“I simply don’t understand why, if there were a vibrant community of Aussie breeders breeding for herding, how AKC recognition caused them to stop their registry. I’m sorry, but that just sounds like a cop out.”
Actually, you are correct here. There is always a chasm between those who breed for love of the breed, and those who breed for cash. With the Aussie, enough breeders wanted the extra money & publicity that would go with AKC recognition, so they went there - and ruined the breed. And yes, I say that as someone who happily took a mostly Aussie pup from a rescue, and admits he is a great family dog.
With the Border Collie, the large majority of breeders refused to accept the AKC. Most are still registered with the ABCA, and most are sold with clauses saying the buyer will not register the pup with the AKC. One of the reasons I usually post on threads like this is to publicize to the general population that AKC Border Collies are not accepted as real Border Collies by most breeders and registries.
I’ve only owned 2 purebred Border Collies - one from England and one now from Oregon. I’ve also had mixes. But I love the breed, just as I love the Australian Shepherd. AKC acceptance supports breeding of non-working dogs, and AKC registered BCs are not accepted by other registries for future breeding of Border Collies.
In the end, it is bad breeders that ruin a breed. I believe the AKC makes that more likely. It is a shame, because the AKC could do a great deal of good. I like dog sports, but I also hate to see what enthusiasts would do to the Border Collie.
"From early in the 19th century, when some dog fanciers began to take interest in these dogs, and the keeping of written pedigrees began, the breed progressed rapidly, becoming not only larger in stature but also more refined. The dog "Old Cockie" was born in 1867 and he is credited with not only stamping characteristic type on the rough Collie but he is believed by usually reliable authorities to be responsible for introducing to the breed the factors which led to the development of the sable coat color in the Collie. A short time later Collies were seen of almost every imaginable color, including red, buff, mottle of various shades, and a few sables. At that time the most frequently seen colors were black, tan and white, black and white (without tan), and what are now called blue merles, but which were known then as "tortoise shell."
"In the second half of the 19th century, Queen Victoria spotted a Border Collie and became an active enthusiast (at this point, the divergence between our modern Collie and the Border Collie began)."
Lassie came from what originally looked like (and acted like) a Border Collie. I would hate to see a repeat!
Chairman's Report
September 2008
The American Kennel Club faces enormous challenges in reversing the continuing decline in registrations. Today, we are losing market share at an alarming rate, especially in the retail sector. We are being challenged competitively and financially. The declining registrations and associated core revenues, if allowed to continue, will fundamentally change our organization going forward. Make no mistake, the very future of the AKC and our sport is at risk.
...Today, there are at least 30 All-Breed registries in addition to the AKC, whose combined registration numbers exceed that of the AKC. If this trend is allowed to continue, if we do not stop the hemorrhaging of declining registrations, we will no longer be the premier registry in the world, let alone in our country.
Management has been directed by the Board to aggressively pursue all dogs eligible for AKC registration. We intend to reach out, communicate, and educate those in the retail sector as to why an AKC puppy is the gold standard and why they should be registered with American Kennel Club. In achieving this objective we intend to continue to “raise the bar” by vigorously enforcing our policies. This action is essential to protect and preserve our leadership.
...We are losing litters, dogs and entire colonies to competing registries. If litters and dogs aren’t registered with AKC, we can’t inspect them, we can’t help the breeders and we can’t grow our sport.
AKC used to dominate the marketplace. Even places like Macy’s and Gimbels sold AKC puppies. Many pet owners who bought these puppies, and I was one of them, tried their hand at showing and breeding...
The available pool of AKC registrable puppies is being lost to other registries, along with potential participants in the sport. As we lose registrations, we also lose our core revenues, our ability to generate alternative revenues and our legislative influence. We need to get back on track growing our influence as the premier registry in the world.
...For decades we collected millions of registration dollars from AKC pet owners. These millions overwhelmingly subsidized our sport. Today, this scenario no longer exists. Twenty-five years ago almost all of our revenue was registration related. Last year less than one half of our revenues came from registrations. Dog registrations peaked at 1.5 million in 1992. By the end of 2008 it is projected we will register only 725,000 dogs. This is a staggering 53% decline...
Sincerely,
Ron Menaker, Chairman
But, it seems to me that people with a mentality like that were bound to ruin the breed anyway, regardless of registration. Do you herd with your dogs? I love to watch that, the dogs are amazing.