The truth about the American Kennel Club is exposed on the Today Show

The Today show recently aired a news piece that I hope everyone who cares about animals will watch because it exposes the truth about the American Kennel Club and its actual activities, or lack thereof to adequately inspect and responsibly regulate its registered dog breeders.

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We have long known that an AKC registration of a dog or puppy provides absolutely no reliable representation of the conditions that the dog was bred in or the physical or emotional health of the pet. But, unfortunately, many members of the public think that an AKC registration is some sort of seal of approval about health of the puppy they buy and the conditions in which that puppy was raised. In fact, one would hope that the AKC would help and support the work that the Humane Society of the United States and the ASPCA have done to address the dreadful conditions in puppy mills but, in truth, they actually have worked to resist standards of care and conditions being placed on breeding operations.

After being rescued from a puppy mill, a dog is evaluated by Richmond SPCA Chief of Education and Training Sarah Babcock.

The Richmond SPCA has worked with the HSUS and the ASPCA to break up heart-breaking puppy mills in Virginia and other states in which innocent animals were being subjected to horrifying conditions all for the financial gain of the heartless people in charge. As a result, we know first-hand the serious need for the imposition of standards for the safety, health and cleanliness of these breeding operations. For that reason, we worked hard a few years ago to urge the members of the Virginia General Assembly to pass a bill that would have placed reasonable requirements on commercial breeding operations in Virginia. That bill was strongly and vocally opposed by the AKC.

The bottom line is that, if you really care about the welfare of the wonderful dogs and cats that share our world, then you should always find your new family member at a shelter. When you adopt a dog or cat from the Richmond SPCA, it allows us to immediately go save another deserving pet from a shelter where his or her life may be at risk. You will not only have a wonderful new best friend but you will also sleep well knowing that you saved a life. That sure beats supporting the sorts of horrifying breeding operations that are documented in the Today segment.

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Robin Robertson Starr is the chief executive officer of the Richmond SPCA. To read her biography or that of our other bloggers, please click here. Before posting a comment, please review our comment guidelines. Please note that our comment policy requires a first and last name to be used as your screen name.

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Comments

[annie pelfrey]

as a long time member of local Collie club- i have no use for AKC. it claims to rely on the word of the breeders as to accuracy of parentage. each puppy registered is more dollars to akc.
however, the blame goes to people who don't do their research.the market for puppy mills will dry up ONLY when the public realizes a good breeder would NEVER sell thru a pet store.
there are plenty of healthy purebreds available thru rescue. local breed clubs are a good source of info.
this issue is decades old- how are people still so ignorant?