Of Merit

“The quality of being particularly good or worthy, especially so as to deserve praise or reward”

Several years ago I was very happy to be designated a Breeder of Merit by the American Kennel Club. It takes some time and work to earn the designation. AKC Breeders of Merit must demonstrate the following:

•Has a history of at least 5 years involvement with AKC events.

•Earned AKC Conformation, Performance or Companion* event titles on a minimum of 4 dogs from AKC litters they bred/co-bred.

•Member of an AKC club.

•Certifies that applicable health screens are performed on your breeding stock as recommended by the Parent Club.

•Demonstrates a commitment to ensuring 100% of the puppies produced are AKC registered.

Right before Christmas the dog that helped ensure that I had the qualifications to earn that designation was herself awarded a designation of Merit.

The Cardigan Welsh Corgi Club of America has a Registry of Merit (ROM) program for Sires and Dams who are successful producers. There are 3 levels Gold, Silver and Bronze and there is the ROM and the ROMV (the V stands for versatility).

BRONZE LEVEL ROM, a stud must have offspring who have earned a minimum of 15 credits; a brood bitch must have offspring who have earned a minimum of 7 credits. Also, to qualify a stud dog must have a minimum of 10 different offspring having at least one credit each; a brood bitch must have a minimum of 4 different offspring having at least one credit each.

SILVER LEVEL ROM, a stud dog must have at least 15 offspring earning a total of at least 30 credits under the guidelines; a brood bitch must have at least 6 offspring earning a minimum of 14 points.

GOLD LEVEL ROM, a stud dog must have at least 20 offspring earning a total of at least 50 credits under the guidelines; a brood bitch must have at least 8 offspring earning a minimum of 25 credits.

A Versatile ROM (ROMV) requires get to attain points in both conformation and performance/companion events. The number of get needed for Gold, Silver or Bronze remains the same.

My darling Lindy Hop who produced two litters with a total of 8 puppies earned the ROMV designation. Five of Lindy’s 8 puppies contributed to her point total. I am so proud of all of the puppies and thankful for their great homes. The puppies that contributed points to Lindy’s ROMV are:

From the Lindy x PJ litter

Solstice Flying Ace, RAE, CD, GN, NHIC (Charlie)

Arylan Flight from Justice, RN BN, NHIC (Bonnie)

GCH. ICKC CH Solstice Flying Start, CAA, RATS, RATI, NHIC (Bailey)

From the Lindy x Oz litter:

CH Arylan Custom Goldwing (Rider)

Solstice Fly Girl, RN CGC (Phoebe)

And if points could be earned from fabulous companion homes, Solstice the Flying Farmer (Zippy), Solstice Manhattan Project (Einie) and Solstice Pin Up Girl (Mandy) would contribute too.

I am so proud that Lindy has been included in the Cardigan Breed History as a ROM-V producer.

CH Arylan Flying Start, RATO, RATI, ROM-V