Cross Breeds

Do mixed breed dogs have better immune system than pure breeds?

Thats what the vet told me when I took my german sherpard when he had parvo, and the dog isn't even a year old yet though he did survive it...While I've had my mutt for 4 years and I don't recall him ever being sick.. And I've also read books where they say mutts make for better pets than pure breeds..

Public Comments

1. no pures do
2. Nope. Pure bred dogs are health/genetics tested before they are born, that why they avoid serious genetic defects, or conditions. Any dog can catch Parvo, so your vet is seriously wrong. Mutts just have a wider gene pool nothing else.
3. I think that's bull. A dog's immune system is from it's mother's milk. A mutt might not have the tendency to genetic problems that a purebred may tend to have. It could actually get all from each breed. The best dog is a well bred dog. The best dog is from lines that have had genetic testing done. A mongrel isn't from any breeder who cares to go to the trouble and expense of testing the sire and b*tch. A purebred could be from a puppy mill. That may be the dog your vet is referring to. If so, well he's only got half the story.
4. Yes, mixed breeds are generally healthier. The bigger the gene pool, the better. Inbreeding causes genetic problems. It's for this reason that human incest is illegal. It can cause genetic deformities in off spring, since relatives can share genetic problems, and that increases the chances of the same problems appearing in shared offspring. And these genetic problems often involve things like immune system weaknesses, being prone to particular diseases and disorders, etc.
5. Your vet is an idiot. Unless he has a degree in genetics, he is talking out of his a**. And Parvo can be caught by ANY dog that is not vaccinated properly when a puppy. It is a contagious disease. Dog could even have caught it at your vet's office....
6. Pure breed dogs are more likley to be followed in Genetic study, there is rairly a dog that is a mixed bred or mutt used for genetic study and so no one really knows if there are more pure or mixed bred dogs that have genetic issues. The AKC is a non profit that puts a large amount of money into genetic issues, the KC also wants to obsolve genetic issues and has there own way of controling issues in dogs. It would be useless to do genetic study on mutt dogs, as every breeding is not tracked. A larger gene pool can be accomplished in almost any breed by NOT line breeding, and by knowing what defects to avoid in the lines. Visit the Pedigreedatabase.com and you can play matchmaker with bloodlines and see how many line breedings, inbreedings etc are possible with a mating. This is very important for Doberman breeders, GSD breeders, trying to avoid a bleeding disorder, or bad hips. Good luck to you and your dog
7. Well it goes to show that even though a vet does 7 years of training..............they still come out the other end knowing so little.........ask your vet what study he got his information from and how many dogs were in that study? His opinion, just like vets opinions when 'recommending' kibble as the best for your dog.........they just happen to sell it and get the profit when the poor suckers trust him/her and buy it....and have little if any knowledge of dog nutrition No it isn't true about the immune system or mutts/breeds make 'better' pets
8. My mutt hasn't had any health problems either but I think that's bull. If I can get some scientific proof of a study done saying mutts have better immune systems, then maybe I'll believe your vet.
9. No, they don't --but "black and tan breeds" (Doberman, Rottweiler, German Shepherd Dog and others) are particularly susceptible to contracting parvovirus. http://www.workingdogs.com/parvofaq.htm#susceptible_breeds
10. not necessarily.. I know plenty of mutts that have gotton sick. We had a lab mix that had coccocidia as a puppy.. I know another person who's mixed breed dog died of parvo. My purebred Crested has been quite healthy... and I've heard people claim that they tend to have immunity issues (I actually have yet to hear of a Crested suffering from any kind of immunity problem) A larger gene pool doesnt necessarily mean healthier.. it can mean a wider range of health issues that the dog can be prone to tho.
11. I agree with Alli.....................I don't know if there is any real truth to it or it it ever has been proven.but I have always owned mutts from the shelter and have never had any problems. I know people that have pure breeds and have all sorts of problems. The bigger gene pool really does make a difference. I am sure that your vet has seen a lot of both dogs so he might be right.
12. Personally, I believe someone with a degree in veterinary medicine should be trusted over strangers on yahoo answers. I don't know the exact answer to your question, but I can guess based on other information. I don't know dog genetics as well, but I do know horses, and I would think they would be similar. Ask anyone who owns a BML mustang and other horses, the mustang is more tough than all of them. They have harder feet, better lung capacity, and stronger joints. Given, they are usually not the prettiest, or pretty at all, but they are built to survive. A mustang is essentially a random mix of any and all horse breeds, depending on what was introduced to the herd. NOW from logical deduction, this would be because of natural selection. Meaning the horses with the traits more able to thrive and survive would live and pass on their genes, whereas the ones that have diseases and weaknesses will fall out of the gene pool. SO basically my point based on this observation is that it depends on the mix. If it is a 1st generation mix, chances are, its not all that better. But if a dog comes from a long line of random mixes and a larger gene pool, than yes, it is very possible they will have a better immune system. The second thing I can deduct is from my knowledge from my college biology class. Inherited diseases or traits that occur in a population (for example- every golden retriever I have owned has had an ear infection at some point) happen because an allele from each parent is given, let say the "A" allele is positive for the disease and "a" is negative. A parent with the disease might have a genotype "Aa" and a phenotype that shows the disease, and the parent of the other breed has a phenotype "aa". One allele is given from each of the parents to the child. So lets say the first parent gives of their "a" allele and the second, of course, gives of an "a", the child would have "aa", so they would not have the disease. If BOTH of the parents carry the gene for the disease, the child is more likely to get the disease, which is why mix breeds should theoretically have less of a chance of inheriting BREED RELATED diseases or other issues (like the golden ears). Again, this theory supports that while a 1st generation mix could be healthier, the later the generation, the more likely they would be healthier. Now all of this can be forgotten when it comes to environmental influences. A lot of mix breeds (especially the 1st generation recently because of puppy mills) are raised in unfavorable conditions, and no matter what your genetics look like, if you have started life living in cramped cages of filth and sickness, you will be probably be more sickly. Same goes for pure breeds you buy at puppy stores, perhaps even more so. BASICALLY all in all, you shouldn't completely rely on whether or not a dog is pure bred or not to determine if he will be healthy, because there are MANY other factors. (btw, any regular on the dog section of yahoo will tell you mixes are sickly, short lived, weak dogs just to make you hate the new mix breed craze- they are blinded by hatred)
13. they don't know what the mixes have unless tested or they get sick. same as purebreds.