Every now and then I see people posting in the local groups looking for a male/female so that they can breed their dogs. Often at times, these dogs that they own are very far from the breed standard and/or ridden with structural problems. In previous blog posts we talked about the differences between a well bred dog and a poorly bred dog, and how bringing more poorly bred dogs into this world is an unethical thing to do, due to the health issues they will face in their lives.
As happy as Snoopy looks in this picture, he is ridden with structural and chronic health issues which bothers him on a daily basis. He is the result of a breeder who gives no consideration to the health of the puppies he or she brings to this world.
So you want to breed your dog?
I'm sure your dog is sweet and well tempered, but are these reasons enough for you to bring more dogs into this world? I'm not against breeding, but I'm very against breeding unhealthy dogs. In fact, we actually need more good dogs in this world, especially when they meet a minimum number of criteria. If you want to breed dogs, do it right and responsibly. I'll talk about some of the criteria your dogs need to fulfill before you consider breeding them, and address some of the wrong mindsets.
Health Clearances In this previous blog post here, I talked about the difference between well bred dogs and poorly bred dogs. Your first step should be getting all of the relevant health tests the breed of your dog needs. For example, Labrador Retrievers need to pass a minimum of 8 health tests, while a Miniature Schnauzer needs to clear a minimum of 4 health tests. A good place to check would be the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals website, where they list all of the recommended health tests every breed needs to pass before a breeder can consider breeding their dogs.
These health tests are important as they check for both structural and genetic health of a dog. Structural health tests like hips evaluation, elbows evaluation, and patella evaluation will help a breeder make informed decisions and allow them to breed only dogs that have passed. In OFA's statistics, they have seen an improvement in the scores of dogs across all breeds since these form of testing became available (only conscious breeders do these tests on their dogs and plan their breeding according to the evaluation given, whereas irresponsible breeders do not test at all, resulting in many dogs in this world that are still plagued by structural problems). Genetic health tests can discover dogs that may be carriers of a gene which will bring about a certain affliction. Breeders use these tests to avoid breeding two carriers of the said gene, thus producing puppies that will not be affected by genetic problems. These tests allow breeders to produce dogs that will live a long and healthy life.
On the left we have Kettle's hips, showing that his hips has practically no sockets for his femoral head to fit in. In the middle we have the hips of a 6 months old IKC certified Pembroke Welsh Corgi imported from Ireland, showing that the sockets are too wide and loose for the femoral head to fit nicely. Lastly on the right we have Charlie's hips, showing deep sockets and the femoral head fits nicely into the sockets. Dogs with bad hips like the first two will suffer effects from hips dysplasia, which will bring arthritis and pain to their movement, affecting them for their whole lives.
Breeding to standard
Are you breeding your dogs to the standard? The standard is not only there to make a dog look pretty, but it is more like a building code for builders; dogs that are structured in a certain way will allow them to move and run more effortlessly as compared to dogs that are way off the standard. A properly structured dog will have less chances of getting injuries from their day to day activities.
Want to up the level even more? Participate in shows or sports like agility to prove that your dog has what it takes as a good example of his breed, which is essential to produce even better dogs! Dog shows are actually a good platform for a third party (a qualified judge) to evaluate your breeding stock against the standard and other dogs in the same breed/group.
Crossbreeding of different breeds Please don't. Unless you breed dogs to improve working abilities such as hunting, tracking and service, you're not doing a service to the dog population by bringing more of these crossbreeds into this world. Firstly, for every task needed, there will be at least one pure breed that can excel in it (eg. German Shepherd Dogs for protection, Beagles for tracking, Labrador Retrievers for service etc.). Secondly, there is no way to guarantee the traits you require in just a few generations of breeding. Locking in certain traits and temperament requires decades of dedication and careful planning and studying of pedigrees. In return, you'll produce tons of off standard dogs which adds to the growing problem of unwanted dogs in this world.
Is your dog registered with a reputable registry? Responsible breeders only register dogs which are of breeding quality, so if you own a dog that has no registration or a limited registration, take a good hard look at your dog and see if it's really worth breeding based on the standards. There are also many different registries and some of them are shady AF, meaning they will even register a worm as a dog for you if you paid them! I will not be naming these shady registries so its up to you to do your own research on which registries are reputable.
If your dog is registered with a reputable registry, check whether your dog's ancestors have any titles attained through conformation, agility, obedience etc. A pedigree that lacks of any titles probably means that your dog's ancestors are not good examples of their breed. Many pedigrees can be traced through free online resources such as K9 Data for Golden Retrievers, Labrador Retrievers and Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retrievers.
Other points to take into consideration Do you have a mentor? Preferably you have a mentor that competes in dog events, knows about the breed standard, and has experience in aspects of dog breeding from understanding pedigrees to actual whelping. A good mentor will be a wealth of information and he or she can guide you as they will want you to be successful.
Do you have a veterinarian you can work with? Many vets are quite against breeding and I can totally understand where they are coming from, considering that most breeders here in Singapore do not conduct any health tests before breeding their dogs. A good veterinarian will support you in many ways such as progesterone testing, regular check for the dam, and ready to be on call any time for an emergency C-section, should the dam have any difficulties giving birth naturally.
Has the dog you're planning to mate your dog with been cleared of all required health tests? If your dog has cleared all of the required health tests, and is a good example of its breed, then it is only one half of the equation done. The potential mate needs to have the same clearances, is a good example of its breed, and preferably titled as well. In this way, you'll not only bring healthy puppies into this world, but also bettering the breed by producing dogs that fit better into the standard.
Summing up
If the reason for you wanting to breed your dog is wanting them to experience parenthood, wanting your kids to see puppies grow up, wanting to replicate your dog, or other funny reasons, please don't. If you really want to breed your dog, make sure they are fully health tested and is a good example of its breed. This may seem snobbish but it is the only way to bring healthy dogs into this world, and not add onto the growing problem of bringing unhealthy dogs into this world and let them suffer. To end this blog post, here is a flowchart you can take a look to help you decide if you should breed your dog.
I took this flowchart off one of the Facebook groups. If you are the creator, or you know who is the creator, please let me know so I can properly credit him or her!
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