Newest Members of the AKC Family

The American Kennel Club now has 164 recognized breeds. Three of the new breeds have already participated in the prestigious Westminister Kennel Club Show at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Breeds accepted are not necessarily new. The AKC has very strict rules about admitting new dogs to the ranks and it can take a long time for a breed to make it. Simply put, breeders have to apply and the dog need to have distinct qualities across the breed

The Irish red and white setter was admitted to the sporting group. It is an old breed that was known in Ireland at least as far back as the 17th century. The breed almost went extinct by the end of the 19th century. The breed started to make a comeback in the 1940's, but it took till 2009 for the breed to meet the qualifications for admittance to the AKC. The dog has a long, white silky coat with red patches, is one of the completers at Westminister and ranks number 80 in number of litters registered in 2009.

The Norwegian buhund is another one of the new breeds that competed at Westminster. The breed, although a different version of the one today, was a companion of the Vikings as far back as 900. The breed features a thick pale cream to bright orange coat and ranks number 104 in number of litters.

The Pyrenean shepherd has either a smooth or rough coat with a ta, copper, charcoal, silver or pearl gray coat. This is the third new breed at Westminster and ranks number 107 in the number of new litters.

The bluetick coonhound has been admitted to the hound group and has a dark blue coat with a ticking and mottled pattern and ranks number 44 in the number of litters registered.

Theredbone coonhound has a short, smooth, red coat, hunts both small and large game. This one ranks number 41.

Last but not least is the boykin spaniel, the official state dog of South Carolina and is a medium-sized hunting dog with a rich, chocolate-brown coat. The boykin spaniel ranks number 92 in the number of litters.

The number one dog in the country ranked by the number of litters registered in a single year is the same as it has been since 1999- the most populat dog in America, the Labrador retriever. The breed coming in number 164 is the English foxhound.

Source;

AKC