2 Constitution and Management
a) The Club shall consist of a Patron, President, Chairman, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer, a Committee of twelve that shall include the three officers, and an unlimited number of Members and non-voting Junior Members. All shall be required to pay Membership Fees except in the case of Life Members. An unlimited number of Vice-Presidents and Honorary Life Members approved at the AGM may be appointed. The Hon Secretary shall keep an up to date record of Member’s names and addresses which will be sent to the Kennel Club with the Annual Returns and be available for inspection on the written request of a Member or the Kennel Club.
b) The Committee shall conduct all matters on behalf of the Members, howsoever arising, in accordance with Kennel Club Rules, Regulations and Guidelines.
c) The Committee shall retire annually, all being eligible for re-election should they agree to stand. New Nominations for Officers and Committee must reach the Hon Secretary not later than twenty-one days before the AGM. All such new nominations must be proposed and seconded and shall be accompanied by the written consent of the nominee. Proposer, Seconder and Nominee shall be U.K residents and have been a fully paid up Member for not less than two years. Not more than two member of immediate family or partnership shall serve as an Officer or Member of Committee at the same time. No two members of immediate family or partnership may be a Bank Signature. The election of Officers and Committee shall be by secret ballot to take place during the AGM. The members shall appoint two fully paid up Members, of not less than two years standing, as tellers who shall deliver the result of the ballot to the Chairman. The Chairman shall announce the results of the ballot by reading only the name/s of the successful candidates. A ballot paper shall be invalidated if in the opinion of both tellers it fails to indicate clearly the Member’s selection. No Officer shall serve as an Officer of any other Löwchen Breed Club.
d) A Vice Chairman, Assistant Secretary and Assistant Treasurer may be appointed annually by and from the Committee, to assist in the efficient running of the Club’s Affairs.
Every three years the President shall retire, or earlier if he/she so wishes, and shall be eligible for re-election. Nomination and election shall be the same as for Committee
e) The Hon Secretary shall call Committee Meetings as and when necessary, but at least every four months, and for the purpose of the Meetings a quorum shall consist of two Officers and a minimum of four Committee Members. A minimum of fourteen days notice of a Committee Meeting must be given to all Committee Members and Officers.In an emergency less notice may be given with the agreement of nine members of the governing body. Full and proper Minutes shall be kept of all Meetings that shall be signed, after reading, by the Chairman at the next Committee Meeting or in his/her absence by any other Officer, duly authorised by the said Meeting.
f) Any Committee Member who shall be absent from three consecutive Meetings shall
be deemed to have resigned unless a satisfactory reason is given.
g) The Committee shall have the power to co-opt, until the next AGM, any Member to fill any vacancies that may arise from time to time on the Committee
h) No person whilst an undischarged bankrupt may serve on the Committee or hold any office or appointment within a Kennel Club registered Society.
i) Club Rules shall not be altered except at a Special General Meeting or at the Annual General Meeting, notice of which includes details of the proposal to alter the Rules. Any alteration to the Club Rules, meeting the approval of the Members and having been deemed acceptable, shall be submitted to the Kennel Club for their approval before being brought into force. New Rules or amendments introduced specifically to meet Kennel Club requirements shall be adopted immediately, and shall be included in the Society’s Constitution with effect from the Society’s AGM. A fully detailed final Agenda will be sent to all voting Members within seven days of the closing date for the receipt of items for discussion and Candidates standing for Officers and Committee. The name of the candidates standing for Officers or Committee shall be given including, in the case of new candidates, proposer and seconder.
j) The Club shall pay an honorarium to the Hon Secretary and Hon Treasurer, the amount to be decided at the Annual General Meeting.

3 Voting Rights
All fully paid up Members of six months standing shall be entitled to vote except the Chairman, who in the event of a tie has the casting vote. Voting at a Meeting shall be decided by a majority of those present with given exceptions. Each Member of a Joint Membership shall have a vote. Voting shall be by those present at a Meeting.

4 Annual General Meeting
a) The Annual General Meeting shall take place before April 1st each year. The purpose of the AGM shall be to receive the report of the retiring Committee and balance sheet, to
elect a new Committee and to discuss such matters as are on the agenda. Twelve members present at the AGM shall form a quorum.
b) Twenty-eight days notice must be given in writing to Members. The AGM shall be held at such time and place as the Committee shall decide. Duly proposed and seconded items for inclusion on the Agenda of the AGM must reach the Hon. Secretary in writing not later than twenty-one days before the date of the AGM. No matters other than those stated on the Agenda may be discussed at the AGM except by special permission of the Chairman and should this arise it must be deemed to be of very exceptional importance.
c) The Honorary Secretary must have received renewal membership fees by 31st January for a member to attend an AGM. Only fully paid up members of six months standing at the time of calling the meeting will be entitled to a vote at an AGM or SGM.
d) The Membership shall vote for the judges of the forthcoming shows, chosen from a list of judges drawn up by the Committee. The Membership being able to put forward judge’s names during the year. Where possible the judging of the Championship Show shall rotate annually between non specialist and breed specialists.

5 Special General Meeting
a) A Special General Meeting shall be summoned by the Hon Secretary on behalf of the Committee or on receiving a written requisition signed by not less than fifteen fully paid up Members stating the business to be discussed. No other than the matter or matters on the agenda shall be discussed thereat. Fifteen fully paid up members shall form a Quorum.
b) Fourteen days notice in writing shall be given to all paid up Members of a SGM which shall be held at such time and place as the Committee shall decide. A SGM shall be held within forty-two days of the receipt of the special requisition as mentioned above

6 Club Finances
a) The Financial year shall be calculated from January 1st to December 31st each year. The Hon Treasurer shall keep full proper accounts and shall prepare annually a Statement of Accounts which shall be audited by a qualified auditor appointed by the AGM for this purpose. A copy of the Accounts shall be available to all fully paid up Members at the AGM or on written request afterwards.
b) A Bank Account shall be held in the name of the Löwchen Club, into which all revenue shall be paid. All cheques shall be signed by the Hon Treasurer and co-signed by the Chairman or Hon Secretary. Payment on behalf of the Club into the Club’s bank shall be made by the Hon Treasurer or the Hon Secretary. The Hon Secretary shall have access to some Petty Cash, the amount to be decided by the Committee.

7 Membership
Candidates for membership shall be proposed and seconded by two fully paid up Members. Acceptance of membership application shall be by secret ballot of the Committee at their next Meeting. The candidate for membership shall be advised of the Committee’s decision within fourteen days of the aforesaid Meeting. Proposer and Seconder shall have been fully paid up Members for not less than one year. New members joining after the end of October shall be deemed to be paid up Members for the subsequent year. If accepted Members shall be deemed to have joined at the date of application.
Membership Fees shall be
U.K. and Europe Single Membership …… ..£7.50
U.K. and Europe Joint Membership …….... £10.00
Non Europe Membership – Single or Joint ...£15.00
Non Voting Junior Membership …… ……. £2.00

Adult Membership to start at 16 years. Membership Fees shall be due on January 1st each year. Members not paying their fees by the last day of January must re-apply for Membership. Membership fees may only be changed at the AGM.

8 Code of Ethics
The Club shall have a Code of Ethics and Members are expected to abide by the terms of the Code as appended to these Rules and if thought to be in breach of these will be asked to explain to the Committee. If the explanation is not considered to be
satisfactory the member concerned could be subject to the Club’s Disciplinary Procedure.

9 Expulsion of Members
a) Any member who shall be suspended by the Kennel Club A42(5) and any Member whose dog(s) is/are disqualified under Kennel Club Rule A42(9) shall ipso facto cease to be a Member of the Club for the duration of the suspension and/or disqualification. If the conduct of any Member shall, in the opinion of the Committee of the Club, be injurious or likely to be injurious to the character or interests of the Club, the Committee of the Club may, at a Meeting, the notice convening which includes as an object the consideration of the conduct of the Member, determine that a SGM of the Society shall be called for the purpose of passing a resolution to expel him/her.
b) Notice of the SGM shall be sent to the accused Member, giving particulars of the complaint and advising the place, date and hour of the Meeting order that he/she may attend and offer an explanation. If at the Meeting a resolution to expel is passed
by a two-thirds majority of the Members present and voting his/her name shall be forthwith erased from the list of Members, and he/she shall thereupon cease for all
purposes to be a Member of the Club, except that he/she may within two calendar months from that date of such Meeting appeal to the Kennel Club on such terms and
conditions as the Kennel Club may impose. If the Club expels any Member for discreditable conduct in connection with dogs, dog shows or trials, the Club must report
the matter in writing to the Kennel Club within seven days and supply particulars required.

10 Judging Lists
Requests for consideration or nomination for the Club Judging Lists shall be made in writing to the Hon Secretary by the first of August. Nominee shall be required to give written answers to the Club questionnaire. The annual judging lists shall be compiled by secret ballot at the next meeting of the judges sub committee following that date, in accordance with the Kennel Club guidelines, directives and requirements of the Kennel Club, whatsoever they may be. The Hon Secretary will advise in writing all those on
the A2, A3, B and C Lists, upon which list they have been placed once the lists have been approved by the Kennel Club. The Club Judging Lists shall run annually from 1st January to 31st December.

11 Club Property
a) The property of the Club shall be vested in the Committee and in the event of the Club ceasing to exist a SGM shall be called to decide on the disposal of the property and all the Club assets. A final statement of audited Accounts with a record of the disposal of the property shall be forwarded to the Kennel Club within six months
and the persons named as Officer and Committee of the Club on the last Return furnished to the Kennel Club will be held responsible by the Kennel Club for the proper winding up of the Club.
b) All offers of cups, trophies and similar articles must first be made in writing to the Hon Secretary for consideration by the Committee. Those accepted are on condition that they are an outright gift to the Club. They must be used for the purpose for which they were given and the rescheduling of the cup, trophy etc., can only be made with the written permission of the donor. Should the donor be deceased it is left to the discretion of the Committee to allocate.
c) The Committee shall be responsible for ensuring that all articles of value shall be adequately insured, the premium to be paid out of Club funds.

12 Kennel Club
a) The Kennel Club is the final authority for interpreting the Rules and Regulations of the Club in all cases relevant to canine or Club matters.
b) The Club shall not join any Federation of Societies or Clubs.
c) The Officers acknowledge that during the month of January each year Maintenance of Title Fee will be forwarded to the Kennel Club by the Secretary for the continuation of registration and by 31st July each year, other returns, as stipulated by the Kennel Club Regulations for the Registration and Maintenance of Title of Societies and Breed Councils and the affiliation of Agricultural Societies and Municipal Authorities, will be forwarded to the Kennel Club. Officers also acknowledge their duty to inform the Kennel Club of any change of Secretary of the Society which may occur during the course of the year.

August 2005

Code of Ethics

BREEDERS
1 No Löwchen puppy should leave its maternal home under the age of 8 weeks
2 No false or over optimistic claims must be made for a puppy’s future over and above “at this stage I think this puppy is very promising”
3 No false information regarding the sire, dam, and date of birth shall be given to the KC when applying for registration. All registration papers should be applied for before a puppy is offered for sale, and handed over as soon as possible, unless the puppy is sold without papers and this fact along with any special conditions or KC endorsements should be clearly marked on the receipt.
4 Stud dog owners shall be expected to give the breeder an accurately completed KC form. Should no puppies result from the first mating/s a repeat mating is considered good practice. This must be at the stud dog owner’s discretion.
5 Breeders must agree not to breed from a bitch in any way deleterious to the bitch or the breed and in accordance with the current KC requirements.
6 All breeders shall be expected to provide a diet sheet and all possible help and to ensure the comfort and well being of the puppy. The breeder should advise all new owners to communicate with them should any problem occur. The breeder has a responsibility to assist the current owner in resolving any problems that are brought to their attention. Should it become necessary to take the animal into Rescue the breeder shall be expected to help in any way possible.
7 Any defects which may possibly be hereditary should be notified to the Secretary who will, in turn, notify the Officers of the Club and no on else. If a pattern starts to emerge which gives rise to concern, the Committee shall be advised of a possible problem and assistance sought from the KC Scientific Committee.
8 All breeders should take great care when they sell their puppies, and no puppy should be sold knowingly to commercial breeders or puppy farmers. Puppies should not be sold singly or as a litter to pet shops, agents and the like.
9 Breeders should sell only stock for exhibition or breeding purposes which, in their opinion, is of the best possible quality.

GENERAL
10 All premises housing Löwchen shall be well fenced, clean and warm. They should be provided with adequate food, water and clean dry bedding. They should be allowed adequate exercise and under no circumstances should they be restricted to a cage seven days a week.
11 Regular grooming and bathing is essential to a dog’s well being and should be considered as vital as exercise.
12 Veterinary assistance should be sought without hesitation should it be necessary and the welfare of the animal should come before any monetary consideration.
13 Attention should be given to the training of a Löwchen to ensure that it never becomes a nuisance to the public. Should it foul a public area the owner shall remove any such droppings. In the interest of public hygiene all dogs should be regularly wormed.

EXHIBITORS

14 No Löwchen Club Member should ever behave in a way which could bring the breed into disrepute. Good manners and Sportsmanship should be exhibited at all times.
15 No private disputes should be voiced at any Show, nor should support be sought from other exhibitors on matters that do not concern them.
16 All exhibits should be presented in good health and clean. If an exhibitor feels that they must show an in season bitch, the animal should be kept away from male dogs and deodorised

JUDGES
17 The future well being of the breed is dependent on good breeding and judging.
In consequence all judges should make every effort to fully understand the Löwchen, its conformation and what is meant by type.
18 All judges are expected to judge without fear or favour to the best of their ability. Exhibitors have the right to expect courtesy, consideration and concentration as well as ability.
19 All judges are expected to produce a critique after each appointment. Critiques are important to exhibitors in understanding placements and they also assist the Committee in assessing the Judge’s understanding of the breed.

N.B. Rule 8 The Club shall have a Code of Ethics and Members are expected to abide by the terms of the Code. If thought to be in breach of this they will be expected to explain to the Committee. If the explanation is not thought satisfactory the member may be subject to the Club’s Disciplinary procedure.