The AKC Canine Partners™ was developed in 2009 for mixed-breed dogs, which are known as All American Dogs in the program. But any dog without eligibility for full AKC registration, including rare breeds, may enroll as long as they meet the other criteria, including that dogs must be spayed/neutered upon adulthood and must not be a wolf hybrid. Dogs in the program are eligible to compete and earn titles in most AKC events and are also eligible for a number of other benefits (see below question).

The AKC Canine Partners™ enrollment entitles mixed-breed owners to many benefits including:

• Customized AKC Canine Partners™ Certificate of Recognition
• Access to  lifetime AKC Reunite^SM Microchip Enrollment helps your dog get home safely if ever lost
• AKC Reunite collar tag with AKC Canine Partners™ Number
• A free one-month supply of Simparica Trio, valued up to $32, from AKCRx
• Certificate for free office visit with a veterinarian in the AKC Veterinary Network
• 30-day trial offer from AKC Pet Health Insurance with access to a 24/7 Vet Helpline
• Access to AKC GoodDog Helpline^SM, a live phone and video training support line
• One-year subscription to AKC Family Dog magazine
• AKC Canine Partners™ News – quarterly digital newsletter featuring stories, photos & training tips
• Eligibility to participate in AKC Companion Events (agility, rally, obedience, tracking)
• Eligibility to earn titles in the AKC Family Dog program, including Canine Good Citizen, Therapy Dog and Trick Dog
• Eligibility for AKC Recognition of titles earned through the Barn Hunt Association, North America Diving Dogs, North American Flyball Association & UpDog Challenge disc.

Owners may enroll enroll online at or download a paper application.

If you do not have access to online services, please call 919-816-3749 or email akccaninepartners@akc.org to have an application mailed to you.

If your dog is a purebred of an AKC recognized breed or AKC Foundation Stock Service (FSS) breed, you should apply for the AKC Purebred Alternative Listing (PAL) program.

If your dog is a purebred of a rare breed not recognized yet by AKC or in FSS, then you can enroll in the AKC Canine Partners™ program as long as your dog meets the criteria, including the spay/neuter requirement.

You can check your breed’s AKC registrability status. A full list of breeds, including Foundation Stock Service^® (FSS^®) breeds, is provided.

If you own a purebred dog that is a breed not yet recognized by the AKC, you should consider participating in the FSS program. AKC permits FSS breeds that meet the criteria listed below to compete in all AKC Companion Events:

• Breed must be enrolled in the AKC FSS program:
  1. Breed must have a breed standard
  2. At least one dog in the breed, which is recorded in the FSS® program, must have a three-generation pedigree
• Individual dog must be enrolled into FSS

Those wishing to pursue recording with FSS should contact AKC staff.

Dogs in the AKC Canine Partners™ program compete head-to-head with purebreds for the same titles and awards in these events and programs:

AKC Companion Events:

• Agility
• Obedience
• Rally
• Tracking
• Coursing Ability Tests
• Fast CAT
• Scent Work
• Versatile Companion Dog program (recognizes dogs that title in agility, obedience & tracking)
• Farm Dog Certified

AKC Family Dog Program:

• Canine Good Citizen
• Canine Good Citizen-Advanced
• Canine Good Citizen-Urban
• Trick Dog
• Therapy Dog
• Temperament Test
• Fit Dog

The Title Recognition program rewards AKC enrolled dogs who earn titles in other sports organizations. Dogs must still enroll with those organizations in order to compete in their events, but if they earn titles, they may apply to AKC so those titles will appear on their AKC records and title certificates.

AKC works with these organizations:

• North American Flyball Association
• Barn Hunt Association
• North America Diving Dogs
• UpDog Challenge (disc)

Several Search & Rescue organizations

Dog owners interested in participating in AKC events can go to www.akc.org/events/trainingclub to find an AKC club that offers training classes in their area. There are many classes to choose from based on you and your dog’s experience levels.

The AKC Canine Good Citizen^® (CGC) certificate program is another great way to kick off your training regimen. This program encourages responsible pet ownership and rewards dogs with good manners.

You may look for events accepting mixed-breed entries in the AKC Event Search website.  Select the type of event you want from either the Companion Event or Performance Event dropdowns. Select All American Dog under Breed. Click on the state or states that you want to search. You may also enter specific club names and modify the date range if you choose. When complete, hit the Retrieve Events button at the bottom to see the list of upcoming events and contact information for the event secretary, who you can contact to get the entry information, or you can download the entry information from the club website.

All dogs in the AKC Canine Partners™ are described as All American Dogs for competition and titling purposes. When you enroll your dog in the program, you will have the option to select up to two breeds that you believe are in your dog’s background or you can select All American Dog. If you select breeds, that information will appear on your dog’s registration certificate. But when entering events, you should enter only All American Dog as the breed.

All dogs in the program are required to be spayed or neutered upon adulthood, and no exceptions are granted. You may enroll an intact puppy in the program but the Terms & Conditions state that the puppy will be spayed/neutered at an age recommended by your veterinarian. All dogs must be altered before they can compete in an AKC event. AKC does accept some alternative forms of sterilization, as long as they are permanent and irreversible. Proof of spay/neuter is not required to be submitted upon enrollment of adult dogs, but must be available upon request of AKC. Questions may be directed to akccaninepartners@akc.org

The person who owns the dog at the time the listing application is submitted to the AKC has the right to name it, in the absence of a written agreement. There are guidelines that determine the acceptability of a name. Some of these are as follows:

1. AKC Canine Partners^SM listing name choices are limited to thirty six (36) characters. Spaces between words, apostrophes and hyphens are counted. Owners may choose to extend the length of the listing name for an additional fee.
2. All letters in a dog’s official AKC Canine Partners^SM listing name are limited to the standard English alphabet. When listing certificates are printed, all letters are capitalized. Diacritical markings (accent grave, accent acute, umlaut, etc.) are not printed on listing certificates in a dog’s listing name.
3. Registered Kennel Names cannot be included as part of any AKC Canine Partners^SM listing name.
4. Roman numerals must not be included at the end of the dog’s AKC Canine Partners^SM listing name. The AKC reserves the right to assign roman numerals for identification purposes. The AKC permits thirty-seven (37) dogs to be assigned the same official AKC Canine Partners^SM listing name within the AKC Canine Partners^SM listing database.
5. There are no restrictions on arabic (1,2,3), cardinal (one, two, three), or ordinal (first, second, third) numbers.
6. Words and phrases that may not be included in a dog’s AKC Canine Partners^SM listing name:
   • Champion, champ, sieger and any AKC title or show term, either spelled out or abbreviated, including titles from alternate competition venues
   • Obscenities and words derogatory to any race, creed or nationality or transliterations of such words
   • Kennel(s), male, stud, sire, bitch, dam and female
   • The name of any AKC-recognized breeds

All dog names are subject to AKC approval.

The name of a dog listed with The American Kennel Club will be allowed to be changed provided the owner submits the applicable application with required fees. However, no change in the name will be recorded by The American Kennel Club after the dog has received an award at an AKC licensed or member event.

Any name change must comply with all AKC requirements.