and the surrounding festivities. We hope you enjoyed the incredible series of events that unfolded over the weekend. We are all aware […]