Every breed in America has a parent club — the keeper of the standard, the referee of the breeders, the steady hand that says this is what a good one looks like. For the Wirehaired Pointing Griffon, that club is the American Wirehaired Pointing Griffon Association, the AWPGA, and its story is more dramatic than most. It was born out of a fight over the one thing that matters most in this breed: whether you are allowed to add outside blood to it. The people who said no — who wanted to keep the Griffon pure and keep it eligible for AKC and NAVHDA — built the club that serves the breed today.
If you own a Griffon in this country, the AWPGA is your tribe whether you have joined yet or not. It sets the health-testing bar your breeder should be clearing, runs the national gathering where the best dogs in the country show up, and maintains the open database where you can look up almost any Griffon’s record. This article explains what it does and why it exists — the national layer above the local clubs where you actually train.
The national breed club: keeper of the standard, the health bar, and the community.
Born From a Fight Over Pure Blood (1991)
To understand the AWPGA you have to know what it broke away from. The original American club, the Wirehaired Pointing Griffon Club of America (WPGCA), had taken a controversial step in the 1980s: a deliberate crossbreeding program with the Czech Ceský Fousek, intended to broaden the gene pool. It was well-meant. It was also disqualifying — it cost the WPGCA recognition from the AKC, UKC, CKC, FCI, and NAVHDA (AWPGA History).
The breeders who opposed the outcross — who wanted to keep the Griffon pure and keep its AKC and NAVHDA standing — split off and formed the AWPGA in 1991. That same year, the AKC recognized the AWPGA as the official National Parent Club for the breed (AWPGA History). The older lineage eventually transitioned entirely to the Fousek and is today known as Český Fousek North America (Project Upland).
Two names, one important caveat
You may also encounter the Korthals Griffon Club of America (KGCA), founded 2013, which uses the name “Korthals Griffon” and its own standard. Dogs bred under that lineage are not AKC-registerable as Wirehaired Pointing Griffons and are not eligible for AKC events or NAVHDA testing under WPG registration (AWPGA History). It is the same fork in the road, still visible today — and a good reason to ask any breeder exactly which registries their pups qualify for.
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What the AWPGA Actually Does
The club’s mission is plainspoken: “To encourage and promote the quality breeding of purebred Wirehaired Pointing Griffons and to do all possible to bring their natural hunting qualities to perfection” (AWPGA About). In practice that means:
Standard stewardship — the AWPGA holds the AKC breed standard as the single measure of excellence (AWPGA About).
Health testing & database — four CHIC health tests through OFA: hips, elbows, thyroid, and eyes. The free, public AWPGA database, launched in 2014, records OFA results, conformation, hunt-test and field titles (AWPGA Health & Genetics).
National Specialty — an annual week of conformation, field and hunting events, and an awards banquet, rotating around the country (Lebanon, Tennessee in 2025; Dixon, California planned for 2026) (AWPGA Specialties).
Field & hunt-test support — the club backs both AKC titles (JH, SH, MH, and the new MHX added in 2025) and the full NAVHDA ladder (NA, GDT, UT, Invitational), with dogs earning points toward the annual Field Dog of the Year (AWPGA Hunt/Field).
Breeder referral, judges’ education, rescue, and The Griffonnier — the club’s quarterly magazine (AWPGA About).
The NAVHDA Bond
The AWPGA’s identity is intertwined with NAVHDA in a way few breed clubs can claim — Griffons were among the breeds that helped establish NAVHDA in the first place, and the historic split from the WPGCA was driven partly by the desire to keep NAVHDA recognition (Bluestem Kennels). This is why a serious Griffon breeder treats NAVHDA testing not as optional polish but as core to the breed’s purpose. We walk that whole testing system in our NAVHDA deep-dive.
The Club Comes to Montana
This is not a distant, coastal organization for a Montana hunter. The AWPGA itself ran a licensed AKC hunt test in Helena, Montana on September 24–25, 2023, at the RV Ranch (Montana Field Trial Calendar). For a Belgrade kennel, that is meaningful: the national breed club actively uses our state as a testing venue, a quiet testament to the strength of Montana’s bird-dog culture.
How this connects to our pups
At Griffons Out West we breed to the AWPGA standard and the CHIC health-testing requirements the club sets — hips, elbows, thyroid, and eyes. Our puppies can be registered with the AKC, NAVHDA, and the UKC, and we provide AKC registration prepaid by default. That means your pup is already enrolled in the registry the AWPGA uses for its titles and database from day one — and squarely inside the breed’s recognized, pure-blood lineage.
Should You Join?
For most owners, yes — eventually. Membership runs about $41/year for an individual or $55 for a household (AWPGA Membership), and it buys you The Griffonnier, the health database, breeder referrals, the National Specialty, and a nationwide network of people who love this odd, bearded, brilliant breed as much as you do. For a breeding kennel, AWPGA membership and adherence to its code of ethics is simply the mark of doing it right.
That is the national layer. The next article puts boots on the ground: the NAVHDA chapters, gun-dog clubs, and all-breed clubs around Belgrade and the Mountain West where you actually train and title a dog. Read where to train and title your Griffon in Montana — and if you are still sorting out papers, the registry guide is the place to start.
How this article was made: researched and written with AI, then reviewed, edited, and published by Daniel Hartzheim of Griffons Out West in Belgrade, Montana.
The AWPGA’s founding, mission, health-testing requirements, and events are drawn from the AWPGA history, about, health & genetics, and hunt/field pages, with the Montana hunt test confirmed via the Montana field-trial calendar. Always confirm current dues, health requirements, and event schedules with the AWPGA before relying on them.
