AKC Meet the Breeds^® is quickly approaching in New York City and Orlando. The host cities will literally "go to the dogs" (and cats, in the case of AKC Meet the Breeds^® in New York), on October 20th–21st and December 15th–16th, respectively.

The expertise of parent club volunteers is what makes events like these work, and I thank you for your continuing support of AKC Meet the Breeds^® year after year.

We're always amazed at what you come up with to illustrate the history, function and fun of your breed. In New York last year, the Salukis took Best Booth in Show for their recreation of an ancient Egyptian setting with booth volunteers dressed in traditional Arabian clothing. In Orlando, the Old English Sheepdogs took top prize with their Harry Potter wizard theme. We look forward to seeing what you do with this year's booths.

If you have not already returned your club's volunteer form, we hope you'll make plans to attend in both cities as well as encourage your club and fellow fanciers to become involved, as you and your dogs ARE the event. Please contact Gina DiNardo at gml@akc.org to confirm your attendance for New York and Orlando. I look forward to seeing everyone.

For the New York event, we have launched the official AKC Meet the Breeds^® blog at http://meetthebreeds.wordpress.com/. Leading up to October, we'll be posting photos, videos and profiles from past Meet the Breeds to show the public the fun they'll have at the Javits Center. If you have anything you'd like to display, please email communications@akc.org.

For both the New York and Orlando events, we encourage you to share photos and videos you take of your booth or the crowds on your own Facebook pages as well as AKC's Facebook timeline. We'd also love to post your videos on AKC's YouTube channel.

The great experiences you capture and share with friends and followers via social media at AKC Meet the Breeds^® is just one more thing that will help spread the word about the great work Parent Clubs are doing for their breeds and dogs in general.

Sincerely,


Dennis B. Sprung

President and CEO