Dog breeding

[Farmer_Gyles]

Watched the bit on Eugenics with interest then did ya FG?

no, it's just wet outside so i'm indoors causing trouble ......

[OverWyreGrower]

i agree .... but we should also bring in controlled breeding programs for humans too ..... compulsory sterilisation of chav scum with their low IQs would be a very good start ..... the benefits to society would be far greater than controlled breeding in dogs .... or cats .... or goldfish ......

Oh, I totally agree with this! You should have to prove you're capable of being a parent before being allowed to breed....

[HeyWayne]

no, it's just wet outside so i'm indoors causing trouble ......

Future Generations

[bluemoon]

I didn't watch it, but I would have hoped that dog-breeders were people who loved their dogs and their breed and wouldn't do this kind of thing. My old lab had a brain tumour which caused severe fits for 15 months before we decided his quality of life had deteriorated to the point where it was unkind to continue. This was not a fault with his breeding, but simply the sort of thing that could happen to any of us as we age. Had he suffered like that because of some unscrupulous breeder I would have been so angry. I think I've said it before, but the veterinary profession must take some of the blame as, rather than speak out against these practices, they are more than happy to make thousands in futile attempts to rectify the problems. The only ones adversely affected are the puppies produced and the owners who then find themselves desperately trying to help a dog that they love.

[Polly Fouracre]

Perhaps, if nothing else, last nights programme will make buyers of pedigree puppies look into the breed of their choice and ask lots of questions of the breeder, though the majority would no sooner leave that dear little puppy, with all it's faults,than they would leave a human child wanting a home.(though some may resist the child and take the pup!!)
I was quite annoyed last night over this programme but thinking clearly today I think it was a good thing, it made us all think!

[pjh75]

Did anyone see the programme last night?!



I was truly shocked.




this could get quite heated I can see it coming...

I couldn't watch it... I saw the first 5 mins up to the little boy cav that they said was eventually put down - it upset me too much because I couldn't comprehend how people could allow that to happen and the thought of our cav (or our previous 2) being in that much pain horrified me. OH was dipping in and out of the programme in the other room and I went in to watch the end with that awful woman who said that her best in show dog, which allegedly had the condition hadn't fathered many litters - only 34! (allegedly).

My MIL used to go to the New Forest Show when the cavs were there and apparently on one occasion someone commented on how one of our previous cavs could never be shown because she wasn't perfect - fact one: we didn't want to show her, fact two: we would rather have an imperfect looking dog than a bred to be perfect looking sick dog, and fact three: how rude!

[HeyWayne]

What I found quite amazing was the differences between the dogs of certain breeds now, and what they originally* looked like. The German Shepherds where what brought it home to me.

And "furnishing"?! Excess skin isn't it and excess means not needed surely?

*debatable as pretty much all "modern" breeds are descendants of wolves.

[JILLY JACKSON]

There was a problem with breathing due to inbreeding of persian cats my vet tells me.Dont know how/if it got sorted out?poor creatures,people can do some awful things just to make themselves lots of money.

[HayleyB]

The German Shepherds where what brought it home to me.

And me, those poor dogs could hardly walk.

Those breeders were so pig headed and totally blind to their stupidity too.

[Polly Fouracre]

It was in there - they did show it, just after the Cav bit I think.

It would appear we need more breeders like you PF - with a conscience.

HeyWayne, the majority of exhibitors(not breeders, they are a different species!) have the welfare or their breed at heart.
If you looked at every Cavalier born I doubt you would find 1% with a health issue.
Ridgebacks have always had their ridge, it's the quest for a ridgier ridge that has blinded owners ,to the detriment of the breed.
As for human "line-breeding" I married my cousin. We had four healthy, intelligent children and nine normal intelligent grandchildren.
Happily we have no genetic faults in our breeding, we are all beautiful and clever.

[NSB]

I'm confused now - I always thought it would be better to buy aKC registered dog from a breeder - but I'm opting the other way now and looking at rescue dogs? that programme last night really shocked me. Just because your not perfect they cull you - let me cull them is what I say - whos perfect

[HeyWayne]

We had four healthy, intelligent children and nine normal intelligent grandchildren.

What have you done with them?

[SMS6]

I bought a pedigree Beagle pup many years ago and the breeder instantly pointed out that he had a defect. He had an extra toe on his back legs, high up where the dew claw was. She pointed out that because of this we shouldn't consider using him for breeding. We eventually had to have the extra digits removed because they were causing him pain and making him snappy. After the op you wouldn't have known anything had been amiss.

His Kennel Club Papers made no mention of this defect so theoretically we could have used his pedigree and bred on with no one being the wiser, surely wouldn't take much for it to have been on his paperwork?

[Polly Fouracre]

What have you done with them?

Why! Won baby shows of course. Best of Breed every time.

[bluemoon]

I bought a pedigree Beagle pup many years ago and the breeder instantly pointed out that he had a defect. He had an extra toe on his back legs, high up where the dew claw was. She pointed out that because of this we shouldn't consider using him for breeding. We eventually had to have the extra digits removed because they were causing him pain and making him snappy. After the op you wouldn't have known anything had been amiss.

His Kennel Club Papers made no mention of this defect so theoretically we could have used his pedigree and bred on with no one being the wiser, surely wouldn't take much for it to have been on his paperwork?

I believe that with pedigree cats their registrations are of two different types, one for those which can be bred from and the other for those which can't. I know there's nothing to stop someone breeding from them anyway, but at least the resultant kittens can't be registered and therefore the profits are much reduced, making it less likely that someone would do it. I don't understand why the same thing can't be applied to pedigree dogs.

At least your dog's breeder was honest with you, SMS6, many wouldn't have bothered to tell you.