American Kennel Club
The American Kennel Club (or AKC) is the largest registry of purebred dog pedigrees in the United States. The AKC registered just over 900,000 dogs in 2003. Beyond maintaining its pedigree registry, it also promotes events for purebred dogs, including the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, an annual event which predates the official forming of the AKC, and the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship.
Dog registration
The AKC is not the only registry of purebred dogs, but it is the one with which most Americans are familiar. For a dog to be registered with the AKC, the dog's parents must be registered with the AKC as the same breed, and the litter in which the dog is born must be registered with the AKC. Once these criteria are met, the dog can be registered as purebred by the AKC.
Registration indicates only that the dog is purely of one recognized breed; it does not necessarily indicate that the dog comes from healthy or show-quality blood lines. Nor is registration necessarily a reflection on the quality of the breeder or how the puppy was raised.
Registration is necessary only for breeders (so they can sell registered puppies) or for purebred dog show or purebred dog sports participation (similar to the medieval requirement of nobility for jousting competitions).
Recognized breeds
As of October 2004, the AKC recognizes only 157 of the hundreds of dog breeds known around the world, and another 51 rare breeds can be registered in its Foundation Stock Service.
The AKC divides dog breeds into seven groups, one class, and the FSS, consisting of the following as of October, 2004:
- Sporting Group: 26 breeds[1] developed as bird dogs.
- Hound Group: 22 breeds[2] developed to hunt using sight (sighthounds) or scent (scent hounds).
- Working Group: 24 large breeds[3] developed for a variety of jobs, including guarding property, guarding lifestock, or pulling carts.
- Terrier Group: 27 feisty breeds[4] developed to hunt vermin and to dig them from their burrows or lairs.
- Toy Group : 21 small companion breeds[5].
- Non-sporting Group: 17 breeds[6] that do not fit into any of the preceding categories.
- Herding Group: 18 breeds[7] developed to herd livestock.
- Miscellaneous Class: 4 breeds[8] that have advanced from FSS but that are not yet fully recognized.
- Foundation Stock Service (FSS) program: 51 breeds[9]. This is a breed registry in which breeders of rare breeds can record the birth and parentage of a breed that they are trying to establish in the United States; these dogs provide the foundation stock from which eventually a fully recognized breed might result. These breeds cannot participate in AKC events until at least 150 individual dogs are registered; thereafter, competition in various events is then provisional.
Other AKC programs
The AKC also offers the Canine Good Citizen program.