Golden Retriever vs. German Shepherd vs. Yorkshire Terrier vs. Labrador Retriever vs. Staffordshire Bull Terrier

Using data from the American Kennel Club (2007), the Australian National Kennel Council (2007), the Canadian Kennel Club (2007) and the UK Kennel Club (2006) (see Wikipedia), I calculated what were the five most commonly registered dog breeds in these four countries together: an Anglo-Saxon top 5 so to speak. I did this by assigning ranking points in reverse of the rankings, e.g, the German Shepherd, no. 3 in Canada, got 8 ranking points from Canada. The four kennel clubs' top 10s actually accounted for only 22 distinct dog breeds. This was the full list by the way:

• 1. Labrador Retriever 40
  
• 2. German Shepherd (Dog) 32
  
• 3. Golden Retriever 26
  
• 4. Staffordshire Bull Terrier 14
  
• 4. Yorkshire Terrier 14
  
• 6. Cavalier King Charles Spaniel 12
  
• 6. (English) Cocker Spaniel 12
  
• 8. Boxer 10
  
• 8. Poodle 10
  
• 10. (English) Springer Spaniel 8
  
• 11. Beagle 6
  
• 11. Shetland Sheepdog 6
  
• 13. Border Collie 5
  
• 14. Dachshund 4
  
• 14. Miniature Schnauzer 4
  
• 14. Pug 4
  
• 14. Shih Tzu 4
  
• 18. West Highland White Terrier 3
  
• 19. Dalmatian 2
  
• 20. Bernese Mountain Dog 1
  
• 20. Border Terrier 1
  
• 20. Bulldog 1
  
• 20. Rottweiler 1
  

So what did Google Insights for Search teach me?



Google-popularity ranked the doggies this way:

1. Golden Retriever
   
2. German Shepherd
   
3. Yorkshire Terrier
   
4. Labrador Retriever
   
5. Staffordshire Bull Terrier

This latter list is different from the four-kennel-club rankings. The Labrador Retriever (no. 1) switched places with the Golden Retriever (no. 4). The Yorkie threatened for some time to overtake the German Shepherd but in the end didn't succeed. The Golden Retriever suffered an outspoken decline but stayed clearly on top. But let's look at another feature of Google Insights for Search: split-ups of how the different dogs did in specific countries, starting with the Golden Retriever:



Golden Retrievers were most popular in the US, Austria and Canada. When digging deeper, in the US, the top states were Maine, Colorado and Alaska. How about the German Shepherd?



This time, the US, Australia and South Africa were tops while inside the US it was Alaska, North Carolina and Virginia. Germany wasn't even in the top 10 but of course they would use the German word, Deutscher Schäferhund, to search. Next, the Yorkie.



Lo and behold, Hungary searched most for the lapdog, then South Africa and the US (top states: Georgia, West Virginia, Mississipi). Let's check on the good old Lab:



Labrador Retrievers were Google-popular in the US, the Philippines and Canada. The top 3 US states were Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire. Last but not least, to utilize a well-worn cliché, came the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, a breed with which I must admit I wasn't familiar.



The UK, Norway and Australia were most interested. The US came in only 9th this time (top states: Alaska, Hawaii, Louisiana).