by Elizabeth Campbell

Created on: September 02, 2008

Breedism is a euphonism created by PETA to denote the preference of purebred dogs to those of mixed or unknown ancestry. PETA has used this as a dirty word, insinuating that preference of a superior race of purebreds parallels the U.S.'s horrid assembly of the Klu Klux Klan.

Placing PETA's connotation of "breedism" beside, the question is "Should the AKC promote the sport of purebred dogs?".

The AKC's mission statement as of 9/1/2008 is as follows:
"The American Kennel Club is dedicated to upholding the integrity of its Registry, promoting
the sport of purebred dogs and breeding for type and function. Founded in 1884, the AKC and
its affiliated organizations advocate for the purebred dog as a family companion, advance
canine health and well-being, work to protect the rights of all dog owners and promote
responsible dog ownership."

It is obvious that at its very core, the AKC supports breedism at its finest, and has for over 100 years!

Aside from the fact that the entire purpose of the AKC is breedism, we can also look at breedism as a whole and determine whether or not breedism is a positive thing. Since it would be illogical to state that the AKC should perpetuate breedism simply because "it always has", we'll delve deeper into what breedism means and the results of it.

First, the existence of various breeds of dogs is perpetuated by the continual breeding of like dog breed to like dog breed resulting in similar enough gene sets that the resulting dog is generally predictable in lhealth ooks, size, temperament, and ability. If you breed a Dalmation to a Dalmation, you will get Dalmations. The genes are similar, you will never get a Pug or a German Shepherd, or a tan and brown dog. You will always get a Dalmation. However, if you breed a Dalmation to a Pug, the off-spring are completely unpredictable. The genes of the two dogs are so different that you could end up with a litter that does not even resemble one another, not to mention the differences in traits that are not related to appearance.

Now that we understand that consistency is maintained through genetics, let us look at the work dog does with man. Dogs have historically assisted in wars (detecting mines), can detect seizures before they occur (keeping people safe), eradicate rats and other vermin, run alongside a fire engine or wagon, protect people or livestock, and provide wonderful companionship.

Without selective breeding, we would lose the consistency of dog's assistance to man.
In Stanley Cohen's,

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