Question: Is it important to buy a dog with “;papers”;?

Answer: The American Kennel Club and United Kennel Club do not guarantee the health or quality of dogs in their registries, but recording lineage does provide some assurances. A dog can be registered with the AKC only if both parents are already registered. That means your dog is guaranteed to be a purebred, and to some extent, pedigree does give some indication of quality and health. Also, certain health tests are listed on the pedigree so you can tell whether the dog came from healthy stock.