Welcome to theCanine Museum

Preserving the Bond Between Humans and Dogs

For over 20 years, the Canine Museum has been dedicated to celebrating the unique relationship between humans and dogs. Through our carefully curated exhibits, we showcase the history, evolution, and cultural impact of our four-legged friends.

How it all started - In 1988, two old breeders died, their families were not interested in dogs, so all of their memorabilia and records ended up either in the second-hand shop or at the tip. A group of people got together and decided that this kind of thing should not happen again. They tried to get the Australian Kennel Club to start a museum, but they were not interested so it was decided to go ahead alone. Until affiliation they held their meetings at the offices of the first secretary's husband. Subsequently the club became affiliated and as an ANKC rule does not allow the use of the word Australian in the club's title they became The Canine Museum Foundation Inc. This club was set up as an All Breeds show club to raise money to build the museum. The first show was held in 1990 and together with dinners, raffles and auctions enough funds were raised to put up the museum building and on 15 November 2003 the doors to the museum at KCC park were opened. At the same time the Canine Museum Trust was set up with a board of trustees to take care of the ownership of the museum's contents. This Trust was also set up as a registered charity. Since these early days we have gone from strength to strength thanks to the support and generosity of the dog world. We have cabinets paid for by clubs and people and most days that we are open see another donation being delivered. We have collections bequeathed by members and donations from around the world. We hope that you enjoy your visit in person or online.