That they found deplorable conditions at a "puppy mill" was not a surprise. That the Myers kennel dogs had the sanction of the highly respected American Kennel Club (AKC) is another matter.
Myers was a breeder whose dogs had long been accepted for purebred registration by the AKC. AKC officials had known for several years that Myers was failing to keep proper records to prove that her dogs were purebred, AKC reports show. AKC delayed taking strong action even after its own staff uncovered evidence of unidentified dogs and sloppy book work, former AKC inspectors said.
In an Inquirer investigation, six former AKC inspectors said in lengthy interviews that the dog registry of the American Kennel Club, a nonprofit organization widely regarded as the guarantor of the pedigrees of purebred dogs, is largely a sham. They say, and records show, that the club does little or nothing to ensure that many of the dogs the club certifies as purebred are legitimately bred.
In the last five years, the AKC has taken in more than $100 million in exchange for papers certifying more than six million dogs as purebreds. Much of that money came from large kennels that sell dogs to brokers or to pet stores. The former AKC inspectors say those certifications are often worthless or untrue.
The inspectors say the AKC does not verify bloodlines. What it does is accept applications and fees and send out registration papers, relying mostly on the word of the breeder that the information submitted is true.
They say the club's primary enterprise - the registry of purebred dogs - has been corrupted. So many dogs without proper papers and proven lineage have been accepted into the AKC "stud book," or registry, in recent years that it's no longer reliable, they say.
