Sit. Stay. Heel. Come. (No pedigree required)

I just know my Chow mix Colleen, currently sitting on a cloud in dog heaven watching over me while angels brush her shiny red coat and feed her little bits of carrot (her favorite treat), would have been the greatest obedience champion ever... if only AKC had not been too intimidated by her beauty and perfection to allow her to set one single non-pedigreed toe on their sanctified show grounds.



So even if it is a form of second class citizenship -- the "civil union of the dog world," as I told Gina at the time -- I'm kind of warming up to the AKC's new mixed breed dog program. So of course, I wrote about it in my column at SFGate.com today:

First, while mixed-breed obedience events are fairly common in some places, AKC is the only choice in many parts of the country. And even if there are other venues in which dogs and owners can compete, opening up AKC events to mixed breeds means more opportunities for dogs to compete. That means more time for having fun and getting exercise at the agility course with us, and less time sitting on the sofa waiting to go for a walk.



Purebred dog folks who never venture outside the safe confines of AKC shows will also have the chance to get to know mixed-breed dogs and their owners, allowing dog lovers to be even more united in efforts to make the world better for us and our pets.



Those same purebred dog owners may suddenly realize that they can have fun and even win with mixed-breed dogs. Maybe they'll start scouring the shelters for great agility dogs, and all those hyperactive Border collie mixes and ball-crazy adolescent Lab crosses will go from being dime-a-dozen behavior problems to obedience trial champions in the rough.



Of course, it will also be good for the AKC, which will cash a $35 check for every mixed-breed dog it lists with the new program. And while I know that aggravates a lot of people with mixed-breeds, I think that's good for dogs, too. I'd much rather the AKC got its income from opening up dog sports to all dogs than being dependent on registration dollars from massive commercial puppy farms, especially if that means more people will be getting their pets from responsible home-based breeders and shelters instead of pet stores and over the Internet.

I also told one of my favorite dog training stories ever, which just happened to involve both of my mixed breed dogs, Colleen and my cattle dog/Chessie cross, Scarlett -- the smartest dog ever. Check it out here!



Photo of Tinker by the very talented Amy Jo Mork.

Comments

[Original Lori]

Yes, it's good to have a choice. And there always has to be a first step. The way I figure it is this must be a dialed back version of some more "drastic" proposal. What we're a seeing is, I have a feeling but no proof, the best the AKC could do after running it by all of the people who had a say in the matter.



I think it'll do for now. We're infiltrating the ranks. :O) And Christie's right, with more interaction comes more understanding. It's definitely a choice. For Phyllis it's a non-starter. But for me, the more I think about it, if I had a chance to show Kasey off, how smart/fast/agile (I think) he is, in front of people who hadn't been exposed to many mutts or lab mixes or whatever, I think I'd do it.

[Phyllis DeGioia]

I understand your points, Christie. I just can't get past the feeling that there are separate drinking fountains here for pedigreed dogs and my beloved mutts (a phrase from someone else in the last discussion) and I resent it. The only reason the AKC is allowing us in is to get money, but when they were flush they not only didn't give a hoot about us, but they looked down their noses at us. Now that they are losing relevancy, they want our money (that must have been a fascinating board meeting). To me the organization is irrelevant because I don't breed, don't care if my dog is registered, and my dogs don't compete in obedience. But if they did, they'd do it somewhere else other than an AKC event.

[Anne T]

While Phyllis does have a point, as my retired AG champion is constantly telling me, it's all about the dog! If this move by AKC proves to be economically sound, and loosens their ties to Andrew Hunte, and gets more dog owners to do something with their dog other than say "Get me another beer" or "Move over, I want the couch too.", that's all to the good for them and their dogs.

And JenniferJ is right, much of the support for allowing the 3 Ms aka mongrels/mutts/mixes to take part in Companion Events was brought about by the Breed clubs themselves.

Any step that closes the artificial divide between breed lovers and MMM lovers no matter how small it seems at first has got to be to the good of all dogs.

[JenniferJ]

Some of the push to make AKC take this first step came from the breed parent clubs. I've seen the letters although I do not have permission to reprint them.



Many people in the breed clubs no longer breed or compete actively with dogs, but they are very aware of the disconnect between the purebred dog world and the general public, and of the need to drag the big registries into the modern world and the real world.



From my point of view, AKC is a purebred registry. Their entire 130 year history has only been about purebred dogs. This first step, half-assed though it may be, is a first step in the right direction and hopefully the beginning of a paradigm shift for the dog registries.



And if it does well, is supported and does make them money, they'll be more than willing to expand it to something more equitable I expect. :-)

[Sheyna]

The full article is great, the end made me tear up, so sweet!



I also agree that the whole mixed breed-AKC thing is good, no one is forced to participate but if you want to, you can.

[Linda Kaim]

Comment by Anne T — April 28, 2009



If this move by AKC proves to be economically sound, and loosens their ties to Andrew Hunte, and gets more dog owners to do something with their dog other than say “Get me another beer”



"Get me another beer" is a highly trained skill for any dog. I would like to see more pet dogs trained to that level of obedience!

[Amy]

Ohhhhh. How cute is your mom!!!



I was there early on, so I don't know how bad they can get, but the ones I did read were not judging the column, they were just really judgey in general. I didn't read many, but I could see how they may turn into an ugly, angry mob.



I know I judge a lot of things and I'm not ashamed of that, but they seemed to be preachy and ill-informed, even if I agreed with some of them. Typical internet stuff. I imagine I'm preachy and ill-informed. I like to think I'm not, but I imagine everyone thinks that. The difference is, if someone calls me on something, I think about it and ask for more info and give them my info on the subject. I love a good debate and I'm genuine about that. We learn through differences, but sometimes internets are not about debate, but passing along crazy judgments that aren't based in reality. When they're based on something and well-informed, awesome, let's discuss. But I've learned to choose my battles.



That's why I love Pet Connection so much. There's a lot less, and most of the time, none of that. People are really respectful here and if there's a disagreement or misunderstanding, it's generally worked out or there's a pretty civil agree to disagree.

[Christie Keith]

Were the comments bad? I cannot read them. I never do. I never even look.



I came into my mom's apartment the other day and she was on her laptop. She smiled at me and said, "I was just giving a thumbs down to anyone who said bad things about your column." Apparently she does this EVERY TIME.



Totally adorable.

[Original Lori]

Early on the third comment was something like "Hey, don't dis on mutts!" Which really confused me.

[Amy]

Thanks for the compliment! Tinker's a pretty great subject, so she deserves most of the credit :)



Your story about Colleen was so beautiful and made me tear up. I came over here to tell you that because the SF Gate comments were.... uh... well, you know.



Baby steps are still steps. I'm an impatient person, but I'm learning to calm down. Not back off, just poke instead of shove, I guess. But still poking, and occasionally, shoving. Without the shovers, I don't think baby steps would even happen.