I take a keen interest in which dogs head the popularity stakes, as evidenced by the Kennel Club’s own puppy registration statistics, as obviously significant trends lead to certain breeds becoming more problematic due to some owners, not all, failing to do their research when acquiring the latest celebrity dog.
Of concern to everyone must be the massive rise in these so-called handbag dogs, made more popular by the celebrity culture in this country and for instance Pug registrations have gone up by over 600% in the last ten years.
Registrations of Chihuahua have risen by over 400% in the same period. Miniature Dachshunds have also seen almost a 300% increase in registrations too. Anyone interested in dog welfare will be concerned at the implications for the various rescue organisations and will also worry about puppy farmer involvement. The price of these breeds has rocketed and you can be sure that this will attract the unscrupulous breeders, with breeding stock living in poor conditions and with minimal standards of care. Some of these breeds can be difficult to whelp and again, one wonders how many will get the veterinary care they need at such times.
Other interesting stats, show that registrations of Boxers have dropped by almost half since 2001, but the Boxer is the most popular of the working breeds with 5699 registrations. Rottweiler registrations have also more than halved in the same period, down from 5587 to 1,959. Alaskan Malamute registrations have rocketed from 156 to 1232 and Siberian Husky registrations have gone up from 1038 to 2209. Of concern to some will be the rapid increase in popularity of the Dogue de Bordeaux, up from 661 registrations in 2001 to 2841 in 2010 and second behind the Boxer in the most popular working breeds. This is a breed that dog trainers and behaviourists will be seeing plenty of in the coming years, I have no doubt.
In the pastoral group, German Shepherd registrations have gone down from 14270 to 10364 and this is obviously still a massively popular breed with the general public. Amongst the Gundogs, the Labrador remains the most popular (and most popular of all breeds) with an increase from 33688 in 2001 to 44099 in 2010. Cocker Spaniels seem to be making a comeback (not that they ever went away) and their registrations have almost doubled to 23744, whilst registrations of Springers have only marginally increased in the same period. The Hungarian Vizsla is also becoming more popular, its registrations almost trebling to 1498.
The Whippet continues to increase in popularity with registrations more than doubling in the same period. Of the Terriers, the Staffie has seen a decline in popularity in the last ten years, but there were still 8663 puppies registered in 2010. Westies have seen a halving of their registrations and Border Terriers have seen their registrations double.
Obviously, I would endorse the view of the Kennel Club that members of the public looking for a puppy should be very careful about where they acquire it from and wherever possible should go to a Kennel Club Accredited Breeder, if they want to ensure it has been given the best start in life.
Peter Mounsey Ashclyst Dog Training and Behaviour Devon January 2011