This whole AKC situation is new to me. I understand that AKC can only do so much because there are certain laws in place, the USDA tends to group dog breeders in the same category as cows and pigs. But what I find disturbing is AKC actions and their apparent lack of concern as to how the litters are produced and raised. Their concern for big profits seem to be at the expense of the animals.
...These quotes are from The Philadelphia Inquirer's investigative report.....I provided the link above...All of these former investigators tell us where AKC's priorities are....
The former inspectors claim that the AKC registry has been tarnished. They told the Inquirer that the registry is "no longer reliable" because the organization has, in recent years, accepted so many dogs without proper papers and proven lineage into the registry. In addition, they informed the Inquirer that in many cases, "
the AKC knows the registrations are suspect but approves them anyway for a fee. The AKC has never undertaken a thorough study of its stud book." (There are actually two AKC books: the registry which lists the names of all purebred dogs registered with the AKC and the stud book which lists all dogs that have been bred.)
Robert Nejdl who became the AKC's first investigator in 1973 and retired in 1994 told the Inquirer the following: When people buy an AKC dog, they expect it to be of high quality and they expect the papers to truly match the dog.
But that's not often true. It's just so much window dressing. The American Kennel Club is in the registration business and not the de-registration business. It's the cash cow."
Robert E. Hufford, an eight year employee and a former manager of field agents, stated that the AKC is nothing more than a "moneymaking operation." According to Hufford,
"'the AKC is shipping out registration papers daily they knew should have been canceled out. The bottom line is the AKC, they don't give a damn [about conditions] as long as the checks don't bounce.'"
Rona Farley, an inspector from 1991 to 1995, estimated in a court affidavit that
90 percent of the breeders she inspected did not meet AKC record-keeping requirements. She informed the Inquirer that very few noncomplying breeders were, to her knowledge, ever disciplined, sanctioned or suspended. In fact, when breeders failed to comply with AKC rules, the AKC told her to help these breeders re-create records.
Sharon D. Reed, a five year investigator, said that the
AKC never wanted dog registrations canceled, even those that were fraudulent. When AKC told her that they didn't want to harm consumers by canceling registrations, she informed them that they were only augmenting the harm. Reed told the Inquirer that "'AKC registration is worthless."
Mike Reilly, an inspector from 1985 to 1994, told the Inquirer that the AKC "'didn't want to know anything that would upset the applecart. They wanted everything to run smoothly, get the registration money, don't make waves. The bottom line is the money.'"
Martie W. King, an investigator for four years, said that the AKC did not want to cancel registrations because if they removed too many dogs, the AKC might have to refund money."
FTC Warning: The American Kennel Club Cannot Be Trusted
Previous findings of its inspectors, senior staff, administrators, board members, and court transcripts indicate that registration papers should not have been issued in 50%-90% of the cases actually investigated. In a 1995 court submission, the AKC stated it had erroneously registered 600,000 dogs and made approximately $5 million dollars by selling the certification papers to unsuspecting consumers.
Because of its practices, puppy mills continue to breed dogs which (if they survive the abhorrent conditions of their birth) may suffer from chronic diseases for the duration of their short miserable lives. AKC supports such breeders and has renamed them "High Volume Breeders" in a new public relations effort to increase registration income. There is no progeny testing, no follow-up on puppies sent out by the breeders, and thus no controls on breeding genetically defective animals.
From CanineChronicle:
Although the committee was named “high volume breeders committee,” members pointed out that it had visited everything BUT high volume breeders.
The committee recommended in-creasing I&I staff and budget to allow inspection of all high volume breeders annually; expanding pet store inspections; creating a rapid response to emergency and high profile situations; establishing closer cooperation and working relationships with regulatory agencies; creating a speakers bureau for appropriate venues; and developing an emergency plan for high volume kennels
.... close reading of the Gazette will show that AKC is
very rarely suspending breeders for inadequate standards of care, having decided to help them improve their kennel conditions instead. Such a plan would be commendable if those kennels were then inspected in 30 days or even 60 days to see if those improvements had been made. But this is generally not the case.
Then there is their total the lack of concern concerning pedigree fraud and stud book errors that the AKC has refused to correct even when presented with documentation that it had occurred. This is from The Dog Press, in which the article only presented three cases but they claim there are many more cases just like them....the article is to long to copy so I provided the link....
Pedigree Fraud Pt. 1 - AKC Stud Book Corruption, Bulldog, Kuvasz, Samoyed, Mastiff. TheDogPlace Exclusive
And then there is the newly formed committee called "High Volume Breeders", made up by the AKC which is a clever way to associate with puppymills. This is the AKC"s way of getting around the issue of teaming up with puppymills and still be able to register all the massive amounts of litters they' will produce under the guise of "helping" them by guiding them in the right direction to clean up their practices.
AKC SUPPORTS PUPPY MILLS AFTER VISITING HUNTE CORP. WORLD'S LARGEST PUPPY BROKER, by Gayle Roberson, for The Dog Press
These actions have nothing to do with following USDA laws these actions are ways to increase profits. The AKC appears to have made calculated, deliberate decisions that have nothing to do with ensuring the health and well being of the dogs and everything to do with money. What a shame......