1924-2024: A Century Of AKC Group Development

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242 – June, 2024

By Caroline Coile

The American Kennel Club was formed by sporting dog men whose major canine interests were with gun dogs. Early dog shows were mostly for Pointers and Setters. Eventually they included other breeds, and some shows divided them roughly into Sporting dogs (Pointers, Setters, Spaniels, Foxhounds and Beagles), and Non-Sporting dogs (all other breeds).

The earliest registered breeds, in 1878, were all gun dogs. In order of first registered, these were the English Setter, Irish Setter, Gordon Setter, Pointer, Irish Water Spaniel, Sussex Spaniel, Clumber Spaniel, Cocker Spaniel, and Chesapeake Bay Retriever.

In 1885 the first non-Gundogs joined the ranks. They were the Beagle, Dachshund, Basset Hound, Harrier, Bloodhound, Greyhound, Mastiff, Saint Bernard, Pug, Fox Terrier, Yorkshire Terrier, Bull Terrier, and Scottish Terrier.

The 1887 Stud Book was the first to divide breeds into two divisions, Sporting Dogs and Non-Sporting Dogs. In fact, while Sporting dogs (led by the English Setter) were the top dogs of the 1880s, the Non-Sporting Saint Bernard was the top breed of the 1890s. (This trend would continue, with the #1 breed of the 1900s the Collie, and of the 1910s, the Boston Terrier.)

Click here to read the complete article
242 – June, 2024

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Posted by AnthonyA on Jun 19 2024. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.