Club Relations Department

American Kennel Club
260 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
clubrelations@akc.org

No matter what your interest in dogs, the chances are good that there's a dog club near you where you can meet people who share your interests. AKC recognizes thirteen different types of clubs: Parent Specialty Clubs, All-breed clubs, Specialty (breed) clubs, Group clubs, Obedience clubs, Tracking clubs, Field Trial clubs, Hunting Test clubs, Herding clubs, Coonhound clubs, Lure Coursing clubs, Agility clubs and Earthdog clubs.

The AKC Club Relations Department:

• Administers the development of new clubs so that they can qualify for the holding of sanctioned matches. New clubs must first:
  • Select a locality not served by an existing club of the same type
  • Choose a name which identifies the primary activity the club conducts and the locality in which it is situated
  • Adopt a set of bylaws that provides for the democratic functioning of the club
  • Be comprised of a diverse and representative number of local households for that type of club
  • Hold Sanctioned "B" and "A" matches before requesting license status
• Processes license club requests for AKC membership
• Approves member club bylaws and reviews non-member club bylaws
• Provides assistance in resolution of club disputes

At the present time approximately 5,000 clubs are eligible to conduct events under AKC Rules and Regulations. Clubs are first approved to conduct sanctioned matches -- Plan B and Plan A events, followed by license events. AKC membership is granted to Parent clubs and to those All-breed clubs, Obedience clubs and multiple breed Field Trial clubs that successfully complete the Plan B and Plan A Sanctioned Match Program, hold license events in at least 10 consecutive calendar years, continue to meet the local household requirement, and are governed by an acceptable set of bylaws.

For more information, contact the AKC Club Relations department at clubrelations@akc.org.