My name is Emily Burrier. We may have met at shows, or maybe you haven’t heard of me at all! By occupation, I am a dog trainer, a CGC evaluator, a desk receptionist, a groomer, and a handler. I have participated in AKC Junior Handling events for several years. Though most importantly, like all of […]

It is generally acknowledged that the first Basset Hounds came to America from France. George Washington's friend Lafayette sent him hounds for pack hunting in America, and these hounds were probably the so-called Old Virginia Bench-Legged Beagles. Other imports in the early nineteenth century were obtained from France, but some also came from British packs, […]

Common Resources: Find a Club/Trainer Find an Event Agility Regulations Online Entry System Downloadable Forms Titles and Abbreviations Versatile Companion Dog (VCD) Title News & Updates Agility FAQ [accordion] [accordion_panel title="General"] Agility Field Representatives Participants with Disabilities [/accordion_panel] [accordion_panel title="Getting Started in Agility"] A Beginners Guide to Companion Events (PDF) Agility FAQs What is Agility?  […]

MACH Cobber CGC MJS MXB XF was once an abandoned puppy who was nearly euthanized after becoming ill with parvo. But Kirsten Swenson of Columbus, OH, and her veterinarian sister had other ideas. They saved Cobber, who is not only Kirsten’s best friend, but also has become an AKC Master Agility Champion. Kirsten tells their […]

Greeting people would top the list of things that Wilson least liked to do. The black Labrador Retriever stayed far away from visitors to the Johnston County (NC) Animal Shelter.  He had no trust of human beings. That was before shelter volunteer Marcus Holland spotted him and saw something special in the young dog. A […]

Meet Maya Belle who has earned AKC’s top Therapy Dog title of THDD for making more than 400 visits to help others. She and her owner, Raymond Rauen of Livonia, MI, spend hours every week to cheer patients at St. Mary Mercy Hospital Since Maya Belle and Ray began volunteering at St. Mary Mercy Hospital […]

In summer 2009, Shelley stopped by her local shelter in Princeton, NJ, in search of a new companion. “I had just lost my dog and was looking for a large, friendly dog to adopt,” she said. “The staff showed me the dogs they thought I might like, but there wasn't a match. Then they brought […]

Konrad Lorenz identified Fixed Action Patterns as innate or instinctual behavior patterns that were species specific. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fixed_action_pattern In turn, Breland and Breland, students of B. F. Skinner, contributed their knowledge based on training hundreds of animals. http://www.operationtakemehome.org/sar/Canine%20Downloads/breland,%20breland%20(1961)%20-%20misbehavior%20of%20organisms.pdf They attempted to bridge the gap between early psychologists’ view that the mind was a blank slate and […]

Learning Objectives Students will conduct research and analyze text to determine the reasoning behind an author’s choice and will describe how that choice impacted the novel.   Grade Levels 9-12   Common Core Standards Analyze the impact of the author's choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story or drama (e.g., where […]

American Kennel Club Updates on COVID-19 Pandemic Please see the following message from the AKC Board of Directors and AKC Staff: Covid-19: Participating in Dog Sports The American Kennel Club continues to encourage each of its 5,000 clubs to adhere to federal, state and local restrictions pertaining to minimizing the spread of COVID-19.  As states […]