Biting Criticism Leads To Recall Of Dog Book

A bitter controversy over how well some dogs get along with children has led to howls of betrayal from dog breeders and to an unprecedented recall of the latest edition of the American Kennel Club's hugely successful "The Complete Dog Book."

Confronted with the fury of breeders and dog owners, the AKC has recalled all 30,000 copies of the 19th edition of the book and is eliminating what it tersely describes as "unintentional incorrect and controversial information."

The controversial information in question is a new feature that tells how well each breed gets along with children. The book concludes that 40 of the 141 AKC-recognized breeds are "not good" with children.

Rated as "not good" are beloved and popular family pets such as the Scottish terrier, Dalmatian, Yorkshire terrier and dachshund.

Noticeably absent from the "not good" rating are breeds such as the Doberman pinscher and the Staffordshire bull terrier, commonly known as the pit bull. These were rated "good" with children.

"The AKC has as much as told the general public not to consider buying almost one-third of the AKC breeds as a family pet," said dog breeder and canine judge Bo Bengtson in Santa Barbara, Calif.

Within days of the new edition's release, breeders and owners complained that the new classifications were unfair and uninformed.

The Kennel Club reacted by apologizing for errors in the $33 book, which has sold 2 million copies since 1929.

"The AKC sincerely regrets the distress caused to dog owners and breeders by the errors," the club said. "AKC neither agrees with nor endorses the material."

The book heretofore has been renowned for finding only positive things to say about each breed.

"Very vocal," for example, might describe a nonstop barker. "Independent" could mean hard to train, and "spirited" could mean a dog will drag its owner down the street.

The Kennel Club blamed the mistake on a change in format "without proper vetting."

The publisher was asked in January to suspend sales and recall the books, which will be replaced for free with a revised edition in June, the AKC said.

James Crowley, secretary of the AKC, declined to say how the information got into the book in the first place. He did say, however, that the information first appeared on a 1996 CD-ROM developed by Macmillan Digital titled "Best of Breed, The American Kennel Club's Multimedia Guide to Dogs."

The recall will cost the AKC about $130,000, Crowley said.

The recently released 19th edition of the AKC book carried new information boxes for each breed, with data such as size, trainability and ratings as to suitability with children.

Dogs rated "not good" with children include chihuahuas, toy poodles, whippets and Scottish terriers. But the list sometimes contradicts the book's more detailed remarks about temperament. Scotties, for example, are said to be "loving and gentle with people."

Alexandra Day of Seattle, author of the popular "Good Dog, Carl" children's books about a baby-sitting Rottweiler, said there was no basis for criticism of that breed, the nation's third most popular. "They are family dogs, but they protect their own," Day said.

Paddie Swift, a mother walking her Dalmatian, Griffen, in New York's Central Park yesterday, joked, "Disney might have to change the name of the movie to `101 Dalmatians Ready to Eat Your Kids.' "

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. The 40 dog breeds on the `not good' list .

Affenspinscher Lhasa apso .

Afghan hound Maltese .

Akita Manchester terrier .

Basenji Manchester toy terrier .

Borzoi Miniature pinscher .

Brussels griffon Pekingese .

Bull terrier Pomeranian .

Chihuahua Puli .

Chinese shar-pei Rhodesian Ridgeback .

Chowchow Rottweiler .

Dachshund Schipperke .

Dalmatian Scottish terrier .

English toy spaniel Sealyham terrier .

French bulldog Shiba inu .

German shorthaired pointer Skye terrier .

German wirehaired pointer Tibetan terrier .

Giant schnauzer Toy poodle .

Italian greyhound Whippet .

Komondor Wirehaired pointing griffon .

Kuvasz Yorkshire terrier .