Top Dog Breeds of 2005

Dogs

For the 16th year in a row, the Labrador retriever is once again America's favorite purebred dog, according to registration numbers tallied by the American Kennel Club. The AKC released the figures and, as in past years, the Labrador far outstrips the second-most favorite – the golden retriever.

For 2005, one new breed joined the top 10 list and one got bumped off. The Miniature Schnauzer came in at #10 (#11 last year) displacing the Chihuahua into the #11 position (#10 last year). Additionally, 3 breeds changed position. The Yorkshire terrier jumped from #5 to #3 beating out the German Shepherd and Beagle. The German Shepherd fell from #3 to #4 and Beagle fell from #4 to #5.

In the top 10, only two breeds increased in overall numbers, that being the Yorkshire terrier and the miniature schnauzer. All other breeds on the top 10 list had a decline in overall numbers.

There are 157 AKC breeds totaling 920,804 registrations in 2005. This is down 4% from 2004 when registrations totaled 958,641.

The Top 10 Breeds of 2005 are:

1. Labrador retrievers 137,967
2. Golden retrievers 48,509
3. Yorkshire terriers 47,238
4. German shepherds 45,014
5. Beagles 42,592
6. Dachshunds 38,566
7. Boxers 37,268
8. Poodles 31,638
9. Shih Tzus 28,087
10. Miniature Schnauzer 24,144

At the other end of the spectrum, the English foxhound is again the least-registered purebred dog with 22 registrations followed by the Harrier with 42, The Otterhound with 44, the American Foxhound with 48, and Glen of Imaal Terrier with 51 registrations.

AKC Categories

The AKC recognizes dogs in seven categories: sporting, hound, working, terrier, toy, non-sporting and herding. The largest breed registration in each group is as follows:

Sporting – e.g. Labrador retriever

Hound – e.g. beagle

Working – e.g. boxers

Terrier – e.g. miniature schnauzer

Toy – e.g. Yorkshire terrier

Non-sporting – e.g. poodles

Herding – e.g. German shepherd


How Did YOUR Breed Score? Click here for the entire 2005 AKC ranking.