Pedigree. What are your views?

Question

I watched the BBC program on the pedigrees tonight and found that interesting. Surely it's telling us about the dark secrets of pedigrees. But do you think there is another side to this story? What are your views?

While I feel that some breeders are being ignorant and Kennel Club chairperson is some guy who has too much time on his hands to laugh and make faces during interviews (ok, it's not a harsh statement, I just thought his expressions were...q***r and funny), I think that there is another untold story behind this or beside this one.

Answer 1

You are going to get varying answers to this question, I'm afraid. The owners of pedigree dogs are going to disagree with the owners of the "mutts"

I (personally) was disgusted with the breeders who manipulate the breeds for personal gain, and the "glory" of the showring, and of course BIG money!!!!

  I have a friend who has just purchased a Cavalier puppy, from a (so called) reputable dealer. The puppy is showing clear signs of the genetic disorder featured, and her last dog,(also bought from the same dealer) had to be euthanised, because of severe cerebral Palsy type symptoms, and severe pain, yet, I phoned my friend, and asked her to switch over to watch the programme. She had NEVER heard of Syringomelia, and the breeder had failed to mention it either, yet, it looks like both dogs bought from this person are sufferers, and her new puppy was sold for a lifetime of problems and pain.

One man on the programme actually admitted that he breeds Grandfather, with Grand-daughter, and if this happens in the Human society, it is serious business, and severely outlawed because of serious inbreeding problems. Why should it be different for dogs?

In the many years I have owned dogs, I have had many pedigree breeds, and endured the many problems that come with them. I became so disgusted with the interbreeding, and "gloryseeking" that comes with pedigree dogs, I decided I wanted no more of it, and when my last pedigree dog had to be destroyed due to inherited heart problems, I decided to visit my local rescue centre for my next pet. I chose a heinz 57, with bits of all sorts of breeds in him, and I have not been disappointed, as I have given a much deserving dog a good home, and he rewards me every moment of the day with his return of love.

I would love nothing more, than to see the Kennel club, and Crufts closed down, and all the gene manipulation, and "perfecting" to be abolished. These people have NO concern for the animals they breed, but money, and glory will always prevail.

Anyone who sells a dog with pedigree papers, is equally guilty of breed manipulation, whether "backstreet," or proffesional, as all are trying to sell puppies for the best price they can get, for the least research into the genetics, and the least money spent!!

I love all dogs, but give me a "mutt" anyday, as choosing a "mutt" over a pedigree breed means the breeders, whether "back-street" or proffesional, are not profitting!!!

Answer 2

I watched this program,shocked at how these dogs suffer due to  inbreeding,you only have to look at the original pictures of breeds to see how much they have changed.No one can deny that evidence and why are dogs with such disabilities allowed to win at dog shows,of course it's money is it not.

Answer 3

i have just retired my girl to the couch, i have bred for over 11 years and it is heart breaking i have given up as my last litter of 9 started dying and there was nothing we could do, we found out about six months ago that the stud dog we used had a hereditary heart defect, we got our girls all health checked and saw the paper work for the stud dog to say he had be health checked too but it was only when a friend brought a puppy from the same breeder we used for stud that we found out the dad had heart problems and the breeder kept it quiet, we were told by our vet the heart failure was due to a virus, but seeings as my friends dog has the same symptoms that our puppies had  it did not take too much working out, i took all the steps to make sure i had healthy puppies from my girl and we had to watch them die one by one and nothing the vet did could save them, i won't trust breeders if they can keep something like that hidden, i went through a very sad time and after that i won't breed again as i was breeding for the love of my breed not to bring puppies into the world just to die, out of 9 puppies we managed to save 2 they have great homes but if the stud dog owner had told us when we had gone through so much effort to make sure our dog was in top condition we could have had a healthy litter, when i phoned the stud owner she still denied any problem, i used to love the breeding and showing side, but the show side has  become a case of who you know and the breeding just about money, that is not what i want, there are some really good breeders out there but the kennel club are not doing all they can to ensure there are more, the accredited breeders scheme should be a standard not just a scheme breeders can pay to join to prove they are good breeders, i never joined it as i already followed good breeding practises that were stated, the program was shocking but it did show people what it is getting like in some breeds , they are not thinking about their dogs just the money.

Answer 4

Aah,...... You mean Auntie Beeb's sensationalist programming?

Answer 5

ugh type BBC Pedigree into the search bar...

our answers remain the same, there are good breeders, there are bad breeders.  What do you think would boost ratings (which is what tv is all about), a story about breeders doing the RIGHT thing or about abusive breeders attempting to destroy the breed?  Make up your own d**n mind, I don't care, your across the Atlantic from me.

Answer 6

Of course there was another side to the story. The program was clearly one sided (didn't watch it but read about it) Its not that hard to read a dogs pedigree and I am certainly not about to change my mind about my purebred dog or any of the ones I have owned. No one is denying there are breeders who are out there going about it the wrong way but this show would have you think they are all the same.

My views are that the program is just what groups like PETA want people to see, it gives their version or the truth and not the whole picture.

Answer 7

Two definitions for Pedigree:

1. A pedigree is a piece of paper delineating a dog's (or person's) ancestors.  A dog can be pedigreed but can never be a pedigree.

2. Pedigree- a low-end grocery store brand of kibble.

For a RESPONSIBLE breeder of dogs there are no "dark secrets" of pedigrees.  Responsible breeders do very indepth checking into the pedigrees (ancestory) of any dog they are planning on breeding and make sure they are not doubling up on any faults or genetic ick.

Of course there is more than one side to the story.  This program is obviously nothing more than sensationalistic journalism with a Animal Rights slant.  Since the goal of AR is to end all pet ownership and the only real group of people they can attack is breeders it is no wonder they don't tell the story of good, responsible breeders who do testing on all dogs before breeding and who are knowledgable and caring.  It wouldn't be good press nor a good story for them.

Answer 8

Depends on the breed - some are fine, some are pathetically weak on genetic diversity.

Personally, I think a dog's a dog. Don't care if it's a show-winner or a mutt - I'm happy with anything.

Answer 9

What I got out of this article (I read it..did not see the program) was a focus on a very select group of breeders...the show breeders.  The show circuit is a highly competitive and political arena.  Judges of the dog shows often favor a particular "look" in a specific breed of dog and will award that dog due to favoritism.  So here begins the subtle changes that take place in the show breeder's breeding program.  They want to win and so begin taking measures to ensure they remain competitive. Sometimes this means introducing a dog with a particular extreme that may not be genetically sound.

I am not sure how to exactly explain this, but take the Persian cat for instance.  The "old" style cat is a far cry from the Persian you see in the show ring today.  Here is a perfect example of going to extremes because the show judges leaned more and more toward a "nose between the eyes".  So breeder's focused their efforts on this look and at the same time ended up introducing major health issues.  However, they also began taking necessary steps to then eliminate the issues by selectively breeding.

Keep in mind that a breeder will not remain in the show ring or maintain a good reputation if they have poorly bred animals.  They strive to better the breed, not ruin it.