California IN BRIEF : SAN JOSE : Dog Pedigree Papers Are Labeled ‘a Joke’

The American Kennel Club has certified thousands of dogs across the country that investigators contend were fraudulently registered and others whose pedigrees are uncertain, according to a newspaper report. “The breeders and the pet stores all know the AKC papers are a joke, but they make their livelihood on it,” Robert Baker, a veteran investigator with the Humane Society of the United States, told the San Jose Mercury News. Club officials said the organization routinely accepts a dog owner’s word that an animal is a purebred and does little to verify the applications for the 1.3 million dogs it registers each year. “Basically, the whole system is based on trust; let’s face it,” said AKC President Kenneth Marden. The AKC has never said registering a dog guarantees its breeding, he said, although the public generally believes that to be true.