AKC Honors Mixed-Breed Doggies: The Canine Partner Program

Hey, are you tired of people calling your mixed-breed dog a mutt? Seeing pedigreed dogs turn up their noses at his mixed-up-ness? Enough with the disdain for mixed-breed dogs of uncertain ancestry. Even the AKC® has had it with those snobs. Because on April 1, 2010, they announced that your mixed-breed dog can have status and recognition through registry in the AKC Canine Partners^sm Program. That means Sir Mutt can compete in AKC Rallies®, Agility contests and Obedience trials right along with his purebred counterparts. Hah! At last every dog can have his day, walk proudly into an AKC Kennel Club®, and win a ribbon while he's there.

Do AKC Canine Partners Have More Fun?

Imagine it. You and Sir Mutt at an AKC Agility Trial. There he goes, scampering over A-frames, shooting through tunnels and springing over jumps, responding instantly to your body language and verbal cues, passing up purebreds and leaving dandified dogs in the dust. Winner! You knew he was a star.

Or maybe you and Lady Mutt enter an AKC Rally with 10 to 20 stations where doggie can show her stuff, and soon she trots away with an AKC Rally title: Novice, Advanced, Excellent and Advanced Excellent. AKC Rallies are fun for dogs and the people they own, and bridge the gap between AKC Canine Good Citizen certification and formal Obedience and Agility training.

As the crowd ooh's and aah's over your mixed-breed champion, someone is bound to ask "What kind of dog is that?" Rather than list everything in doggie's DNA (A Sheltiehuahua? A Chowkypoo? (Chow, husky and possibly poodle.) German Chow? Huskypoo? Frenchweiller? ) simply say "Fang? He's an AKC Canine Partner."

AKC Canine Partners Can Be Designer Dogs or Heinz 57 Variety Mix-o-Mutts

The Mix-o-Mutt

These mixed breed animals have long been appreciated for their genetic diversity and vigor. Yet, they often end up abandoned. That's why soft-hearted dog lovers search out mix-o-mutts rather than think of them languishing at shelters, or eventually being euthanized. These pet owners are usually rewarded for their kindness with a lively, healthy, happy, and even grateful dog who combines the best traits of two or more breeds.

The Design-a-Dog

These fashionable hybrids often have the genetic vigor of a mix-o-mutt but are deliberate concoctions of favorite breeds. The advantage of Designer Dogs is that the pet owners of such pups know pretty much the potential size and temperament of their masterpiece pooches. But don't try this at home; hybrid breeding is not just the result of any old pug mated with any old beagle. The original "recipe" for a puggle, for instance, combines a purebred beagle Mom (for easier birthing) and a purebred pug Dad, which is why puggles and other desirable design-a-dogs can be pretty pricey. Some of these doggies are such appealing combinations, they may soon be recognized in AKC's Miscellaneous breed category. In the meantime, they are welcome as AKC Canine Partners in AKC Kennel Clubs and competitive events. And when someone asks "What kind of doggie is that?" you may be able to answer as follows:

Labradoodle (Labrador/Poodle)
Puggle (Pug/Beagle)
Schnoodle (Poodle/Schnauzer)
Chion (Chihuahua/Papillon)
Chorky (Chihuahua/Yorkie)
Goldendoodle (Golden Retriever/Poodle)
Shih-Poo (ShihTzu/Poodle)
Shih-Shon (ShihTzu/BichonFrise)
And many more.

AKC Canine Partners Now Welcome at 1,500 AKC clubs

"The American Kennel Club® (AKC®) along with hundreds of its licensed clubs around the nation are gearing up to welcome mixed-breed dogs to compete side-by-side with purebreds in Companion Events as part of the new AKC Canine Partners^sm program. More than 1,500 AKC clubs are planning AKC Rally®, Agility and Obedience trials open to mixed-breeds in 2010, with more clubs signing on daily." To encourage mixed-breed dog lovers to join the fun, AKC offers "lifetime enrollment in AKC Companion Animal Recovery Lost & Found Recovery Service, a complimentary 60-Day trial of the AKC Pet Healthcare Plan**, a one-year subscription to AKC Family Dog magazine, and a frameable Official Decree of Dog Fun and an AKC Canine Partners Decal." (For updated membership costs and details, click here.)

Sources:

AKC Canine Partners Program
AKC Canine Partners Benefits Listing
Mixed Dog Breeds
Puggle Nation
Discovering Labradoodles