overwhelmed with information now!

okay, so i'm supposed to take the puppies in tomorrow morning to be scanned for microchips. no biggie. if they aren't microchipped, we will fix that. today in the mail comes the paperwork from one of the vet's offices that saw them previously. i basically harassed the original owner into releasing the information. so, i open the envelope and not expecting much. inside though, the receptionist over there (who i think was really sympathetic to my plight) includes the original paperwork that the owner brought in with her. there is an identification number (not sure what it's for), the microchip ID number, and a registration number for the AKC. there is also listed the dam and sire.

YEA!!!!

how the heck do i register?? or can i??

no one at the AKC came back on the line and when i called back i realized that they are closed for the day. so i'm on the website and i'm completely confused. i don't have a registration certificate for the puppies, but there is a registration number here from the breeder, and i know the dam and sire. can i register the dogs?? should i register the dogs??

Confusing

As a mommy to a set of 6 month-old twin fur-boys, I feel your pain. Luckily I got my boys straight from the breeder and she provided me with the AKC certificate. I am sorry to hear all you have had to go through with the boys (tracking down owner, unscrupulous breeders, etc). My previous dog was cocker spaniel rescue, and I remember going through all of the business you are going through. Unfortunately the internet wasn't that handy in the early 90's and I could never get all those things done that you are. Hopefully someone wil be at the AKC phone number tomorrow. Also, you may want to contact the CKCSC to see if they have any information/registration numbers on your boys (www.ckcsc.org).
Good Luck!

There's no real point in registering them unless you personally want to -- to be honest, AKC registration (or parentage) also doesn't mean much after the fact of finding a breeder; it is the individual dedicated, reputable breeder that gives the registration and parentage meaning. If you want to, of course go ahead. AKC registration or CKCSC is more meaningful at the time when you are actually looking for a reputable breeder -- but even then, they really are only the bare starting point as AKC in particular is easy to get -- CKCSC is more likely to mean a possibility of a reputable breeder simply because the registry is smaller and it is easier for the club to spot and censure the questionable breeders. As the dogs are rescues and registration doesn't matter it is really only a matter of whether you feel you want to pay to register them. Many pet owners never bother, whatever the registration, as they are not breeding or showing their dogs. If they came from a questionable breeder they are extremely unlikely to have CKCSC registration. If they came from a reputable breeder they will both be on limited registration (eg one cannot breed or show them). Reputable breeders don't sell pet dogs on open registration. So that will tell you a lot right there. Reputable breeders would also probably want both dogs back, as was noted in a previous discussion.

BTW I would wonder whether the vet did not violate privacy laws by releasing that information unless the owner sanctioned it -- I can't really tell from what you are saying whether the owner said it was OK or the vet tech just sent the info? Vet records do generally fall under medical record protection and should not be released without the owner's permission regardless of whether the dog is a rescue or not.

good points, Karlin. i think i'll just forget about the registration. it's really not necessary. i just wasn't sure if this was something that a responsible owner should do.
as far as the medical records, i did get the owner to consent to this particular vet in sending me the records. she refused to authorize PetSmart in sending me anything by mail, but they did tell me they were only there once and it was for a booster and that's it. the last vet visit was to a local animal hospital and i'm still waiting to see if she authorized them like she said she would. :xfngr:
i was really more happy to find out about the microchip. i called the company and they are sending out the paperwork. apparently no one ever registered their information on the chip.
and a question - is it technically correct to tell people that they are rescue dogs? so many people have asked us how we came by the boys and instead of going through the long story, i've just been saying they are rescues. it also helps explains the mad barking. we just say that they are a 'work in progress'.

If you think you will ever want to do competitive agility with them, the AKC registration will be useful (there are non-AKC groups, but mostly it is AKC). I held off registering Lucky for a long time, but finally did register him once he started doing agility (I doubt we'll ever compete, but wanted to have that option).