Uh, you're probably right. I don't pay much attention to these things.

I am SOOo thankful the AKC does not recognize the Dutchie. The very second they do, there goes all the drive and health of these dogs! They will be bred by every other backyard breeder, and suffer the same fate as so many of the GSD's we see- barley meeting 'breed standard' and the true type/personality of the breed. Just IMO, of course.

I was anxiously awaiting to see what AKC did to Kelpies as a breed when they first started recognising them in the Misc class.


AKC has already managed to produce a Border Collie that had no clue what a sheep was. Centuries of selective breeding out the window in a matter af a few generations. The un-herding BC was very pretty with an amazingly thick, long coat. Unbelievable!

It looks as if the Working Kelpies, Inc put a stop to AKC's effort to recognize the Kelpie - Thank what ever Higher Up you wish to thank! I wish more parent clubs were able to do that. Would have helped saved many breeds. GSD, collies, Irish Setters, etc.

---Doodles - I thought the original Labradoodles were bred as 'hypoallergenic Seeing Eye Dogs.' In that particular instance, I have absolutly no qualms with crossbreeding/hybridizing. It's when John Q. Public gets the notion that they can cross a lab with a poodle and make mega bucks, that's whan I get my feathers ruffled. The 'true' Labradoodles were bred to a certain F generation proving they carried the traits bred for, were health screened, and temperment tested. The BYB bred labradoodle-oid dogs (and other
--doodles) drive me up a wall. I have seen scraggly ill-mannered basket case pups advertised 'starting at $1500. Again - unbelievable.

I'll stick to my somewhat unknown breeds, thank you very much. (although, I wouldn't refuse a good Mal or GSD if it happened to show up in say, my Christmas stocking or something)

Although i absolutely think the AKC could and should do more, we have to remember that it is judges, breed clubs and the breeders, whether members of those clubs or not, who determine what happens to a breed. The AKC did not tell judges to put up GSDs that walkon their haunches,or breeders to breed dogs together that had bad hips (for example) just because those particular dogs were winners. Those things were and are done by people who should know better as well as ignorant BYBs.

I know in my breed, the TFT, the AKC breed club powers that be are turning it into another overly-delicate Toy breed. I think this is detrimental to the breed and it does not follow what their breed standard says.

And the fact that the AKC, especially AKC judges do not have the courage to refuse ribbons or put up dogs that, although not in the current "style" certainly upsets me about many breeds including the GSD and TFT. But, I have to remember that the AKC is merely a registry and that it is ultimately the responsibility of breeders and, to a somewhat lesser extent, judges to guard and protect the health and breed traits of the various breeds.

I wonder, could much of the problem be that people have become so urbanized that most no longer really know or understand what the breed standards actually mean because the terminology, much of which comes from horse terminology, is no longer really understood by most?

 Quote:

It looks as if the Working Kelpies, Inc put a stop to AKC's effort to recognize the Kelpie - Thank what ever Higher Up you wish to thank! I wish more parent clubs were able to do that.

If the Kelpie continues to gain popularity, the AKC will be back. That's kind of how they started out with BCs, too. Then as the breed gained popularity they found a nothing parent club to go through to start recognizing BCs when the ABCA wouldn't work with them. There was a huge demand for BCs so they figured out how to get a hold of the breed.

When it comes right down to it the AKC is mostly about politics and financial bottom line these days.

I'm not sure who approaches whom, but it is absolutely correct that if a group within a breed decides they want AKC recognition and those people form a separate national breed club they can definitely, and successfully work towards and get AKC recognition no matter what others (even if a majority) in the breed think or want.

Last I heard (quite a while ago) the good folks in Australia were screening puppy customers by asking if they were destined for show or work. They (Australian breeders) are actually trying to push for splitting Kelpies into two separate breeds - working class and showing. I think I read something about GSD people wanting to do that at one time or 'nuther. I could be mistaken, tho. I was so disillusioned with AKC (not the registry per say, the politics and people) when I got into dogs. I thought that by buying 'show dogs,' I was doing the right thing. Turns out, the research I thought I did was wrong. The dogs I purchased, though loveable, were so very NOT what I was looking for or even what I was told, by the breed contact person and the breeder herself, what they were capable of doing, etc.
I am so much happier with my working bred Kelpies and Coolies that when I saw Kelpies show up in the AKC Misc class, I was heartsick.
I only hope the AKC people don't get their hands on Kelpies, or any of the other unrecogonized breeds out there. We deserve a few good breeds not destroyed by their good looks.

 Quote: Lisa skinner

I only hope the AKC people don't get their hands on Kelpies, or any of the other unrecogonized breeds out there. We deserve a few good breeds not destroyed by their good looks.

I believe the AKC is no longer considering the Kelpie for recognition at the request of the breed club: http://www.akc.org/about/faq.cfm?page=12#kelpie
Like has been previously mentioned though, we can only hope that some sub-group doesn't form and push for AKC recognition. This also happened with the Australian Shepherd and I believe the Jack Russell Terrier as well.

Edited by Jasmine Dillon (08/17/2010 12:50 PM)
Edit reason: whoops sorry, saw that Lisa mentioned this up above