American Kennel Club
The American Kennel Club (or AKC) is one of the largest registries of purebred dog pedigrees in the United States. Beyond maintaining their pedigree registry, it also promotes events for purebred dogs, including the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, an annual event which predates the official forming of the AKC, and the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship.
For a dog to be registered with the AKC, the dog's parents must be registered with the AKC as the same breed, and the litter in which the dog is born must be registered with the AKC. Once these criteria are met, the dog can be registered as purebred by the AKC.
The registration specifies only that the dog is purely of one recognized breed; it does not specify that the dog comes from healthy or show-quality blood lines. Neither is it a reflection on the quality of the breeder or how the puppy was raised.
Registration is necessary only for breeders (so they can sell registered puppies) or for purebred dog show or purebred dog sports participation (similar to the medieval requirement of royalty for jousting competitions).
As of September, 2004, the AKC recognizes only 150 of the hundreds of dog breeds known around the world. The AKC is not the only registry of purebred dogs, but it is the one with which most Americans are familiar.
See also: List of dog breeds
