FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

American Kennel Club to Adoptable Dogs: Not Welcome on Our Turf!

AKC rejects collaborative event with rescue animals

New York, NY – Tuesday, October 5, 2010 – Animal lovers hoping to adopt a new furry family member at the American Kennel Club (AKC) & Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) "Meet the Breeds" event at the Javits Center in New York City this month are out of luck. The AKC has rejected a request from the Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals to allow dogs and puppies from local NYC animal rescue groups and shelters to stage an adoption event in the same building as the AKC's "Meet the Breeds."

For the past seven years, through its strong relationship with CFA, the Mayor's Alliance has held its hugely successful collaborative Adopt-A-Cat event in tandem with the CFA's New York City Cat Show at Madison Square Garden. These events have resulted in hundreds of homeless cats and kittens, both pure and random bred, finding loving homes.

In 2009, when CFA's usual location at Madison Square Garden underwent renovations, CFA partnered with the AKC to present a combined dog-and-cat event, "Meet the Breeds," at the Javits Center. Continuing its tradition of including adoptable cats at the event, CFA invited the Mayor's Alliance to hold its cat adoption event at the Javits Center. At that time, the AKC nixed the idea of including adoptable dogs and puppies — pure bred or otherwise — at the event. So the adoption event featured only cats and kittens.

This year, the AKC — having already reserved space at the Javits Center and thereby having refusal rights for any other incoming "competitive" events — again banned adoptable dogs from the premises and further, prohibited adoptable cats and kittens from being in the same building! If the Mayor's Alliance were to stage a cat adoption event, it would have to be in a completely separate building on the edge of the Javits complex, thus depriving the homeless cats and kittens any benefit of the presence of hundreds of animal enthusiasts at the "Meet the Breeds" event.

"I find it incomprehensible that an organization comprised of people who purport to be dog lovers would object to offering homeless dogs and puppies — many of whom are pure breeds — and homeless cats and kittens an opportunity to find loving homes," said Jane Hoffman, President of the Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals, in a letter to AKC leadership. "Does the AKC feel threatened by the presence of these homeless dogs because they represent the heartbreaking consequence of irresponsible breeding?"

But potential adopters, take heart! The Mayor's Alliance and Best Friends Animal Society, with participation by CFA, will present a two-day adoption event the weekend before Christmas (December 18–19) at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea, where people seeking to bring the joy of a rescued pet into their homes won't be disappointed. Watch for details at www.AnimalAllianceNYC.org.

Read an update with our plans for a bigger, better adoption event…

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