Top Dog Breeds of 2011 – Most Popular Dogs

This year the AKC celebrates its 128th anniversary and for the 21th year in a row, the Labrador retriever is once again America’s favorite purebred dog, according to registration numbers tallied by the American Kennel Club. The AKC released the figures and, as in past years, the Labrador far outstrips the other dogs in the top 10.

Changes This Year

The biggest change this year is that the Beagle jumped into 3rd place from fourth knocking out the Yorkshire Terrier to #5. The Golden Retriever also jumped into 4th place. The Shih Tzu was knocked off the top 10 list and a new breed was added – the Rottweiler.

In 2010, the biggest change was that the Beagle jumped into 4th place from fifth knocking out the Golden Retriever to 5th. The bulldog also jumped into 6th place knocking out the boxer.

In 2009, the biggest change was that the German Shepherd Dog came in at #2 knocking the Yorkshire Terrier down one notch to #2 dog. The was first time the German shepherd ranked #2 in over 30 years. In 2011, the German Shepherd Dog retains it’s second place spot.

If you look at to 2008, it was the first time the bulldog made it into the top ten list since 1935 and has continued to increase and maintained his spot in 6th again this year.

Over the past several years, the top 10 list has been relatively stable. The biggest changes are that six years ago, in 2005, one new breed joined the top 10 list and one got bumped off. The Miniature Schnauzer came in at #10 displacing the Chihuahua into the #11 position. In 2007, the Miniature Schnauzer was dropped from the top 10 list. And in 2008, the Bulldog jumped on the top 10 list. This year’s big change is that the Rottweiler jumped on the top 10 list bumping the Shih Tzu off the list.

Large Vs. Small Breeds

Five out of the top ten AKC registered breeds are large breed dogs! These include the Labrador retriever, German shepherd, golden retriever, Boxer and Bulldog. The rest are smaller breed dogs which includes the Yorkie, Beagle, Dachshund, Poodle, and Shih Tzu.

The Top 10 Breeds of 2011 are:

1. Labrador retrievers
2. German shepherds
3. Beagles
4. Golden retrievers
5. Yorkshire terriers
6. Bulldog
7. Boxers
8. Poodles
9. Dachshunds
10. Rottweiler

The Top 10 Breeds of 2010 are:

1. Labrador retrievers
2. German shepherds
3. Yorkshire terriers
4. Beagles
5. Golden retrievers
6. Bulldog
7. Boxers
8. Dachshunds
9. Poodles
10. Shih Tzus

AKC Categories

The AKC recognizes dogs in seven categories: sporting, hound, working, terrier, toy, non-sporting and herding. The largest breed registration in each group is as follows:

The Entire Ranking of 2011 AKC Dog Registrations

Rank Breed
1. Labrador Retrievers
2. German Shepherd Dogs
3. Beagles
4. Golden Retrievers
5. Yorkshire Terriers
6. Bulldogs
7. Boxers
8. Poodles
9. Dachshunds
10. Rottweilers
11. Shih Tzu
12. Miniature Schnauzers
13. Doberman Pinschers
14. Chihuahuas
15. German Shorthaired Pointers
16. Siberian Huskies
17. Pomeranians
18. French Bulldogs
19. Great Danes
20. Shetland Sheepdogs
21. Cavalier King Charles Spaniels
22. Boston Terriers
23. Maltese
24. Australian Shepherds
25. Pembroke Welsh Corgis
26. Pugs
27. Cocker Spaniels
28. Mastiffs
29. English Springer Spaniels
30. Brittanys
31. Havanese
32. Weimaraners
33. American English Coonhounds**
34. Bernese Mountain Dogs
35. West Highland White Terriers
36. Collies
37. Vizslas
38. Papillons
39. Bichons Frises
40. Bullmastiffs
41. Basset Hounds
42. Miniature Pinschers
43. Newfoundlands
44. Rhodesian Ridgebacks
45. Border Collies
46. Chesapeake Bay Retrievers
47. Akitas
48. Bloodhounds
49. St. Bernards
50. Chinese Shar-Pei
51. Bull Terriers
52. Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers
53. Shiba Inu
54. Scottish Terriers
55. Airedale Terriers
56. Portuguese Water Dogs
57. Whippets
58. Alaskan Malamutes
59. Cairn Terriers
60. Australian Cattle Dogs
61. Chinese Crested
62. Lhasa Apsos
63. English Cocker Spaniels
64. Pekingese
65. Italian Greyhounds
66. Dogues de Bordeaux
67. Cane Corso
68. Chow Chows
69. Samoyeds
70. Irish Setters
71. Great Pyrenees
72. American Staffordshire Terriers
73. Dalmatians
74. Belgian Malinois
75. German Wirehaired Pointers
76. Staffordshire Bull Terriers
77. Brussels Griffons
78. Japanese Chin
79. Irish Wolfhounds
80. Border Terriers
81. Cardigan Welsh Corgis
82. Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs
83. Bouviers des Flandres
84. Old English Sheepdogs
85. Silky Terriers
86. Tibetan Terriers
87. English Setters
88. Afghan Hounds
89. Norwich Terriers

Rank Breed

NOTES:
– New breeds entered in AKC registry in 2011.

**

Data from AKC website: http://www.akc.org/reg/dogreg\\_stats.cfm