by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) in 1955. Germany has approximately 500 of this breed. There are approximately 400 Berger Picards in the United States and Canada. The Berger Picard Club of America and the Berger Picard Club Canada were formed to help promote and protect this breed. The Berger Picard was fully recognized in the herding group by the American Kennel Club on 1 July 2015. It is also in the herding group category of the Canadian Kennel Club. The interim breed standard for the Picardy Sheepdog was approved and the breed was accepted on to the import register of the United Kingdom's Kennel Club on 1 April 2014. The breed can only be shown in Import classes and is awaiting official registration of the proposed Picardy Sheepdog Club. The Picard was first shown at Crufts in March 2016 in the Pastoral (Herding) Group. Recent history Berger Picards have been seen in at least three films: Daniel and the Superdogs (2004); Because of Winn-Dixie (2005); and Are We Done Yet? (2007). The producers of the American film Because of Winn-Dixie (2005) brought five Picards from Europe (three of the five actually performed: "Scott"; "Laiko"; and "Tasha"). The trainer wanted a dog that resembled the scruffy mutt on the original book's cover, but several were needed that looked alike so that production could continue smoothly, so he decided on this rare purebred dog from France. People often mistakenly think the on-screen "Winn-Dixie" was played by a mixed breed dog. Joker, a well-known Berger Picard dog in Germany, has starred in six comedy films based on novels by . He played as Ludwig Eberhofer owned by Franz Eberhofer, a down-in-luck police officer in a small fictitious Bavarian town, Niederkaltenkirchen: (2014), (2016), (2017), (2018), (2019), and (2021). Joker passed away on 28 June 2021 after he collapsed and was rushed to the animal hospital. The autopsy revealed the splenic tumours, which weren't discovered earlier during the medical examination prior to his death. See also Dogs portal List of dog breeds References Further reading External links Berger Picard Club of America, official AKC Parent Club AKC Page for the Berger PIcard Les Amis du Berger Picard (French Website) Berger Picard Club Canada Picardy Sheepdog Club of the UK Kennel Club of the United Kingdom American Rare Breed Association FCI breeds Herding dogs Dog breeds originating in France Rare dog breeds