Pari’s owner Mary Ann Igoe of Blackfoot, ID, tells us the story of how the now 5-year-old Pari came into her life and became a successful competitor. Pari and I were introduced in fall 2011 when I volunteered to walk a humane society dog in need of a home at a local Mutt Strut. When […]

Portia Rocks Alsup THDD owned by Kathleen Smiley-Aslup of Rockford, IL Portia was a stray, found wandering the streets, and was taken in by Bullmastiff rescue groups after her rescue. But even rescue did not know what to do with her after a foster home did not want her back and adoptive owners returned her. […]

If your dog loves the water and loves to retrieve, then the fun sport of dock diving should be a natural. The AKC began recognizing titles of the new North America Diving Dogs (NADD) organization in June 2014 so now you can also add a dock jumping title to your dog’s AKC records. The sport […]

A visiting dog did her best, but she could not raise the 10-year-old’s spirits. “He looked at Kacey and was just lying there and petting her head a bit while she had her head on the bedside,” Kacey’s owner John Smead recalled. Then the boy’s mother began reading Kacey’s “bio” card that shows her picture […]

It didn’t sound that hard – Beginner Novice Obedience.  After all, we already had our AKC Canine Good Citizen and AKC Rally Novice titles!  And this is an optional title, meant to give dogs experience before the regular Novice Obedience class.  Our trainer walked us through the steps, saying, “I think Magic can do this, […]

If your dog has received the AKC Canine Good Citizen (and perhaps also the AKC CGCA) title, you may have asked “What’s next?”  One answer could be the AKC Beginner Novice obedience title. The Beginner Novice class is a great “next step” for CGC dogs since it works on advancing the skills your dog has […]

Bruiser loves nothing better to run down a dock and fling himself off the edge into the water. His dock diving prowess has earned him numerous awards in the sport. “Bruiser is full of personality and is always ready to take on new challenges,” said his owner Pete Majerle of Peoria, AZ. Bruiser’s career in […]

A Canine Good Citizen is a dog that passes the 10-step CGC test, and is accordingly recognized for meeting the gold standard for dog behavior. AKC sends a certificate suitable for framing to the owners of those dogs. Dogs with the CGC title are also listed in AKC records with the "CGC" suffix after their […]

-- Two Ways to Share the AKC Story this September -- New York, NY – The omnipresent effort of the AKC communication team, led by Chris Walker, continues to generate positive stories about the American Kennel Club and purebred dogs in the news media and in social media. Due to the engaging content the team has […]

--A Shared Agenda for Success-- President John F. Kennedy’s address to a special joint session of Congress on May 25, 1961, was both an historic and a defining moment for the United States. It was during that speech that he announced a plan to put a man on the moon before the decade was over. […]