|
|
Across The Board
Direct From The Major Registries
 |
The American Kennel Club
CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
|
February 2007 -
In the 1950s, the Poodle skirt as a fashion trend embodied the
popularity of the number one AKC® registered breed. And if the
recent media attention surrounding the release of AKC's 2006
Registration Statistics is any indication, not only does the
Labrador Retriever reign supreme, but the purebred dog remains one
of the most popular cultural icons in America. For further proof,
one need only look to an AKC-registered yellow lab named Marley
whose story still sits atop the New York Times bestsellers list for
more than 63 weeks to prove our point.
Last month's announcement of our registration statistics, with a
focus on the "Top 10" breeds, has reached more than 60 million
people to date. Launched with an appearance on NBC's Today Show and
a press event and photo opportunity at the "Top of the Rock"
observation deck at Rockefeller Center, the news soon traveled to
media across the country and even abroad. In the New York metro area
alone, AKC made headlines on the electronic news scroll around the
Fox News building, in Grand Central Terminal and Penn Station. New
Yorkers also saw "America's Dog" - a larger than life smiling yellow
Lab - staring back at them from an AKC window display at the Empire
State Building.
A day after our press event, pictures of the "crowned" yellow Lab
and a tiny Yorkshire Terrier sidekick were splashed across the pages
of the New York Times, New York Post, Newsday, New York Observer and
the New York Daily News. AKC spokespersons were in demand and
appeared on national outlets such as the Fox News Channel and Martha
Stewart Living Radio to talk about the joys of purebred dog
ownership and the benefits of a predictable purebred. Additionally,
the ascent of the Yorkshire Terrier to the number two spot garnered
attention in the New York Times for a second time that week,
appearing in the widely read Sunday section "Week in Review."
America Online (AOL) even polled members on its homepage by showing
photos of the top 10 AKC registered breeds.
We were flattered by all this attention, yet didn't know we had
truly "arrived" until becoming fodder for satire on NBC's Saturday
Night Live. On the "Weekend Update" segment, which makes light of
the news of the day, the anchor proudly displayed the Labrador
Retriever alongside the AKC logo and announced the top three breeds.
Next, she named a fictitious last place breed, the "take-a-poo," by
flashing a photo of a generic dog living up to its name.
In addition to all the national press attention, we ensured that AKC
made news locally by segmenting the registration data by city.
Separate press releases denoting local trends and their specific
"Top 10" breeds were sent to the 50 largest U.S. cities. Coverage
from this initiative continues to pour in, but to date has included
the Boston Globe, Washington Times, Charlotte Observer, Dayton Daily
News, Sacramento Bee, Houston Business Journal, Rocky Mountain News
and the Arizona Republic as well as TV segments on stations such as
KNBC (Burbank), WCCO (Minneapolis), WTAE (Pittsburgh), and WMC
(Memphis.)
Each year, we will continue to celebrate America's most popular AKC
registered purebred dogs with a major media announcement. But, we
always know that where the fancy is concerned, no matter where your
breed ranks, it's always number one on your list.
Sincerely,
|
Highlights from the February 2007
meeting of the AKC Board
of Directors
* The Boykin Spaniel will become eligible to
compete in the Miscellaneous Class, effective January 1, 2008.
* The Board approved specific activities that a club must meet in
order to maintain its eligibility to hold shows. The specifics are
included in the minutes of this meeting.
* The jump height requirements in Obedience for the Dogue de
Bordeaux and the Neapolitan Mastiff are to be lowered to
three-quarters of the height at the withers, effective July 1, 2007.
* The Entlebucher Mountain Dog was approved to compete in AKC
Companion Events, effective June 27, 2007.
A lot of focus on the
positive side of falling registrations, go figure.
Great TV coverage and AKC window display at Empire State Bldg. TV and
press coverage which has been long overdue, hat's off to AKC on this!
Short, boring list but then it was Westminster and that was anything but short
or boring! Great dogs, wonderful people, and excitement to spare.
AKC JUDGING CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY
Here is the
actual policy that has generated so much debate:
"The American Kennel Club ® Board of Directors has adopted a new
Judging Conflict of Interest Policy, effective January 1, 2007. AKC
® believes that it has the best judges in the world and expends
millions of dollars a year to administer its judging approval system
to ensure that quality remains high.
“AKC judging approval confers a certain status on an individual and
with such status comes an enormous responsibility to both AKC and
the Sport as governed by AKC,” said President and CEO Dennis B.
Sprung.
The policy states, with some notable exceptions, that AKC approved
judges should be focused on judging and supporting AKC events.
Approved judges should not have a significant interest in another
registry that is in direct conflict with AKC or be judging for
another event-giving organization to the possible detriment of
events held by AKC member and licensed clubs.
The complete policy is as follows. Bolding has added
for added for emphasis.
JUDGING CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY
No AKC judge may have a significant interest in a dog registry or
dog event-giving organization deemed by the AKC Board to be in
competition with the American Kennel Club. Significant interest
would include, but not be limited to ownership of, employment by, a
directorship in, and holding office in.
Any AKC-approved judge, who shall judge a purebred dog event in the
U.S. not in accordance with the rules of AKC, which apply to such
purebred dog events without the express permission of the AKC, may
be disciplined even to the extent of having his or her AKC judging
approval revoked.
An AKC-approved judge may judge breeds that are not AKC registrable
and/or that they have not been approved for by AKC at non-AKC
events. The AKC Board has also given permission for the judging of
certain other events based upon the following criteria:
1. AKC has no comparable events in place.
2. While AKC has a program in place, AKC judges have officiated at
events under the aegis of the other organization for years before
the AKC program was initiated.
3. The type of event is not or would not be perceived as being
contrary to the best interest of AKC and the sport of purebred dogs.
4. The event is a breed or type of breed-specific performance
activity.
No
AKC approval is needed to judge versatility or performance
activities developed by AKC Parent Clubs and sponsored by such
clubs.
Events held by the following organizations meet the above criteria,
and AKC-approved judges may continue to judge them:
• American Sighthound Field Association Coursing Events
• American Working Terrier Association Earthdog Events
• American Herding Breed Association Events
• North American Versatility Dog Association Pointing Breed Hunting
Tests
• American Field Pointing Breed Field Trials
• United Kennel Club Coonhound Events
• Professional Kennel Club Coonhound Events
• Any of the various organizations sponsoring Agility Trials
Other activities may be added to this list at the discretion of the
AKC Board.
...... end of quotation
____________________ Handy links:
Senior Conf. Judges Assoc. Letter to the AKC Board April 2006
Individual Rights or AKC's Right to
Change The Rules in Mid-Game?
Senior Conf. Judges Assoc. Letter To Members
No Judges' Associations Were Contacted, SCJA
Reacts, Seeks Input
Conflict Policy Prohibits Learning New Breeds May 2006
Where Are Judges To Learn About
Plott Hounds and Icelandic Dogs?
 Across
The Board Index
Send Your
Comments and Club News to
contact@thedogpress.com |
