Cross Breeds

Why do people call cross bred dogs (and cats) "such and such cross"?

As I understand, a pedigree lab bred to a pedigree lab results in a pedigree lab (for example), but a pedigree lab bred to A N Other dog (pedigree or not) results in a mongrel, not a lab cross? I notice lost of adverts in my local paper for cats and dogs that say Siamese cross or Jack Russel cross £100 etc. Surely these animals are just moggies/mongrels and should not be costing so much money? I can't help feeling that these are irresponsible owners who have allowed their pets to get pregnant and are now hoping to get some cash off them. It does annoy me a bit as I feel people are getting ripped off and their does not seem to be any kind of regulatory body. I see that it can be useful for determining the size/temperament of the dogs etc but why then charge a fortune for what is still a mongrel? Oh I see. It makes sense that the result of 2 pedigree dogs will be a crossbreed now. So if someone advertises a lab x gsd then you know it's a cross breed but if someone says it's a lab cross but no more you can bet it's a mongrel. Anwen - I have to agree. People should do lots and lots of research before getting any dog and doing so will prevent you from getting ripped off. Feel sorry for the poor pups and kittens though!

Public Comments

1. i can understand them saying in regards to you would have an idea what the dog would look like and its temperament but my dog is collie crossed with greyhound crossed with thick we love her but I dont think i;d get much for her
2. Surely you are right, however, they will cost whatever the market can bear and when you have morons willing to pay hundreds of pounds for a mutt, well, that will be what the people who make them will charge. Hope I helped.
3. If one parent of the animal is a pure breed and the other is mongrel, then is it 1/2 pure breed and half mongrel. It's better than being half mongrel, half mongrel I suppose. It's up to you as a buyer if you think a half breed dog is worth the money they are asking. The motto is 'Buyer Beware'.
4. Because they're liars as well as mutt-making morons/crooks. Because suckers fall for fancy labels(LIES!) instead of seeing the facts. Such is power of advertising over truth......such is the weakness of the gullible.
5. Some people believe that if they toss in a purebred name in the listing, it gives the animal some importance and should be worth more then just an unknown mix.. It's the same thing as slapping on a made up name to these mixes trying to make them sound like a "breed' so people will think they are worth something.
6. I guess it sounds better than calling them mongrel. It also helps the buyer understand what they are getting. Mongrel isn't very specific whereas the terminology something crossed with something allows the buyer to have a rough idea of the temperament of the animal and what they would look like.
7. Because that's what it is. If they know what its crossed with why does it matter. They don't have to call it a mutt or a mongrel. Sure, those people who say cockapoo, or pomapoo, well that's just stupid, but to say my dog is a lab x whatever - they're just saying what it is and not prettying up the name. Whoever is saying that is not necessarily trying to make money by saying that. Also just saying my dog is a mutt gives no indication to size, colour, fur type... nothing. whereby saying its a lab x rottweiler for instance you could expect it to like playing fetch, be smart, be large, short fur, colour etc etc etc.
8. Sometimes people who want mongrels still want to know what is in the animal's bloodline. You can't blame them for wanting to know. If the advertisement simply says "mongrel" than the person looking for a dog doesn't know if it's a large mongrel or a small mongrel. Knowing the dog is a Great Dane mixed with an Irish Wolfhound or a Min Pin mixed with a Chihuahua can make a world of difference to the person looking for a pet. Mutts should not be sold for thousands of dollars but in my opinion no dog should be sold for thousands of dollars unless it's an actual working dog...and probably 90% of dogs bred in today's society are not working dogs even though their ancestors were.
9. The reason is because to attach a pedigree name to a puppy/cat seems to add to the value. Someone might want a jack russell for example, but either can't afford one or don't like some of the pure bred traits so they think that a jack russell cross will looke the same, but be less likely to have extreme bahavioural traits. All that cross breeding does is make the outcome completely unpredictable. A 50/50 cross breed could end up with the bad traits from *both* breeds... You are correct that it is just back yard breeders exploiting the general publics own stupidity. You can't regulate stupidity. Everyone knows you are supposed to vet breeders and ensure the parents have all health tests associated with that pedigree breed - even if the resulting puppy is going to be a cross. It's not about the resulting dog being a mongrel - it is about not being able to assess the health of the parents and the puppies because there are no records.
10. Apparently there is a difference between a cross breed and a mongrel, when my aunt phoned up kennels to enquire about the cost she was asked the breed of the dog and she replied mongrel then she was asked the size of the dog and she replied a small Alsatian with border collie colouring she was told that her dog was a cross breed not a mongrel. The difference being if you can look at a dog and see 2 breeds it is a cross breed if you see more than 2 it is a mongrel.
11. If you cross two pedigree breeds then its a cross breed not a mongrel.A mongrel would be a puppy who is from two crossbreed parents. Some people prefer crossbreeds as they are of the opinion that crossbreeds are much healthier than in bred pedigree breeds with small gene pools. Crossbreeding is unpredictable not just with looks but with genetic faults too,as it cant be predicted whether a pup will end up healthy or end up suffering from genetic problems from both breeds.
12. Strictly speaking a mongrel is a mix of all sorts of unknown breeds. A cross breed is a mix of 2 known (but different) purebred breeds. Dogs cost whatever the public is willing to pay. I might be happy to buy, say, a GSD x Lab because I'd have a good idea of what I might be getting - I'd certainly have a high shedding, high energy dog, whereas I might not be so happy to by a mongrel who might be small, large, intelligent, thick as plank, rough coated, long coated, good with children, scared of children. There's more certainty with a cross breed than with a mongrel. It's not so much up to a regulatory body as people taking responsibility for their own decisions and researching before they buy. I don't have much sympathy for people who are "ripped off" - they should have done a bit more homework before buying and shouldn't have been so gullible.