AKC SOLICITS MEMBERS to change dog's name - Page 1

Miraculously (?) my previous post on this topic, and all responses to it has disappeared...

Updates on progress: Below is the letter I wrote and sent to GSDCA-WDA Board of directors, via care of WDA /Joy Schultz, with cc to WDA President, Cindy Jones Petersen.  Anyone who has name change issues and hope to have them addressed should send copy of documented proof to Joy Schultz, or WDA President Cindy Jones Petersen, requesting that they be included in the documents which will hopefully be presented during the January meeting by GSDCA-WDA. If the Board Meeting can produce a passing vote to present the request to AKC not to allow the changes of names, then following this, it must be presented to the AKC Delegates, which then goes before the Board of Directors for AKC, for a vote whether to remove this rule, modify it or issue an addendum to it.

See Letter Below
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: JeanESchrader@aol.com
To: wdaoffice@cfl.rr.com
CC: cindyntill@msn.com
Sent: 11/12/2010 1:35:05 A.M. Pacific Standard Time
Subj: Fwd: AKC SOLICITS Dog Name Change


To: GSDCA-WDA
Attention: Board of Directors

Dear Board of Directors,
I wish to bring to your attention a problematic new policy now being promoted within AKC;
that of soliciting members who have just registered their dogs to change the dog's name.

I respectfully ask, as a member of WDA, as a breeder, and as one who registers their dogs through the registry maintained by the "Not for Profit Organization of AKC", that this name change policy be brought to the floor for discussion and vote, by the Members of the Board and members who attend the next WDA meeting, in January. I am hopeful a vote will be successful to remove the AKC rule which currently allows this practice of changing a registered dog's name.
If the rule allowing a change of a registered dog's name can't be successfully removed in it's entirety, then an addendum for an exclusion might be entered, to exclude GSD's from being allowed to have their names arbitrarily changed, without "good cause"; with said "good cause" reasons being specified in detail, following which a process is in place which will require owner and breeder to be in agreement as to the reason for having the name changed.
I did not ask for this name change. I was solicited to have this name changed.
I am against the changing of name of a dog, once it has been registered.
There is already much human error in the input of pedigree data.
I contacted a breeder member of the Canadian Kennel Club...The CKC does not allow name changes of dogs once registered.
I contacted the SV, they do not allow any change of a dog's name once it is registered.
There are no reasons I can deem necessary for allowing, and more specifically promoting a name change of a dog already registered, without very good cause such as to correct spelling or an inaccurate date, etc.
Allowing the changing of registered dog's names will create unnecessary errors in the inputting of information, due to human error. Many will change names simply because they can. I believe it will be highly problematic in tracking pedigrees, and in verifying the identification of a dog presented for trial or shows. Microchips and tattoos become useless with regard to verification of ID for the dog it was originally intended.
(continued)
 

 page 2... continued

Case in point: Just a sampling of the problems this can cause..
1. The dog they asked if I was interested in changing the name on is a foreign born dog. Their bylaws do not allow this dog to have it's name changed...yet they sent me this email asking if I would like to do so. When I called AKC and spoke to them about this, they said that I had received this email to change my dog's name in error.
Human Error in not recognizing this dog was of foreign birth origin, and did not meet AKC's own criteria required for name change.

2. I called again, to ask why this dog did not show up in my breeder management profile. AKC said they did not show any dogs at all listed for me. In looking closer, they found that on my certificate, my last name had been spelled incorrectly, so this foreign registered dog had technically been registered in someone else's name. No other dogs were listed under "my new incorrect name" and he was not associated to me with any of my currently active dogs.
Human Input Error of information.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read my letter regarding this important matter. I believe the impact of allowing registered dogs to have names changed could be detrimental and far reaching, in a number of areas.
Please see copies of all my correspondence pertaining to the name change solicitation below.

Sincerely,
Jean Schrader
WDA Member