AKC Standard

　　AKC, full name American Kennel Club, can be literally translated as "American Kennel Club." It is one of the world’s leading dog breeding organizations, composed of hundreds of clubs across the United States. Established in 1884, it now organizes about 13,000 dog shows annually. The world-famous Westminster Dog Show uses the competition rules formulated by the AKC.

　　In official dog shows, competitions are grouped according to the function of the dog breeds. Since each dog serves humans and contributes to them, traditional dog shows divide dogs into different groups based on their purpose. This is why we see various groups at dog shows.
　　The AKC divides dogs into 7 groups:
　　Sporting Group, Hound Group, Working Group, Terrier Group, Toy Group, Non-Sporting Group, Herding Group

　　Although broadly speaking, Sporting, Hound, Herding groups and others all fall under working dogs, the competition classifications are more rigorous. Among these categories, the Working Group currently makes the greatest contribution to humans. These are typically large breeds that help humans accomplish various "impossible tasks," such as guarding, sled pulling, guiding the blind, drug detection, and search and rescue. Therefore, most breeds in this group have been developed through long-term selective breeding for these purposes. Although working dogs are very intelligent, their large size requires proper training; otherwise, they are difficult to control. This makes them more suitable for experienced owners.

Akita (detailed introduction) (Akita)
Alaskan Malamute
Anatolian Shepherd Dog
Bernese Mountain Dog
Black Russian Terrier
Boxer
Bullmastiff
Doberman Pinscher
German Pinscher
Giant Schnauzer
Great Dane
Greater Swiss Mountain Dog
Great Pyrenees
Komondor (detailed introduction)
Kuvasz
Mastiff
Neapolitan Mastiff
Newfoundland
Portuguese Water Dog
Rottweiler
Saint Bernard
Samoyed
Siberian Husky
Standard Schnauzer