Published May 19, 2024

My last weekend in New York was before the pandemic, when I explored the high line, Little Italy, and Chinatown.

Now, my first visit back to the noisy, bustling streets was with my boyfriend to visit the AKC Museum of the Dog.

What is the AKC?

The American Kennel Club (AKC) was founded in 1884 and has been the country’s authority on all things dogs — from family companionship, to canine health and well-being, dog owner rights, and public education.

To date, the AKC is the world’s largest not-for-profit registry for all-breeds, has over 5,000 licensed and member clubs, and offers several affiliated organizations. These organizations include health research for canines, dog rescue networks, the AKC library, and the AKC Museum of the Dog. 

AKC Museum of the Dog

It was a direct walk from New York Penn to Park Ave, where the AKC Museum of the Dog was. The city was just as chaotic, loud and bustling as it had been before the pandemic. I couldn’t help but compare it to Boston, which felt calmer.

However, the walk did not feel like 15 minutes, and soon we found ourselves outside the large concrete steps and modern exterior of the museum.

Museum of the Dog: First Floor

After purchasing our tickets at the front desk — which was also the register for the gift shop — we stored our jackets and bags in secure lockers around the corner.

Massive windows along the first floor lit the room with natural light. The tall ceilings and blend of white and wood made the space feel open and airy. Surprisingly, we were the only two people on the first level of the museum, so the room was extra quiet.

We started on the far left of the room and worked our way around the perimeter. Dog statues — two of which were massive — sat nearest the windows. I liked the Newfoundland looking one the best.

A tall column with a touch screen interface prompted guests to take a picture of their face and get matched with a dog breed. We took our picture and were surprised to see the matches of our dog breeds. Did they choose based on face shape, or clothing color? It was fun to have an interactive element amongst the statues and paintings.

The artwork in the museum was “Dedicated to the collection, preservation, exhibition, and interpretation of the art, artifacts, and literature of the dog, for the purpose of education, historical perspective, aesthetic enjoyment, and in order to enhance the appreciation for and the knowledge of the significance of the dog and the human/canine relationship.” 

This mission could be seen in the self-portraits of owners with their pets and in the natural paintings displaying the breeds defining characteristics and personality traits.

The first floor had dividers with single large oil paintings on each that divided the space into different sections.

The golden retrievers were some of my favorite paintings. The detail and colors were unbelievable, and almost looked like photographs.

The museum featured “Terriers and Friends” as the theme for January-June 2, 2024. The longest wall of the first floor gallery featured many paintings of terriers and other small dogs.

This means, if you’re reading this blog, you won’t get too many spoilers, as the museum will be replacing their artwork with new exhibits after June 2nd.

A long table sat in the aisle of the gallery. Upon closer inspection, the top was a touchscreen with rotating dog breeds. You could click on the dog breed, drag the breed to the little “home” and then get a pop-up of interactive information. You could learn about the breed’s origin, personality traits, temperament, and more. Plus, you could search breeds alphabetically or by group (Herding, Sport, Hound, etc.).

We spent at least 40 minutes clicking through and reading about the different breeds. I thought this was a great resource and another technology-offering to have at the museum.

The last exhibit on the first floor when we visited was the present-day photos of police service dogs in New York City. They featured police officers with German Sheperds and one collie. It was nice to see photography offered alongside the oil paintings.

The Second Floor

A multi-story bookcase of small dog statues framed the staircase upstairs. A neon wire dog hung over a space that looked like a podcast studio.

A small section to the right of the staircase had another interactive element. A digital yellow lab was ready to be trained. Guests stood in the circle and followed the instructions on screen.

These included commands for her to sit, fetch, and feed her cookies. This reminded me of the Wii and I was impressed to see that our movements were tracked successfully when throwing the ball, asking her to sit, and more.

The upper gallery had a diversity of artwork, including pencil and charcoal studies and sketches, popular dogs from comic books and magazines, and even more bronze statues.

One long wall ran the length of the room and had a variety of dogs, still mostly small dogs, with a few Labradors and Spaniels mixed in. These were my favorites:

The far corner of this gallery had walls of bookshelves organized by breed. A TV quietly replayed AKC dog shows. Tables in the center of the room looked like they were designed for children’s educational events.

We browsed the books and watched some of the dog show. I could’ve easily spent a few hours reading in the quiet area.

By now, a small group of girls joined the gallery and giggled to one another as they reviewed the famous dogs in film and the black and white photos of those dogs.

We explored the bronze statues as we made our way to the end of the gallery. We made sure to stop at the gift shop and get a souvenir for our visit before heading back out to the busy streets.

Have you ever visited the Museum of the Dog?

I loved exploring the Museum of the Dog. They had a fantastic blend of vintage artwork and modern technology for an interactive learning experience. Plus, the gallery featured many breeds, even with the terrier exhibit. I’d love to return to see what new pieces they have on display. Leave a comment below with your favorite dog and if you’ve ever been to the museum!

Click here to read my first impression restaurant review of the restaurant we visited to wrap up our trip to the city.