We often hear dog shows accused of being nothing but “beauty contests.” In reality, they’re organized more like job fairs. At AKC shows, dogs are exhibited in seven groups organized by the original work the breeds were created to do. The dog judged best in each group becomes one of the final seven to vie […]

Poodles retain their position as the country’s top dog for a second decade and have regularly remained in the top ten since. The Doberman Pinscher made its first appearance in the top ten in the 1970s as the number-three breed. The breed would remain in the top ten for the 1980s as well. The Miniature […]

The Boston Terrier, a top-ten breed for six decades of the 20th century, has reached the number-one position twice, including in the 1910s. The Airedale Terrier reached the number-two position, the highest the breed would ever claim, appearing in the top ten for three consecutive decades and then never regaining its national popularity. The decade […]

The Collie, on a continual climb since its number-seven position in the 1880s, became the number-one breed of the first decade of the new century. The breed ranked in the top ten breeds for seven decades of the 20th century. The number-two breed of the decade, the Boston Terrier, became the first small companion dog […]

Accepted into AKC in 1885, the Saint Bernard swiftly rose to the position of the most popular dog of the 1890s. To this day, it is the only giant breed to secure the country’s top position as well as the only number-one breed to never appear in the top ten again. In later decades, two […]

The top five breeds of the 1880s were all working gundog breeds. While this is the only decade that the English Setter reigned as the number-one breed, it remained in the top ten for four decades, though it hasn’t appeared there in the top ten since the 1910s. Irish Setters, the number-two breed of the […]

The 1880s was the only decade that the English Setter reigned as the number-one breed and it remained in the top ten for four decades, but hasn’t been in the top ten since the 1910s. Irish Setters, the number-two breed of the decade, fell to number seven in the 1890s and then did not make […]

When a new breed is accepted in the American Kennel Club a special type of registration known as Open Registration, is available for a limited time. The American Kennel Club in conjunction with the Parent Club (also known as a national breed club) sets this time frame for the breed. Eligibility for Open Registration In […]

2013 Versatile Weimaraner Earns JHR Title 2011 Pictures of Hunt Test Judges Riding 4-Wheelers/ATVs 2009 Nutmeg German Shorthaired Pointer Club by Chuck Kimbrel AKC Sporting Breeds Hunt With Wounded Warriors Montana Brittany Club by Tom Maneely St. Croix Valley Brittany Club and Twin Cities Vizsla Club 2008 Gordon Setter Club of America South Dakota Pointing […]

The AKC Archives is arranged into four major groups: Clubs, including AKC Member Clubs and Parent Clubs People AKC Administrative Visual Materials In addition to the library book and periodical collection, there is also an assortment of photographs, pamphlets, clippings, pedigrees, and more in the Library & Archives vertical files. Contact the Archivist for further information on undescribed […]