Non-sporting dogs

Non-sporting is the AKC's catch-all group for breeds that don't fit its other six categories — Poodles, Bulldogs, Dalmatians, Chow Chows, Boston Terriers and Shar-Peis all land here despite having almost nothing in common with each other.

Not much, by design — it's the group for what's left over once Sporting, Hound, Working, Terrier, Toy and Herding are accounted for. A Poodle and a Bulldog share a group but nothing in size, coat, energy or original job.

The name is inherited from the AKC's original grouping system, where "Sporting" meant gundogs, and everything companion-shaped that wasn't a gundog, hound, terrier, toy or working breed got filed as "non-sporting" by elimination — a name about what the group isn't, not what it is.

It depends entirely on the breed, since the group spans everything from the mellow Bulldog to the athletic, spotted Dalmatian. Research the specific breed rather than the group — there's no shared temperament here to generalise from.

It varies more than in any other group. A Bulldog is content with short, gentle walks, while a Dalmatian — originally bred to run alongside carriages for miles — needs serious daily exercise. Check the individual breed's numbers rather than assuming.

Several do, and it's breed-specific rather than group-wide — brachycephalic breeds like the Bulldog need care in heat, while others like the Dalmatian carry their own genetic risks. Always check a specific breed's health profile rather than treating "non-sporting" as one health category.