The American Kennel Club And A Few Accepted Dog Breeds

The American Kennel Club has been around for a lot of years. They offer registration for dogs and can grant a certified electronic or printed document that displays the family of a dog and all the other critical particulars of the ancestry of the dog. The American Kennel Club has been the advocate for dog owners and dogs in this country for many years.

There are over 160 breeds of established purebred dogs that the AKC recognizes. There are the popular breeds that are well-known to nearly everybody like the Labrador Retriever or the Cocker Spaniel and there are some very obscure breeds that are much more scarce like the Borzoi or the Petit Basset Griffon Venden.

Each known breed is part of a larger group, which signifies the uniqueness of the breed and the purpose for which they were initially bred, be it herding, hunting or even just for pets.

The sporting group includes breeds that have innate instincts for water and woods. Many of these dogs are good with hunting and other field activities. Breeds from the sporting groups need habitual, energizing exercise. Sporting dog breeds include pointers, retrievers, setters and spaniels.

The breeds from the hound group were bred for hunting. These breeds as a rule have great endurance and an heightened sense of smell in order to stalk prey. Basset hounds, Beagles and Bloodhounds are part of the hound group.

Dogs from the working group include Siberian huskies and Great Danes. These dogs were normally bred to labor at pulling sleds or performing water rescues. Terriers are another group and they are commonly spirited and spunky in character. They were originally bred to chase and kill vermin.

The toy group was primarily bred as a pet and as true to their name they tend to be little but bouncy. There are little dogs in every group however, so all small dogs are not categorized into the toy group. Some of the toy breeds include the spunky Chihuahua and the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. The next group is the non-sporting group and it includes such breeds as the Chow-chow and Dalmatian. The Poodle is also part of the non-sporting group.

The herding group is the latest classification that just came about in 1983. These breeds were in the past part of the working group. These dogs were bred to herd other animals such as cattle or sheep. These include the Corgi and the Shetland Sheepdog. Each group of breeds has their own unique uniqueness and you need to check them out to see which one appeals to you.