The Kennel Club is calling for people who are highly experienced in all aspects of the dog world to help it to make a difference for dogs, and to raise the quality of dog breeding, by joining the Kennel Club Accredited Breeder Scheme’s team of Regional Breeder Advisors.

The Regional Breeder Advisors play a crucial part in helping the Kennel Club to ensure that the high standards of the scheme are maintained.  The scheme, which was created in 2004, continues to grow and now has more than 6,500 members, all of whom agree to receive a kennel visit.

There are currently 12 Regional Breeder Advisors nationwide and the Kennel Club is looking for further recruits from the South West (Cornwall and Devon), East Midlands (Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire) and the North East (Yorkshire, Humberside, Scottish Borders).

The inspection process is an important part of the scheme’s success and is key to ensuring that the principles of good breeding practice are maintained.

The role is open to all those with experience and interest in dogs and in the dog world in general. All applicants will be considered by the Kennel Club and preference will be given to those with knowledge of dog breeding and a good understanding of the Kennel Club Accredited Breeder Scheme. Experience of working within an inspection or quality standards process would also be an advantage. The role is a voluntary one but all expenses will be covered and full training and mentoring provided.

Bill Lambert, Head of the Kennel Club Accredited Breeder Scheme, said: “The Accredited Breeder Scheme is continually growing in size, as more and more people recognise the vital role that it plays in protecting the health and welfare of dogs and puppies. The puppy buying public need to be directed to responsible breeders and we work with those breeders to ensure that their standards are maintained.

“We are delighted to have reached 6,500 members and need to expand our robust system of inspections. Many breeders are now visited prior to joining the scheme and our target is to visit every single scheme member, so the number of visits that we carry out needs to keep pace with our growing membership.  We already have a skilled team in place, drawn largely from the dog breeding community, and we are calling again on the vast wealth of experience that is out there to help us shape the scheme’s development.”

Janet Green, a Chow Chow breeder and Regional Breeder Advisor, said: “I have extensive experience in the dog world and care passionately about ensuring that people breed their dogs in the right way. Equally importantly, I am passionate about ensuring that these people form a coherent group so that puppy buyers can easily locate them and don’t unwittingly fall into the hands of puppy farmers, who play on public ignorance in order to make a sale.

“The Kennel Club Accredited Breeder Scheme is the only one of its kind in the country. It is committed to applying quality standards to dog breeding, something that I am totally committed to myself and being a Regional Breeder Advisor enables me to use my experience and knowledge to play a part in this important process.”

Accredited Breeders have all agreed to sign up to Kennel Club principles of good practice for responsible breeding, which include providing post-sales advice, providing suitable facilities and agreeing to health screen their breeding dogs for hereditary disease to increase the likelihood that they will breed happy, healthy puppies. The Kennel Club, in addition to running a system of inspections, has many other checks in place to monitor the credentials of its members, which include continually monitoring puppy feedback forms, running pre-acceptance checks and checking every litter application for conformity to the scheme requirements.

Those interested in becoming Regional Breeder Advisors should contact Sarah Watkins, Heath and Breeder Services Department, The Kennel Club, 1-5 Clarges St London, WIJ 8AB (sarah.watkins@thekennelclub.org.uk), or phone 020 7518 1015. The deadline for applications is 4^th February 2011 and applicants must be able to attend selection and training sessions on both 22^nd February and 8^th April.

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Accredited Breeder Scheme (ABS) 

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