New York ? If there was any doubt, the Labrador retriever is the people’s choice among purebred pooches for the 18th straight year. That’s the word today from the American Kennel Club, which keeps its nose to the ground on such matters.

AKC says more than twice as many labs were registered in the U.S. in 2008 as Yorkshire terriers — the No. 2 dog on the list.

The Top 10 canines are German shepherd, golden retriever, beagle, boxer, dachshund, bulldog, poodle and shih tzu.

The kennel club says the bulldog returned to the list as No. 10 last year after an absence of 70 years, and has since jumped two notches.