Member Profile

Dog DNA & Designer Dogs

Hello! I am a pet sitter in the Pacific Northwest, and have worked with animals all my life, although I am not a breeder. I have owned and had Borzois, Shelties, and Dalmatians for 37yrs. My daughters have Mini Dachshunds and Collies, and my sisters have Golden Retrievers and Beagles. I am also a lover of both purebred and regular cats.

I have been disturbed by the fact that the professional dog breeders have had a political strangle hold on dog DNA for the past 60yrs. The AKC closed their stud books, limiting the amount of genetic traits that all of our purebreds have to draw upon. At the same time, huge pressure has come on the public to spay and neuter all pets.

The result has been very expensive purebred dogs on the market, which have serious, inbred caused, health issues. The list is too long to cover here of dogs that I have cared for that were well loved, lost at an early age, and never should have been bred just for dog show characteristics.

I am against puppy mills , like any dog lover would be. But I also think that designer dogs, bred by caring families, are the only hope we have for having healthy pets. Dog show people cull puppies all the time, simply for having a minor color fault. But we are not supposed to have dogs with hybrid vigour, raised by loving families? Something needs to change.
Thanks for this website, and for giving me an ear.

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