The Kennel Club

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The Kennel Club ("KC") is a kennel club based in London, England.

Founded on the 4 April 1873, the club is the oldest of the world’s all-breed kennel clubs^{[citation needed]}. It is also the largest in the United Kingdom^{[citation needed]}. It was the first official registry of purebred dogs in the world, and its annual registrations in the early 2000s average 280,000^{[citation needed]}. The KC is not part of the World Canine Organisation, Fédération Cynologique Internationale, as most other countries' kennel clubs are.

The Club’s signature event is the Crufts dog conformation show, held annually since 1948, which attracts competitors from all over the world. It also holds the much-smaller Scruffts for crossbreed dogs and the dog event Discover Dogs.

The Kennel Club divides dogs into 7 groups: Hound, Working, Terrier, Gundog, Pastoral, Utility and Toy.