Why is The Kennel Club important?

I've been a breeder for years, so as you can imagine have a lot of involvement with the Kennel Club. A lot of people don't actually realise the whole scope if the work this organisation does! People think its just pedigree dogs and Crufts, but that's not nearly the half of it! I can't understand why other organisations don't work together and support it rather than try to attack - but there you go!

The Kennel Club is the UK's largest organisation dedicated to the health and welfare of dogs. The Kennel Club's objective is to 'promote in every way the general improvement of dogs'.

They are a voluntary register for all dogs, whether cross breed or pedigree, and we run an Accredited Breeder scheme whose members have agreed to follow basic responsible breeding practices for breeding puppies. The Kennel Club runs Crufts, the world's largest dog show and licenses over 4,000 dog shows and trials each year. It is also at the forefront of the development of many canine health initiatives and invests in education programmes and other campaigns to protect and promote the general well-being of dogs.

The Kennel Club is concerned with anti-dog legislation, promotes the place of dogs in society and actively represents the interests of responsible dog owners, whether Kennel Club registered or not.

They Lobby the government on dog welfare issues, give grants to dog welfare charities and to scientific research to aid the development of health testing for canine diseases, through our Charitable Trust, run the UK's largest Dog Training programme, the Good Citizen Dog Training Scheme and educational initiatives, such as Safe and Sound, which helps children to stay safe around dogs.

They licence clubs and runs competitions, run educational events such as Discover Dogs, and a Dog Health Group, which includes independent vets and scientific advisors, who work with the Kennel Club to improve breed health.