501c7 may be eligible as 501c3

I have been a member of a not for profit club for 20 years. It was formed in 1911 and incorporated in 1928. The subject of the differences between a c7 & a c3 were subject of discussion when we invested some of our treasury into a stick that did well. This resulted in a significant tax liability that was not planned for. We make donations to legitimate 501c3's every year. Im wondering if the support may qualify us as a C3 as opposed to simply being able to write off those donations. We are a dog club that holds 2 dog shows a year and we collect dues from about 40 members. We have 3 social functions a year on addition to the dog shows. I am prompted to ask this question because over almost 100 years our operations have changed.