And I see the BBC has joined PETA in trashing breeders. Throwing 'eugenics' around and breeding based on cosmetic choices ties in nicely with the PETA campaign. All that's left to do is bring up Hitler and Nazis and we'll have a trifecta.
Posted on 02/12/2009 11:18:17 AM PST by Terriergal
Pedigree Dogs Exposed
Documentary - BBC
Narrator: "and there's the rub -- the problems of dogs (like this champion neapolitan mastiff) are all too obvious to outsiders, but within the breed, they are blind to them.
David Hancock -- dog historian "We have allowed some breeds to become too heavy, some too short-faced, some too heavy-coated, some too short-legged, others too short-lived, all in the pursuit of cosmetic points, not sound anatomical points."
This is worth watching for anyone interested in owning animals of any kind. If you buy or adopt any dog, you should be aware of these issues with breeding because they will affect your dog (sometimes even non purebreds because often they are crosses of purebreds). It is heartbreaking to watch some of the problems they experience. I don't agree with SOME of their moral equivalency arguments between humans and animals (it is based on the assumption that we are just animals and so what is wrong for us is wrong for animals -- this is not true). But they do make a compelling case for breeding reform. Much of the pressure for breeders to reform should come from the public refusing to buy dogs that are not conscientiously bred. e.g. pet stores, newspaper classifieds are a big red flag! Good breeders don't breed until they have a handful of people with deposits down on their puppies and as such they don't need to advertise or sell their animals to a pet store.
This is more proof of why we need to keep preserving *working* lines of dogs and not breed for structural or cosmetic exaggeration -- the working lines have to have the functionality to work, that takes priority over the cosmetics to win in the show ring. Health problems due to bad breeding will show up as undesirable far sooner in working lines than show lines unless the breeder makes an effort to avoid it. Not all do. You pay up front for a conscientious breeder or you pay afterward throughout the life of the dog.
That being said, health issues are not always the breeder's fault, sometimes unforeseen things happen! A good breeder (NO PET STORES, and GOOD BREEDERS ALMOST NEVER ADVERTISE IN A NEWSPAPER - you have to sniff them out yourself and get on a waiting list!) will be there for you and take the dog back or provide some other guarantee for many genetic health issues. But that seems to be the exception in the general dog population, not the rule.
Just some food for thought anyway!
Finding a good breeder is hard work but worth the time and effort in having a trouble free dog, and good rapport with the breeder. There are many pages online devoted to the process - google "finding a good breeder" or something... but you have to do the footwork.
We’ve gotten our last two dogs from rescue organizations, and couldn’t be happier. One is a ‘pure breed’ although as some of us know, thats just a arbitrary label from the AKC types.
When I look at our four dogs, I don’t see ‘bloodlines’.
I see our kids. Our family.
Interesting article - as you know I would only purchase (dog, bitch, or breeding fee) from a trusted breeder. My last was from a DVM breeder. It's so much better to be able to see the litter, see the sire/dam, see the certs on eyes, hips, etc. And sadly, there are some breeds I would never buy/recommend, just because the breeders (and their club) are not doing their breed any favors.
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Last July we adopted an injured puppy, about 6-7 weeks old, who came to our farmhouse, flopped down and looked me in the eye. He had what the vet said was a bite wound on one side, was dehydrated and probably at death’s door. He was probably dropped at the roadside by unknown persons. Today he is a beautiful, very strong dog who appears to be 100% redbone hound in his markings and configuration. I am amazed at the many people who have called him “beautiful”, even “gorgeous”. I never thought any hound would be called those names, but we are proud of him and glad we saved his life. Somebody lost a very good dog.
TG: This is a great article, and btw, I recently acquired a pure bred Rat Terrier. My first excursion into the complex world of the “terrier.” So smart, great gopher getter, lives to play, and runs like a bullet out of a gun.
No, I didn’t get her from a breeder. I happened to stop in at our animal shelter, I still don’t know why, and there she was. She had been there for twelve days, no tags, no chip, nearly one y/o.
Beautiful, healthy, perfect dog. And their DO brains work different than any other dog I’ve met. Terriers seem to have the ability to understand “cause and effect” quickly and act on it.
Twenty pounds of love, her markings are milk and honey, no black, and her name is Ruby. She’s a great big dog in a little body.
Cheers!
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I think the fans of a quintessential working breed, the Border Collie, have steadfastly refused to let anyone set cosmetic standards for it.
I love the idea of rescue, unfortunately I've come across too many that tend to operate more like puppy mills than a rescue should. Some are very good at placing dogs in excellent homes, doing follow up, etc. But some are like revolving doors, which does no service to the specific dog, the owner or the breed. And I think many, many people fall in to the trap of not doing their homework before they buy a dog; what kind of dog is right for me? Just because a dog is small doesn't necessarily mean it's suited to an apartment lifestyle, etc.
For a reputable breeder "pure bred" is not an arbitrary label. They spend a lot of time and money getting AKC championships on their dogs, getting all relevant test to do as much as they can to make sure that puppies are going to healthy (hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, cardiac certifications, eye certifications, thyroid certification, etc.) and making sure that the dog they breed to has followed the same path. Reputable breeders generally don't make a profit from the puppies they sell and usually are lucky to break even. They do it for the joy of strengthening the breed and hopefully producing a litter that improves the overall line.
And I see the BBC has joined PETA in trashing breeders. Throwing 'eugenics' around and breeding based on cosmetic choices ties in nicely with the PETA campaign. All that's left to do is bring up Hitler and Nazis and we'll have a trifecta.
Sounds like your Lab has dominion over you. (LOL) It takes a dog victim to know a dog victim. Labs and Lab crosses do a great job of dominating their humans. I know from personal experience!!
The big caveat to that is if you are dealing with a breed whose temperment is pretty predictable, and you adopt a pure bred dog from an adoption agency or rescue organization.
We have Weims. The Weim we adopted at 2 years old has a Weim temperment, through and through, just like our other Weims. Every Weim I know has the same traits, not to say they’re exactly what every dog owner would want. They’re velcro dogs and definitely addicted to their people, and some folks don’t like that, but in our experience whether you adopt the Weim or raise it from a pup...the temperment is the same.
‘surely can’t comment on all rescue orgs but the last few that we’ve contacted are downright loony’
If you would like a referal to ‘non looney’ ones anywhere nationally, contact me via freepmail.
Yes, I saw PETA’s latest nonsense via BOR last night on Fox.
Freakin idiots, every single one of them.
My wife and I are heavily involved in rescue organizations that are ‘reputable’ and ‘do follow ups’ and ‘screen potential homes and owners’. I can give you a list of reputable ones for every state nationally if you need it, just freepmail me.
Its been my experience over the last five decades that temperment is directly related to upbringing, and enviroment, not genetics. Thats not to say its ‘foolproof’ as we had to put a beloved five year old black lab mix down last spring because of ‘red rage’.
Its my opinion we have way to many ‘breeders’ and they are a primary reason rescue organizations exist in the first place. They contribute to the problem of unwanted dogs, perhaps combined to the level of the ‘puppy mills’ which I also find abhorrent.
But the bottom line is Dogs Deserve Better. My life is better because they are such a big part of our life, and our family, literally.
Off the top of my head I really can't think of one breed whose temperments can't be generalized or aren't predictable.
Agree, the look is so distinctive of some breeds that there’s no mistaking if they’re pure bred or not.
I had friends who had a lab, supposedly from a reputable breeder, and she was a lovely dog, but the dog always looked like she had some pit in her.
NEVER get in a theological discussion with a Lab. They always win.
I disagree with you, genetics does play a part in the temperment of the puppies you're going to get and within GSP's know several breeders that have voluntarily removed dogs from the breeding pool that physically have fantastic conformation, but are lacking in some way in the temperment area.
We do have too many breeders. I've seen it in the dog show world; there are those that have almost a hoarding personality, and then there are those that I believe think along the lines "just this next litter and I'm going to have the next Westminster winner!" It has become a hobby of mine and my hope is to keep the pick bitch from the litter and continue the line with her. When "vetting" people for purchase of puppies I take into account, among other things, if the dog is going to be just a pet, if the owner is interested in getting involved in showing, agility, hunting, tracking, etc. as GSP's are a very versatile breed. I'm considering asking to see their long form birth certificate as well. ;)
Glad we both want the same thing in the end, good dogs in good homes.
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