Rescue Pup Wows the Crowds with Disc Tricks Bonnie Scott adopted Mars as a puppy from a shelter to be a companion. She quickly realized Mars was athletic and smart and needed a job. The two discovered disc and have excelled at UpDog Challenge competitions. AKC began recognizing UpDog titles last year. Read how to […]

State Issues: News from the State Capitols  Here are some highlights of state-level issues AKC GR is currently tracking. California – Senate Bill 573 would require all shelters to scan a dog for a microchip and would require all shelters and rescues to not release a dog – even back to its owner – without […]

Sherin Denny-Jenkins was out on a walk in Berlin in 2007 when she spotted someone coming her way with a dog. “All I could think was ‘Wow, that’s a beautiful dog!’ It was pretty and goofy at the same time,” she says. “I began talking to its owner and that was my introduction to the […]

Nobody forgets their first dog: the childhood games, the companionship, and the undying loyalty between a kid and their pup. Now, researchers in Australia have found that bonding with a family dog can give even very young children much more than lifelong fond memories. A new study published in the journal Pediatric Research finds that […]

The AKC Juniors program offers children ages nine to under 18 an opportunity to develop their handling skills and learn about good sportsmanship, dogs, and dog shows. Juniors are eligible to compete in Showmanship, Obedience, Agility, Rally, Tracking, Hunt Tests, Herding, Field Trials, Earthdog, Lure Coursing, Coursing Ability, and Coonhound Events. There is no minimum […]

At the 2018 Brittany National Specialty, Paige Giebel and her Brittany, Turbo, were awarded the People's Choice award. "I was so honored to know that Brittany breeders and Brittany lovers chose Turbo as their 2018 People's Choice winner," says 16-year-old Paige. That moment was the highlight of the teenager's dog show career so far. Half […]

Welcome to the AKC's Canine Good Citizen (CGC) Program. Started in 1989, the CGC Program is designed to reward dogs who have good manners at home and in the community. The Canine Good Citizen Program is a two-part program that stresses responsible pet ownership for owners and basic good manners for dogs. All dogs who […]

The AKC works with several non-AKC service and sports organizations to recognize the titles that AKC-registered dogs earn in their programs. This includes the AKC Therapy Dog titling program and the AKC Search & Rescue title program. AKC also recognizes titles of the Barn Hunt Association (BHA); North American Diving Dogs (NADD); the North American Flyball […]

Owners who say their dogs can feel what they're feeling aren't imagining it. The proof may be in a yawn. A body of research shows that dogs are more likely to yawn when their owners do. It's a phenomenon called contagious yawning, and you've probably even done it yourself. You see someone yawn, so you […]