Britain has never had more dogs.
Around 13.5 million now share our homes, with more than a third of UK households owning at least one. In London, there are now believed to be more pet dogs than children, reflecting a profound social change. More and more people are choosing dogs instead of babies, or delaying parenthood altogether, with their four-legged companions becoming an integral part of the family.
In other words, the potential audience for the Royal Kennel Club has never been bigger.
Yet the Club itself finds itself at a crossroads.
Its 2024 accounts revealed a £4.29 million loss, while pedigree registrations, once the lifeblood of the organisation, continue their long-term decline. The Club itself recognises that its future depends on reversing that trend and reconnecting with a wider audience.
The irony could hardly be greater.
There are more dog owners than ever before, yet fewer people are engaging with the organisation that has been the guardian of pedigree dogs for more than 150 years.
Why?
Some will argue it is because designer crossbreeds have become fashionable. Others will point to changing lifestyles, rising costs, fewer people breeding litters or a generation that increasingly sees dogs as family members rather than future breeding stock. All of those factors play a part.
But I believe there is a deeper issue.
For many younger dog owners, the Royal Kennel Club simply isn’t part of their world.
Ask the average first-time puppy owner what the Royal Kennel Club does and many will mention Crufts. Some may think of dog shows or pedigrees. Few would immediately think of the extraordinary work carried out behind the scenes on health research, genetics, education, behaviour, training and canine welfare.
That is a communications problem rather than a dog problem.
Ironically, the Club knows this. Its own research found that only 12% of dog owners feel the Kennel Club represents people like them, while a quarter see it as elitist and half believe its branding is outdated. The organisation has publicly acknowledged that its future depends on becoming more relevant, approachable and inclusive while remaining true to its roots.
One person who appeared to recognise this was the outgoing Chairman, Ian Seath. During his time in office there seemed to be a genuine desire to modernise the organisation’s image, improve transparency and demonstrate that health and welfare sit at the heart of everything it does. Whatever the reasons behind the Board’s decision to replace him, his departure will disappoint many who believed he represented a fresh direction.
The ambition to reconnect with dog owners is absolutely the right one.
Because here’s the thing.
The Royal Kennel Club doesn’t just have a role in serving pedigree breeders.
It has the knowledge and expertise to become Britain’s most trusted source of information for every responsible dog owner.
Imagine if every first-time puppy buyer automatically visited the Royal Kennel Club website before choosing a breeder. Imagine if every family struggling with adolescent behaviour knew exactly where to find trusted training advice. Imagine if every owner understood why health testing matters, even if they never intended to show a dog.
That audience numbers in the millions.
Dog lovers don’t care about committee structures or constitutional reform. They care about helping their dogs live longer, healthier and happier lives.
That is where the Royal Kennel Club’s future surely lies.
Not by abandoning its pedigree heritage, because that heritage is enormously valuable.
But by making that expertise matter to every dog owner in Britain.
As I write this, I can’t help thinking back to my own time at the Kennel Club. In the 1980s I became its first Information Officer, a role created to help explain the Club’s work to the wider public.
Back then, the Kennel Club was almost everyone’s first thought when they thought about dogs. Its authority was rarely questioned and, looking back, we probably didn’t appreciate just how precious that trust was. I remember writing reports suggesting ways the Club could communicate more effectively and engage with a changing world. They gathered dust. There was little sense of urgency because, after all, we were the Kennel Club. The first in the world. The benchmark that everyone else looked to.
But no organisation, however prestigious its history, can rely on yesterday’s reputation forever.
I still believe the Royal Kennel Club has the knowledge, expertise and goodwill to become the trusted voice for every responsible dog owner in Britain. I have no shortage of ideas about how it could reconnect with today’s dog lovers and make pedigree dogs relevant to a new generation. Sadly, my offers to help have so far gone unanswered.
I sincerely hope it isn’t too late.
Not for the Royal Kennel Club’s sake, but for the dogs whose future it was created to protect.
