Cross Breeds

Don't people realise that it is the breeder and not the breed that produce healthy puppies?

I don't understand the knee jerk reaction of loads of people on this site and i am hoping that someone can explain it. There are many many breeders of purebred dogs that produce puppies of inferior quality. There are also many cases where conforming to breed standards actually result in very poorly and deformed animals. German Shepherds with sloped backs, King Charles with skulls too small for their brain - the list is endless. Then you might have a breeder who has two different breeds, both health clear and then produces puppies from them and because they are cross-breeds they are poor quality animals by default? Or someone with two healthy mutts with great tempermants, vet checked clear for any illness and produces mutt puppies and they are also unworthy of life? Only doing your research about the breeder will indicate whether the puppy is decent of not and how third parties can critise or praise others without knowing the breeder they used is pretty dumb. How are people so short sighted?

Public Comments

1. The genetics of the parents determines the fitness of the puppies. That is all. IT is the responsibility of the breeder to cull or spey failures.
2. Anyone that calls him/herself a breeder and produces mixed breed pups is NOT a breeder. They have no idea what the results of such a breeding may be, none, zilch, nada. Reputable breeders will breed to improve the shepherd and breed the heart murmur and such out of the King Charles.
3. No,they don't. & *you* don't know anything about REAL breeders,making quality- BRED TO THE STANDARD -stock! Your just another dupe for the AR's propaganda! No mutt on the planet is "worth" spit.
4. no one here i've seen has said muttly doesn't deserve life. the reason for not breeding mutts is because you don't know the PAST health issues in the line of the dogs. genetically speaking its not about a vet looking at your dog and saying it healthy. its genetically speaking. temperaments should also be taken into consideration. not just the current pup but past temperaments of parents.
5. You have chosen as examples of inferior quality puppies the very breeds that were shown on the BBC programme and although there are some more, the list certainly isn't endless. I can only speak for my breed in this country (UK) but in that breed (rotties) you are definitely wrong. We have a super standard in temperament and type compared to the BYB rotties that I see everyday in rescue with such bad movement that you just wonder what is going on in those joints, with all sorts of problems that shouldn't be there. These are the type of breeders that are cross-breeding, they do not usually have decent specimens of the breed to start with and do not bother with the health checks needed. That isn't a quick visit to the vets. And as for King Charles with skulls too small for their brain then what do you think you might get by crossing different breeds as I would say possibly that and worse. And as for "teacup" then who knows. The person that breeds any crosses is not able to put contracts out with those pups and therefore has no control over how many pups each will go on to produce of what quality etc, and nobody can check the lines as there is no paperwork. I certainly don't think it is a knee-jerk reaction. If any one of those breeders adhere to all the qualities that a good breeder has then I would be very very very surprised.
6. Its not a matter of being short sighted. Its about knowing that producing more low quality and unneeded poorly bred purebreds and mutts is not RESPONSIBLE. German Shepherds with sloped backs - Then buy german line GSDs King Charles with skulls too small for their brain - the list is endless. - Conforming to the breed standard didn't do that breeding defunct dogs did. "There are many many breeders of purebred dogs that produce puppies of inferior quality." No one here has never said breeding purebreds automatically makes you a bad breeder. Breeding mutts on purpose on the other hand does. the average byb of both mutts and purebred will NOT spend the extra money needed on OFA, CERF and other health clearances. To them a routine vet check is all they need to produce healthy pups. Its not about being unworthy of life. Its about being responsible and not breeding just because your dog has a working set of balls or a working uterus. Explain to me what purpose do purposely bred mutts fill when the shelters are packed with dogs of the SAME quality in need of homes that the idiots who went to some byb could have adopted? Why don't you go ask them what makes the breeder mutt more worthy of THEIR time THEIR money THEIR love than the mutt sitting in the shelter. Reputable breeders don't breed mutts, the do their best to produce HEALTHY pups they will not knowingly sell and healthy pup and unlike the bybs will actually be there should the pup develop something. How many mutt breeder do you know that provide a health guarantee that is actually worth the ink its printed on? But hey you are the one who has a problem with being grilled by reputable breeders so who's the shortsighted one?
7. I do agree with you somewhat. I know some sighthound people who don't breed the same sighthound breeds together, as a result they have mixed breed dogs, but the dogs are bred responsibly. They are raised in excellent conditions and are not bred just because they are able to be bred, they only breed healthy dogs that have proven themselves to be good hunters. The dogs are just not purebred. They think dog breeding should be about genetic diversity and working abilities not breed standards and dog shwos. And I agree. Dog shows are crap, the dogs in them are not functional in most cases, and are in several cases unhealthy. Dog breeders who breed working dogs (not show dogs, but dogs that do the job they were bred for) have healthy animals and produce healthy animals, but they don't breed as per the show breeders set guidelines on how to raise a litter. I've heard of livestock guardian breeders whose dogs are not only mixed breeds (on purpose) but are born, raised, and live outside their whole lives. And also live in dangerous conditions, some die from predation of wild animals. But none of this means that breeding two mutts will make a healthier litter than a pure bred litter. You are actually kind of short sighted, because you say "Or someone with two healthy mutts with great tempermants, vet checked clear for any illness and produces mutt puppies and they are also unworthy of life?" That paragraph defines what a reputable breeder does before every litter. Yet you say mutts raised this way will be healthy and pure breds raised this way won't be healthy. It doesn't work that way. Any dog that is bred responsibly and is health checked will usually produce a healthy litter, be it a mix bred or pure bred litter. Mutts are not always healthier, in several cases pure bred dogs will be healthier than a mutt of unknown heritage, because pure bred dogs hace traceable pedigrees and you can see what health problems might arise and breed away from them. In mix bred dogs you can't do that.
8. I actually think it is you who are being short-sighted. Anyone who breeds mutts has no idea what the genetic history of those mutts is, so the pups are always going to be a crap shoot. Is that worth the risk of bringing mixed breed puppies into the world? Hardly. Anyone who takes two well bred purebred dogs and breeds mutts is just as clueless, as genetics will play havoc with any and all of their expectations from the litter. Is a crap shoot about temperament, traits, and looks worth bringing mixed breed pups into the world? Hardly. Some incorrect assumptions: Vet checked does not mean genetically healthy. Great temperaments in two dogs do not equal great temperaments in puppies if there is no history. Just because a breeder produces purebred dogs does not mean the dogs are well bred or even of breed standard. You seem to have a lot of incorrect assumptions about breeding, and need to do some more research.
9. In nature, every example of a limited gene pool will eventually lead to animals of poorer health and fertility, it is a basic scientific fact! Anybody who blindly criticises people who purposely breeds two dogs of different breeding together for a set purpose is a fool. In the case of lurchers there is not a pure breed that will cater for all the functions and physical ability that a lurcher can achieve in the field. Many pedigree breeders behave like modern day nazis with there obsession with pure blood, even when the results are shoved in there arrogant faces, they fail to see the damage they cause. In some cases i feel these people should be arrested for the cruelty and suffering they cause to there resulting pups in later life. I have seen hundreds of lurchers and i can honestly say they are physically and mentally superior to 90% of dogs i come across in every day life.