Raleigh, NC- The American Kennel Club (AKC®), the world’s largest purebred dog registry and leading advocate for dogs, is pleased to announce that it presented the 2018 AKC Legislator of the Year Award to Congressman Mike Rogers of Alabama on August 28th, 2018 at the AKC U.S. Dog Detection Conference in Durham, NC.
“Congressman Rogers is a leading voice in Congress on the Committee on Homeland Security and consistently addresses the need for more domestically-bred service dogs,” says Sheila Goffe, VP of Government Relations for The AKC. “An example of this leadership is his diligence in bringing together the knowledge and resources of top dog breeders, trainers, researchers and handlers to establish working dog standards for excellence to help ensure a future source of high quality explosives detection dogs that can protect our national and public security. We greatly appreciate the work he is doing on this issue.”
In addition to those accomplishments, Congressman Rogers placed language in the 2017 Defense Authorization Act (HR 2810) to require reports on detection dog purchases and to increase accountability and transparency regarding the purchase of foreign-bred dogs by the US Government for detection dog programs.
Last December, Congressman Rogers introduced HB 4577, the ‘Domestic Explosives Detection Canine Capacity Building Act’. The bill calls for the development of a working group to develop a decentralized domestic canine breeding network to produce high quality explosives detection canines and modernize canine training standards. It has passed the House and is now in the Senate.
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About the American Kennel Club
Founded in 1884, the American Kennel Club is a not-for-profit organization which maintains the largest registry of purebred dogs in the world and oversees the sport of purebred dogs in the United States. The AKC is dedicated to upholding the integrity of its registry, promoting the sport of purebred dogs and breeding for type and function. Along with its more than 5,000 licensed and member clubs and its affiliated organizations, the AKC advocates for the purebred dog as a family companion, advances canine health and well-being, works to protect the rights of all dog owners and promotes responsible dog ownership. More than 22,000 competitions for AKC-registered purebred dogs are held under AKC rules and regulations each year including conformation, agility, obedience, rally, tracking, herding, lure coursing, coonhound events, hunt tests, field and earthdog tests. Affiliate AKC organizations include the AKC Humane Fund, AKC Canine Health Foundation, AKC Reunite and the AKC Museum of the Dog. For more information, visit www.akc.org.
AKC, American Kennel Club, the American Kennel Club seal and design, and all associated marks and logos are trademarks, registered trademarks and service marks of The American Kennel Club, Inc.
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