The American Kennel Club (AKC) has announced that two new dog breeds will receive their full recognition and are now eligible to compete in their respective groups. The two breeds are the Barbet and the Dogo Argentino, and bring the count of AKC-recognized breeds to 195.
The Barbet joins the Sporting group and is a medium-sized water dog from France– it’s known for hunting waterfowl and for being smart, even-tempered and having a happy, friendly nature. The Dogo Argentino is joining the Working group, and is a large hunting dog that was developed in Argentina. Dogos are confident, courageous, loyal, and affectionate with their family, but are not for inexperienced dog owners.
To gain AKC recognition a breed has to have a minimum number of dogs geographically distributed throughout the U.S., as well as an established breed club of responsible owners and breeders.
