Why is being actepted by the AKC so important?

Question

I've been told that there are over 400 breeds not accepted by the AKC, and not all of them are simply rejected, I've been told that some reffuse to be accepted because of something to with money, but that's not important.
I don't understand why simply because a dog doesn't have AKC papers it is worthless in the eyes of many, even though it's not a mutt and that it IS purebred. From what I understand, papers from any given club are easily obtained for the right price, AKC included. That kinda lowers the worth, because it's been said that an imperfect dog can be registered with the AKC if both parents were regestered *that's the way it's been put, which would meen a designer breed from registered parents could be registered, but i know that's not the way it is*

Why is it that the AKC is so important, and that only breeds recognized by that club are real breeds?

Why did everyone assume that I don't like mutts? I have a mutt and he's way more loyal than any PB anything I've ever met. I said that mutts and the unrecognized were worthless to many who beleive that the AKC is god, not me. I love mutts, and some of my favorite breeds aren't recognized by the AKC and I wanted to know what made the AKC so special.
From what has been said by most here, it's simply because the AKC is older and bigger than any other in America. Saying they're better is like saying my gramma's better than me because she's been around longer, so those saying it's just a status symbol....
Even the ones that didn't agree with you proved your point for you. Funny how the highandmighty don't think about how they're proving the point they're arguing against, but they do it all the time.
Like an open minded person talking to a Baptist... lol, it's an inside joke reffering to the baptists around here, not all of them.

I don't get all the "thumbs down" on answers that are seemingly pretty blunt and to the point. I think most of them are right on the money *if not only because it's the popular opinion* But think about it.

Get a PERFECT right down to the toenails example of a breed, unregistered and see what it's "worth" even though it is indeed, perfect by the AKC standards.

Then get a dog, same breed, small fault of some sort, but this one's registered. I betcha money that most people will pay more because an imperfect dog with papers is somehow more desireable than a perfect dog without?

It seems that the AKC is a status symbol fueled by money, as that is what all of the answers that actually had any info and weren't an opinion of me seemed to be able to prove far more effectively than the people saying "You're wrong because I'm right".

If you firmly beleive something, argue the POINT, not your opinion of the asker of the question.

Answer 1

Because people are stooooopoid and don't realize they are the easiest papers for breeders to forge and that there are so many out there. Supply and demand there is an over abundance of stooooopid little papers they can't be valuable. Like $2 bills everyone always saved but there are millions of them and they are only worth $2.

As long as there is ignorance out there to purchase a dog with "papers" there will be ignorant people out there breeding for money not for the breed or even the health benefit of the dog.

We recently rescued an itty bitty yorkie 9 years old she had tumors bigger than her belly in her breasts. She was going to be put to sleep because they couldn't breed her anymore the tumors had over taken her 6 lb body. We fixed her the best we could spayed and tumor removed and found her a little old lady to adopt her and love her as she should have been.

When people purchase dogs with "papers" they are part of the growing cancer to these breeding dogs. Over nine years Im sure she made them quite a bit of money but they didn't even care to have her health taken care of so all those puppies that someone paid a fortune for "papers" are running around predisposed to cancer - proabably breeding themselves.

Answer 2

To answer your direct question, AKC is so important because it's the biggest registry and, I think, the oldest. It has the most "clout" so to speak. Similiar to how your computer runs Microsoft Windows, even though Lynx is arguably a better system.

The AKC has the most clout, and for a lot of people it is a status thing. You'll hear a lot of people talk down about the other registries, such as the UKC, because it is "crap" and "meaningless" compared to the AKC.

The following might interest you:

Article on AKC wanting to "takeover" some of those breeds:
http://www.netpets.com/dogs/newsroom/akcfss1.html

The same article is here, in case the other link won't work:
http://www.seppalasleddogs.com/isa/russell_akctakeover.htm

And a website that compiles information about many of those "rare breeds":
http://www.rarebreed.com



EDIT: The article is not posted to show the evils of the AKC, but just to offer a little more information about how there are lots of other breeds out there, some that don't want anything to do with the AKC.

The rare breed link has been updated. There aren't any labradoodles or puggles on this site. You will find information about the Karelian Bear Dog, the American Bulldog, the Spanish Water Dog, etc. The site indicates the standard, parent club, and which registries recognize it. No designer hybrid dogs here!

Answer 3

The AKC doesn't sell their registration/pedigree papers but like any other official document there are those who create fraudulent ones. Puppy mill owner's are notorious for this or just creating their own "clubs" and passing these papers along to prospective buyer's who are not knowledgeable in these matters.
If a prospective owner wants a pure breed dog this is where they need to start. Registration papers are to assure the owner that they are getting a healthy pure breed dog, not a puppy from a puppy mill, etc. Breeder's have spent years perfecting the breeds of these animals and yes, there are bad breeders out there but they are few and far between. A lot of time and money has been spent by breeders who have dedicated their lives to perfecting the breed of these dogs.
While there are many breeds of dogs that are not recognized by AKC at this time this is because there are unscrupulous people in society that over breed their dogs(and cats) and experiment with them, trying to breed them for new colors, smaller and smaller sizes and yes, even disfigurements so as to create some novelty. This is why the AKC will not recognize just any breed but new breeds are accepted under tight controls. The AKC (AMERICAN KENNEL CLUB) is there for our protection as well as the pure bred dogs protection.

BTW, there is nothing wrong with owning a mutt either.......

Answer 4

Well Mandy, I can see why you have had a hard time getting into the 'dog world'.

It seems you cannot assimilate information no matter how many times you hear the correct answers and instead are just fishing for the answer you want.

You will never get far in the serious dog world with your attitude. You will drive any decent breeder willing to mentor you.

As Gitem said, you need to be humbled. Ridiculous that you think, as a newbie/wannabe, you know more than the people here that have been breeding/showing for MUCH longer than you have been alive.

Arrogance will get you nowhere!
Bang your head against a brick wall while repeating...
I know nothing about dogs, I am just a newbie/wannabe
I know nothing about dogs, I am just a newbie/wannabe
I know nothing about dogs, I am just a newbie/wannabe


"Get a PERFECT right down to the toenails example of a breed, unregistered and see what it's "worth" even though it is indeed, perfect by the AKC standards"

First thing, there is no perfect dog, they all have something that could be improved, some faults are just worse than others.

A "perfect", but unregistered dog, while maybe beautiful to look at, would not be anything I could ever use for breeding. How would you know its lineage? A "perfect" dog will probably not pass on his traits if he doesn't have the pedigree to back it up. If, for example, I wanted to improve my fronts, how could I possibly use this dog, even though he may have a good front, I have no idea if his pedigree is strong with dogs with good fronts. There is much more to breeding dogs than just how they look, the pedigree is even more important. If I have the AKC pedigree I can judge the genetic potential of this dog.

You can't buy AKC (or UKC) papers for a price, if that were possible they would be worthless.

Answer 5

The AKC is the oldest dog registry in the USA. It was around long before people began breeding and sellings dogs as commodities. It was, and is, a "club of clubs", meaning that it is an umbrella club that handles registry for a number of smaller, breed-specific "parent clubs" (i.e. the United States Rhodesian Ridgeback Club, the Yorkshire Terrier Club of America, etc.).

The Westminster Kennel Club dog show is the second oldest animal related "event" in the USA, behind the Kentucky Derby.

The AKC's long establishment and history is what, I believe, gives it its prestige. That and the fact that it was started when people were serious about keeping excellent records and good bloodlines, rather than the fly-by-nighters out there now who cater to the puppy mill industry.

Although it does deal with the puppy mill industry (as it has to, in order to remain financially solvent in the face of the other, cheaper registries), it was not estabished just to serve them. That is the difference between it and just about every other registry in the USA, except perhaps the UKC.

Whether or not breed-specific clubs choose to join the AKC is up to them. However, they have to go through a specific process to be recognized, and therefore have their breed recognized.

The AKC is not the "end all be all" of the dog world. It is not God. There are certainly many "real" breeds out there not recognized by the AKC, but they generally don't have the following in the USA that they do in other countries, which is required in order to begin the process of recognition. NOTE that I do *not* count Cockapoos and their "designer" counterparts among these legitimate breeds.

No "breed" created to sate the demand of consumers is legitimate, and that is just a fact.

Contrary to popular belief, the AKC is not an enforcement agency. It was designed to provide registration and record-keeping services for parent clubs -- not to make sure that only the "best of the best" were registered. So, yes, many "imperfect" dogs are registered with the AKC, due only to the fact that their parents were also registered.

It is up to individual breeders to be the "policemen" -- not the AKC.

ADDED: Pink, re: your article reference

Despite the charming soundbite that "The AKC raped the Aussie", the important thing to note about the article is that people from the breed (whether they step forward or not) *went* to the AKC looking for recognition. The AKC didn't pound on their door demanding their records. It may not have been the entire populace of the breed's devotees, but it was apparently enough.

That's their own, internal battle. Not the AKC's domination.

I'm not saying that the AKC is wonderful -- they have some problems, that deal they tried to make with Petland being only one of them. But, please, that article is biased and spurious at best.

Also important to note that the Coton De Tulear was accepted into the FSS in 1996, and now, 10 years later, is still in the FSS, implying that recognition only occurs when the people in the breed want it to, not when the AKC decides to "devour" them.

ADDED: Greekman
I understand your anger -- and I have to agree that conformation (and overbreeding for the pet market) have destroyed the GSD in the United States. The coolest GSDs that I've ever met have all been imports.

But I have to ask...who let the breed fall into such a state? Was it the AKC, or the GSD breeders? As was my point with the article pinkdenial cites, you can call the AKC the DEVIL, but when it comes down to it, it's the breeders who are responsible for the breed.

Answer 6

The AKC is only interested in your money and show dogs. There is not another dog registry as worthless as tha AKC. There are thousands of dogs all ver the country that would put AKC registrable dogs to shame, but they cannot be register because they cannot meet the elitist standards of that organization. There are dogs that spent years training in Europe that come here and their titles are not recognized by the AKC because they are not "fifi" titles. The AKC does not promote any real dog trials, it does not promote any real breed evaluations, nor does it care. In Germany, for example, you cannot register a dog until that dog reaches a certain age and it has PROVEN its working abilities and it has been evaluated by a breed master who will crawl up that dogs *** to find whatever faults he can to prevent it from being registered and therefore bred. In Holland, people burn their registration papers on purpose so their dogs cannot be registered with the NHSB because they feel that too many show people will get involved and eventually weaken the breed. They are right. Whenever the AKC crowd has shown up, they screwed up the breed they got involved in. Lokk at the AMERICAN shepherd, no working ability left in them whatsoever. HAve you ever seen them in the AKC show ring? With their arched backs and little tiny heads. The disease has even reached some of Germany, the father land of the Shepherd. The SV club which is the parent club of the German shepherd and the German police have severed ties after more then 100 years because the SV stuck its head in the conformation toilet. And they are breeding monkeys instead of dogs. Now the police is going to Holland and Belgium and buying BElgian Malinois that can actually work. Well, the AKC is doing its part in destrying the working brees too by taking all working ability out of them. If anyone cares to discuss this some more, and I am sure that I have ignited several fires here, email me privately so we do not take up space away from other people here.

Answer 7

I don't think that's really the case. The AKC is just a well-developed well known registration and breeding organization. There are reasons that some breeds are not accepted by the AKC. Some of these reasons may be inbreeding and aggression.

I know for a fact that Pit Bulls are not accepted by the AKC because the breed is known to be aggressive. I don't agree with this because in my eyes, it's the owner that makes the dog, not the breed that makes the dog. However, Pit Bulls do have there own registration organization.

The AKC is not the only recognized authority on dog breeds. Perhaps if you get a dog, you may not want to register with them; or you may not want to register at all.

Answer 8

You cant pay enough to the AKC and have any dog registered. Who told you that? The AKC is a record of blood line without it you cant register it no matter how much you pay. I have and love mutts too. Their value to me is just as much as my AKC registered dogs. You certainly cant tell me they are worthless. I wouldn't have worked forty years in a shelter if mutts were worthless. Breeds get developed over years, even today's AKC dogs were developed with a purpose in mind. Then a standard is created for that breed. Only dogs that meet that standard are approved.

Answer 9

the AKC has nothing to do with "money" and nobody will never obtain papers from the AKC for a dog "with the right amount of money"...
I've had dogs that were AKC champions and I've had mutts and I've had purebred dogs that didnt have AKC 'papers'.
An AKC-certified breeder can register their pups, but if one is "imperfect", that dog should be neutered/spayed so as not to introduce faults into the lineage.
AKC sets a certain standard, I think that's why people hold it in such high esteem...it's kind of like going to Harvard vs the Jr. College--you might take the same classes but a degree from Harvard is "worth more" than the degree from the ju-co.

Answer 10

It's not so much AKC, but "Reputable Registry". In the US, you can register with AKC or United (not Universal) Kennel club and be considered reputable. In Canada, we register with the Canadian Kennel Club. Each country has their own reigstry, and each registry recognizes different dogs.

It's not that a breed is not AKC recognized, it's if it's not recognized by ANY reputable registry that is the problem. There is no reputable registry in the world that recognizes cockapoos, labradoodles or puggles. There are certain standards that need to be met before something is considered to be a breed.

As has been pointed out, the requirements of AKC registration are not overly onerous. You need to keep proper records, dogs need to be properly identified, only pups of registered parents can themselves be registered. Therefore, people who register with the "alternate" registries (like Continental Kennel Club) are considered to be too lax even to meet these minimal standards. Where else are they cutting corners?