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AKC Vs. RBDA: What’s The Difference?

What is all the hype about our dogs belonging to a club? Many pet owners do not even belong to a club. Dog owners, who take pride in their pets, will generally register their dogs in some kind of kennel club, especially if they plan to breed their dog. Registered dogs tend to cost a little more and are more appealing to dog buyers.

AKC stands for American Kennel Club. It is the most well known kennel club in the United States. They are dedicated to supporting the sport of pure breeds. They were found back in 1884 and they are a promoter of responsible dog ownership. Although the AKC is dog friendly, no matter the status of the breed, they believe that purebred dogs are more predictable in several aspects. Hence, they believe that purebreds make better pets. Half of American homes have pets and 36% of them are dog owners; Therefore, more emphasis should be placed on the subject.

The AKC stays very active. They encourage the sport of purebred dogs. They sponsor over 15,000 dog competitions a year

The AKC deals with approximately one million applications a year. Although, they do not specialize in the selling of purebreds. Because of this, they can not vouch for the health of the animal.

If you were to purchase a dog that comes from an AKC registered blood line, you will also receive an application for your dog’s registration. Someone who is buying an AKC registered dog must realize that the certification is in no way guarantying that the dog is in perfect health or that the quality of the dog is without flaw. It is only stating that the canine is a direct offspring of a known sire (stud/father) and dam (mother/bitch) and that it is born on a factual date. They must also be from the same breed. In order to register a litter of puppies, the sire and dam must be AKC registered and the litter born in the US.

The owner of the litter wanting to register the litter must fill out an application which requires basic information such as: date of mating and birth, the number of males and females born in the litter, the sire and dam’s registered names and numbers and lastly the owner’s address and signature. You must fill out the form and send it back to the AKC. They, in turn, will send you paperwork for each individual puppy to be filled out partly by you. Once the puppies have been purchased, the new owner will have to fill out the remaining information and send it back, with a fee, the AKC. After they have processed your application, you should receive an official AKC Certificate in the mail.

The Rare Breed Dog Association is another type of dog registration. You may wonder what exactly is a “rare dog breed.” In simple terms, it is a dog that the American Kennel Club does not recognize. They have a number of services they offer such as: Public awareness of the rare breed dog; Education of the rare breed dog; Registration of the rare breed dog; as well as rare breed dog shows. Their goal is to watch over the “Rare Breed Dog” in the US and educate the public of the over 130 rare dog breeds that are out there. The RBDA have a number of groups that they represent. The following are dog groups along with a few of the actual breeds they represent:

– Companion Group (American Hairless Terrier, Bolognese, Cavalier King Charles)
– Herding group (King and English Shepherd, Akbash)
– Hound group (Basset Artesien Normand, Black Forest Hound, Batard)
– Spitz group (Canadian Estimo Dog, Carolina Dog, Chinook)
– Sporting group [( Barbet, Boykin Spaniel, Bracco Italiano) These sporting group dogs are located in the Gundog group located in various in Europe]
– Terrier group (American Pit Bull Terrier, Cesky Terrier, Jadgterrier)
– Working group ( Aidi, Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog, American Bulldog)

Whether you have a rare breed dog or a purebred dog, there our resources out there to get your dog registered. Once again, either way you go, it does not prove the quality of the animal, just the family line. Although, if purchasing a dog, buying an AKC or RBDA registered dog is the best way to tract the history of the dog. Either way, a dog is a dog. They serve a variety of purposes, and as long as they are fulfilling that purpose, that is what’s important.

AKC Vs. RBDA: What’s The Difference courtesy Dog Articles.

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How To Mate Dogs Successfully

Mating dogs takes patience and good timing, but can be successful if you plan carefully. Here are the things to consider to make the process go as smoothly as possible.

It is  a good idea to introduce the dogs you plan to mate before the female comes into heat. This gives you the opportunity to see how they get along – whether they act aggressively toward each other, or whether they are quite friendly. A few days together should determine whether they are compatible enough to consider breeding them.

If so, when your girl comes into heat, you can safely move on to the next stage. A female dog (bitch) usually comes into heat twice a year, starting with proestrus, which generally lasts between seven and ten days. When she does, you will notice a small amount of bloody discharge from her vulva, and it will swell and become more pliable. The first heat usually takes place between six and twelve months of age, but it’s not a good idea to breed your female on this first heat. She’s still young, and would benefit from a bit more physical maturity before becoming a mom.

The most fertile time to breed dogs is between ten and fourteen days after the female starts bleeding. If the dogs have not been introduced, you should allow supervised periods of interaction every forty-eight hours until the bitch will not allow the male dog (stud) to mate any more. That way, there are no risks to either dog from personality clashes.

Dogs that haven’t been bred before may not know what they should do, and may require the assistance of an experienced breeder to help them mate successfully.

During mating, the two dogs will “tie” – they will be locked together at the genitals for 20-45 minutes. This is nature’s way of improving the odds for a successful mating. However, even if the dogs don’t tie, pregnancy is still possible.

If you’re new to breeding dogs, this tie might concern you. It is a normal part of dog mating, and is nothing to worry about. It’s very important that you don’t try and separate the two dogs before they are ready. This can lead to damage to the genitals of both male and female dogs.

Dogs that are new to breeding may also be distressed at their inability to separate, and you may need to  reassure them, and calm them down. Having said that, in many cases dogs just get down to business and mate successfully without any human intervention.

Sometimes dogs just don’t get pregnant, in spite of your best efforts. If you still want to breed your dog, there may be a veterinarian who specializes in reproductive medicine in your area. He can help identify why your dog isn’t conceiving, and help you work around it.

These days, there are many reproductive technologies available to dogs, including artificial insemination. They are expensive, but can often result in pregnancy when nature doesn’t take its course.

How To Mate Dogs Successfully courtesy Dog Articles.

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Should You Have Your Dog’s Ears Cropped?

There are several dog breeds that regularly are seen with cropped ears; including Boxers, Schnauzers, Great Danes, and others. Thousands of young puppies are forced to endure surgery which is expensive, uncomfortable, relatively dangerous, and can be painful in the recovery phases. The amazing part is this surgery is totally unnecessary.

This practice was started centuries ago when dog fighting sports were legal and popular. The idea was that it was more humane to crop the dogs’ ears rather than have them shredded during a battle, which of course, would be more painful and have potentially worse complications. But the point is that because we no longer allow our dogs to fight for sport there is no humane and practical purpose of cropping ears. But the expensive and needless surgery continues.

We have become accustomed to seeing certain breeds with cropped ears and if we saw one with natural ears he would stand out. Even though AKC does not require cropped ears, a dog with natural ears in a ring full of crop-eared animals would most likely not stand a chance of winning. We simply expect a breed to look a certain way and when a dog doesn’t we question his bloodline and basically think he looks funny or out of place. Breeders and dog owners alike have complied with this expectation of society and therefore it is perpetuated – the cycle continues.

There are obviously numerous reasons not to crop a dog’s ears. Please see the list below:

– The surgery is unnecessary and all surgeries come with a certain amount of risk. Ear cropping is no exception to that. It simply is not justifiable.

– The surgery is usually done when the puppy is between six and ten weeks old. This is a time when the pup is emotionally fragile. Permanent damage to the puppy’s disposition can result as a reaction to the trauma of the surgery, the pain and frustration of post-operative bandaging, racking and taping.

– There can be quite a loss of blood during this surgery. The physical effect on the puppy can be very damaging.

– Ear-cropping happens about the same time that the puppy is ready to be sold. In many states the surgery must be performed by a veterinarian.  This adds to the cost the breeder must incur which means he/she will take a large cut from the profits or have to pass the cropping costs along to the buyer. And most buyers do not find puppies with bandaged heads as attractive as those without.

It’s your decision in the end. If you want your dog to look like all the others then ear cropping is probably the way to go. But please keep in mind that ear cropping is a choice, not a requirement.

Should You Have Your Dog’s Ears Cropped courtesy Dog Articles.

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