
NKK are the custodian of the dog breed standards and are responsible for the show dog judges in Norway, so are they also responsible for the health and control of the dog gene pool?
Puppy buyers are faced with a bewildering range of terminology, none of which makes much sense to the average person. NKK registered, chipped, Show Champion this, Field Champion that mixed in with a handful of BIS and BIR´s, but still you do not know if you have a good healthy dog. I was fortunate in that I chose a kennel that not only provided help with all the bewildering “dog speak” but issued a starter pack of information and a follow up service. More importantly the kennel put time and effort into responsible breeding and puppy ownership. But what about those less fortunate who buy their dogs from Finn.no or an advert on Facebook, or from a puppy farm or similar. Pedigree dogs they may be, chipped and NKK registered almost certainly, but are they healthy dogs?

Certainly NKK have moved in the right direction by restricting registration for puppies that do not have an approved eye test, but is this enough? It seems that NKK have a bit of catching up to do, because although I made NKK aware in 2014 of the approved breeders scheme, no action has been taken.
If a breeder was NKK approved, this would send a clear message to the general public that these breeders have reached a minimum standard set by NKK. For the kitchen breeders, casual breeders, mongrel/doodle breeders breeding outside of this approval the message is clear – “buyer beware”.
Screen Shots From UK Kennel Club Website



The following notice was posted on the UK Kennel Club website: “All Assured Breeders to be Inspected and Receive UKAS Accredited Certification from January 2014 Every single Kennel Club Assured Breeder will be inspected by the Kennel Club, a UKAS accredited certification body, in order to ensure that the scheme is recognised as the essential quality seal for puppy breeding and buying.” A link to the UK Kennel Club is given at the end of this article.
The approval system does not limit buyer choice, nor will it stop breeding by individuals outside of the approval scheme, but it would go some way to differentiate between NKK approved breeders and the others. It would also mean that NKK would retain responsibility for the gene pool and can monitor approved breeders at any time to ensure the standards set by NKK are being met.
The UK Kennel Club, American Kennel Club and other countries operate a similar scheme and that many if not all responsible breeders in Norway would welcome such a scheme.
The UK Kennel Club, American Kennel Club and other countries operate a similar scheme and that many if not all responsible breeders in Norway would welcome such a scheme.

Your reaction to this proposal is welcomed along with suggestions on how best to convince NKK to adopt, implement, manage and market such an Approved Breeder Scheme. At the very least make sure your breed club makes strong representation to NKK and does not take no for an answer. Responsible breeding is the only solution to good dog health.
My thanks to Kennel Streamside for their permission to use their Kennel name and logo in this article.