The 2015 Obedience and AKC Rally National Champions were crowned this weekend at the American Kennel Club's National Obedience Championship and the AKC Rally National Championship, held at Purina Farms just outside of St. Louis, Missouri. The Championships drew more than 500 of the most highly trained dogs in the nation. Pamela Manaton, AKC Director […]

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 […]

The Labrador Retriever has done it again. The intelligent, family friendly breed held onto the number one spot on the most popular list for the 24th consecutive year, continuing the longest reign as the nation’s top dog in American Kennel Club history. For the full list of breed rankings, click here. While the Lab holds strong, […]

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 […]

Every year, the AKC releases the list of most popular breeds. But which breeds were top 10 from 2000-2009? Find out here!

The country’s top breed of the 1990s, the Labrador Retriever, continues in its popularity to this day. The Rottweiler, accepted by the AKC in 1931, makes its first appearance in the decade’s top ten as the number-two breed, the highest ranking of any first-timer on the list (since the Boston Terrier in the 1900s). The […]

The number-one breed of the 1940s, the Cocker Spaniel, enjoyed a renaissance in the 1980s, climbing to the number-one position. The breed was the most popular dog in the nation from 1983 to 1990, giving it the distinction of holding the number-one spot for more years than any other breed to that point (23). After […]

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 […]

Its price tag is $4.5 million for 30 seconds. More than 110 million people from vastly different backgrounds—young and old, rich and poor, men and women—will see it and then pass judgment, depending on how well you tickle their funny bones or tug at their heartstrings. So what’s the secret to getting the biggest bang […]

The Merrimac Dog Training Club hosts an annual Canine Kids Camp, where children with disabilities take part in fun dog competitions. Each child takes one of the member’s dogs, who are all trained performance and/or therapy dogs, through a small agility course, a small AKC Rally® course and a therapy dog training session. One 10-year-old […]