The Truth About AKC Dog Breeds: Canines That Make The Cut

Ever wonder why some of our canine companions make the breed cut and some of the more popular ones do not? Getting your pet dog’s breed recognized by the AKC or the American Kennel Club means that certain criteria must be met first and foremost. For starters, your canine pet must fall under one from the six pure breed category only. These categories include: herding dogs (e.g. Old English Sheepdog, German Shepherd Dog, Collie); hound dogs (Bloodhound, Dachshund, Irish Wolfhound); non-sporting dogs (British Bulldog, Dalmatian, Poodle); sporting dogs (Golden Retriever, Irish Water Spaniel, Pointer); toy dogs (Chihuahua, Pug, Shih Tzu); and working dogs (Boxer, Great Dane, Siberian Husky.)

With 153 recognized AKC dog breeds; there are still surprising numbers of canine companions that are not making the cut. In fact, more than 200 breeds are being applied for acknowledgment already, but AKC sometimes finds that people’s “interest” in the dog is too low to merit recognition. And when we say “interest,” we mean that keeping the breed line going for long periods of time. A fair number of dog breeders must continue keeping the population up, while maintaining specific characteristics that make the canines “acceptable.” This means that the dog being bred hereafter should be sturdy, healthy, and preferably, with their bloodline traced and monitored.

Unfortunately, the craze for breeding “designer dogs” or crossbred dogs from two prominent and distinct breeds (e.g. Cockapoo, Puggle, Labradoodle) is not at par with the AKC standards. Although these dogs are very popular now among canine enthusiasts, these animals still pretty much lack acceptability, interest from breeders and documentation of their bloodlines.