American Mi-Ki Registry Association

As with many other breeds, even some well-known recognized breeds, the exact history of the Mi-Ki is not clear cut. There are people who feel they know the exact heritage of the Mi-Ki, but the stories are conflicting. Without hardcore documentation, these stories remain exactly that...stories. We do, however, know that our Mi-Ki share ancestry with the Maltese, Papillion, and Japanese Chin. This is the source of the variety in coat type. Some say there are other influences within the Mi-Ki, but due to a lack of accurate record keeping, this cannot be verified. A breed club was started in 1992 that offered purebred paperwork and limited pedigree information. This aided in tracing the ancestry of the Mi-Ki. Today, because of advancements in genetic testing, we can determine exact parentage of puppies, verify purebred status, test for some genetic health disorders, and even test to see what type of coat color genes our Mi-Ki are carrying. That is why the American Mi-Ki Registry Association prides itself on keeping detailed accurate records on all registered Mi-Ki and their litters. We feel this information will be vital someday to the Mi-Ki breeders and enthusiasts sure to come. Who knows what scientific advancements will be made 50 years from now....

UPDATE: AMRA had the wonderful privilege of being involved in the creation of the first genetic DNA marker to identify the Mi-Ki Breed. You can now have your Mi-Ki Puppy or Mi-Ki Dog tested to see if it is, infact, a true Mi-Ki. To learn more about this test, please visit: www.wisdompanel.com To accurately be able to identify the Mi-Ki Marker, you MUST have your veterinarian submit a blood sample in the kit provided to you by Mars Wisdom Panel.

What are the Characteristics of a Mi-Ki?

The average Mi-Ki weighs between 5 to 8 pounds and stands between 7 and 10 inches tall. While some Mi-Ki weigh as little as 3 pounds or as much as 10 pounds, most fall in the category previously described. The Mi-Ki is a friendly alert toy dog with a very adaptable nature. Mi-Ki generally like all other animals including cats, horses, and other breeds of dogs. They are very accepting of all people, from young to old. They are not an excessively yappy toy breed and, therefore, are ideal for apartment living. They travel well, are very intelligent, and most of all extremely loving and affectionate. They are a wonderfully well-rounded companion breed.

Is the Mi-Ki a Healthy Breed?

Overall, the Mi-Ki is a very healthy breed with no known breed specific health issues. AMRA is proud to announce the introduction of a new mandatory health testing procedure. AMRA is the ONLY Mi-Ki organization to offer this to adopting families. By using DNA from the parents and the puppies, we can now test our Mi-Ki dogs and Mi-Ki Puppies for things such as:

This will add extra assurance to adopting families that they are, in fact, receiving a quality pure bred healthy Mi-Ki Puppy. Even though the Mi-Ki breed is not known for any of these disorders, we want to make sure they never creep up within the breed. We feel "An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure!" If you are searching for a Mi-Ki Puppy to bring into your home to love and cherish, we highly encourage you to adopt from an AMRA breeder who has registered the litter with the American Mi-Ki Registry Association. If they have puppies registered with another registry, be aware that this testing has NOT been done. It will only have been done on those puppies registered with AMRA!

While the Mi-Ki dog is known to be a very healthy breed, they are still a toy breed and susceptible to issues common to other toy breeds. Most commonly, patellar luxation. This is where the tiny knee caps can slip out of the grove that holds them in the correct position. While this can be a serious and costly issue, most Mi-Kis have a small degree of luxation that will never cause any serious life altering issues, nor loss of mobility. Very few Mi-Ki dogs have to have any intervention where this issue is concerned. For more information on patellar luxation, please check out the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals at: www.offa.org. A responsible breeder will be knowledgeable about their own Mi-Ki's patellar luxation results and should be trying to breed for constant improvement in each subsequent generation.

Using top of the line software, AMRA and it's associate breeders will document, track, and verify any/all health issues that arise and are reported to AMRA. Should any health issue arise that indicates a pattern specific to the Mi-Ki, we will document it in our breed description as a health concern.

Why are American Mi-Ki Registry Association Papers Important to receive if I am adopting a Mi-Ki as a Pet ONLY?

Many adopting families don't seem to put a lot of value in a piece of paper that bears their puppy's personalized registration information and pedigree; however, with a rare breed like the Mi-Ki, that is a mistake. Being that the Mi-Ki breed is not yet recognized by AKC, the only higher authority governing the breed is a Mi-Ki breed specific registry such as the American Mi-Ki Registry Association (AMRA). There are strict guidelines that a breeder must follow in order to receive AMRA registration papers. This is for the protection of the Mi-Ki Breed, itself, as well as the protection of the adopting families.

Adopting a pet from a qualified AMRA breeder is important because unfortunately there are several people out there advertising Mi-Kis, when they don't really have Mi-Kis at all. Mi-Kis ARE NOT a designer breed that is created by mixing two pure breeds together. They are a breed all their own and are mated ONLY Mi-Ki to Mi-Ki. Beware of anyone claiming to have Mi-Ki puppies by mixing breeds that are thought to be in the Mi-Ki ancestry. See the below example that was posted on a puppy advertising website:

Rare Mi-Ki / MiKi Puppies

Price: $600

We are expecting a litter of rare to come by MiKi Puppies! They are so cute!!!! These Puppies are VERY expensive usually around $1500+ but we are asking $600-700. Mom is a Japanese Chin and Dad is a Maltese.

LET US BE CLEAR, THOSE ARE NOT MI-KI PUPPIES.

They would NOT be eligible for AMRA Registration. They will NOT have the same temperament and/or traits that true Mi-Kis possess. They are Japanese Chin/Maltese crosses. Unfortunately, there are those that are trying to mislead the public with these types of breedings.

Another reason to adopt from an AMRA registering breeder is because there are, unfortunately, other registries that will register dogs and puppies as Mi-Kis without known history of the parents, knowledge of the lines, and/or DNA. evidence to support only Mi-Ki to Mi-Ki breedings. The reason is that they are just a functioning registry that registers many many breeds. They are not familiar with the Mi-Ki breed and which dogs/lines are legitimate. They do not claim to specialize in any one breed, and therefore, they rely solely on the word of the applicant as to the truth of the information being provided. They do not require DNA or any other testing. They simply take the word of the person registering the dog and put the information down on paper. For a rare breed, this leaves much room for hanky-panky. The only SURE way to know that you are receiving a quality pure bred Mi-Ki Puppy is to adopt from an AMRA registering breeder who will provide you with AMRA paperwork.

The American Mi-Ki Registry Association will do all it can to help you find the Mi-Ki Puppy just right for your family and purity, quality, health, and temperament will be our breeders' top priority!

Where Did the Mi-Ki Originate?

What are the Characteristics of a Mi-Ki?

Is the Mi-Ki a Healthy Breed?

Why are American Mi-Ki Registry Association Papers Important to receive if I am adopting a Mi-Ki as a Pet ONLY?

Rare Mi-Ki / MiKi Puppies

LET US BE CLEAR, THOSE ARE NOT MI-KI PUPPIES.