The problem with being Pure

There are those in the dog world that want a dog because of her personality, his handsome features and their doting companionship. Then there are others who want this, but in a much more specific form; a purebred. While the numbers of dogs (including purebreds!) in shelters climbs and climbs, there is still high demand for dogs “with papers”. While I agree it’s certainly better than buying a puppy from your mate’s cousin who allowed his undesexed female to roam the neighborhood, there are still some important points to consider when you think about buying particular purebred dogs.

A history of genetic selection

Every dog breed in the world is the result of a genetic split from an ancestor which is common to the gray wolf. I know when you look at a chihuahua, a teacup poodle or a cavalier king charles that can be hard to believe. That’s the amazing power of selective breeding for you; the same additive power that has allowed us to grow huge cobs of corn and dairy cows that produce 30L a day. Genetics are almost like magic; check out this example.

A few decades of selective breeding and voila! A few extra inches of spine, disproportionate legs and a longer neck.

This photo comes from an excellent blog, highlighting how selective breeding has essentially caused extreme, and often damaging, changes to certain breeds. While some people view the differences between this 1915 and 2012 dachshund as “adorable”, they mean that up to 25% of modern sausage dogs will experience intervertebral disc disease during their lifetime (Rosenblatt et al, 2014). There are no benefits to having a disproportionate body, other than what people perceive to be enhanced aesthetic value.

The once majestic St Bernard has gone from working dog to overheating, blood disorders, bone cancer, skin problems and a typical life span of around 8 years.

I urge you, if you are considering buying a dog of a particular breed, head to the LIDA dogs website, which lists inherited and high risk diseases for pretty much all dog breeds. I did this when I was first looking at what kind of dog I wanted; I ended up pursuing greyhound adoption when I found out they are a notably healthy breed because they have been bred for performance over looks.

The holy bible of pure breeding

The Australian National Kennel Council is the body for all things pure breeding in Australia, including the dictation of breed standards. A breed standard is essentially a manifesto for a particular breed. Now the real kicker is that breed standards are not written by geneticists, anatomists, physiologists, reproductive biologists or anyone else with a formal qualification. They were typically written by breeders when the breed was first formed, and have been updated along the way at the behest of modern breeders.

Meanwhile, the greyhound remains much the same as it has been for centuries, consistently being bred for speed.

Take a minute to check out the breed standard for your favourite breed of dog on the ANKC website. Notice anything? First off, the devil is in the detail. For our friend the dachshund above, the breed standard seems relatively mild. But look at the language; it instructs that the body should be “moderately long”. Ah yes, moderate. I am moderately tall. I own a moderate amount of shoes. Not a very descriptive unit is it? My interpretation of moderate may be perfectly fine, while yours may lead to a high incidence of dogs with back problems. This kind of fluffy language litters breed standards, particularly when it comes to very important things like the size and shape of the skull and length of appendages and the body.

Secondly, breed standards demand a lot without any explanation. Stating that block colours, patchy colours, brown eyes or a curled tail are totally unacceptable is a bit much, no? At no point is there any evidence given for why such strict breed standards are important; is it for health or temperament reasons? Are dogs with these characteristics more likely to be deaf? Or is it all just because a breeder in 1943 hated always having to wear black to cover up the dog hair on their clothes? There should be a very clear classification of breed standards into those which are purely aesthetic and any (if they exist) which are related to health or other important concerns.

They may be cute, but these puppies required a C-section to join the world.

The real problem with breed standards is that in many cases, they design dogs to be unhealthy. While the ANKC has addressed this, they continue to promote standards like this for the British Bulldog (the epitome of a dog bred into disease):

“The skull should be very large – the larger the better….The chest should be very wide…very broad at the shoulders, and comparatively narrow at the loins.”

What they are asking for here is a dog basically shaped like a triangle, with a HUGE front end, and a tiny itty bitty waist by comparison. There’s not really an issue with this until a bulldog bitch tries to have puppies. While the puppies may be cute, their heinously large melons are big from birth, making a natural birth almost unheard of. If a dog is bred in such a way that it can no longer have puppies without a C-section, do breed standards still make sense? Not really, no.

What makes a breeder a breeder?

The problem with a purebred dog is that most people can’t tell on sight whether or not it is, whether it’s genetically sound or what kind of conditions it was whelped in. If you’ve got your heart absolutely set on having a purebred dog, you need to arm yourself with the knowledge to pick a breeder worth supporting. Unfortunately high demand for purebred dogs draws the attention of scummy people, who are more interested in the thousands of dollars to be made than the well being of any animals they breed. This kind of “breeder” is unlikely to actually be breeding pure bred dogs in any sense of the word, and certainly not healthy ones at that.

Is this where your puppy came from? Did it have adequate access to clean bedding, food, water and appropriate socialisation?

Any breeder worth their salt should be well aware of potential heritable problems with the breed (like brachycephaly (squishy face) causing breathing problems in the pug, or excessive skin folds in the shar pei causing skin issues). Not only that, they should be working hard to improve these traits using techniques such as outbreeding, crossbreeding and careful selection. In addition, application of available technologies such as screening for heritable diseases is a must for any responsible breeder.

It’s now an affordable option to screen a dog’s genes for the particular alleles responsible for known heritable conditions.

There are other things you can do to filter out the bad eggs too. Make sure you see where the puppy was whelped; are you happy with the conditions? Make sure you meet the mum (and dad if possible); look at their temperament and physical condition. Ask about how many litters mummy dog has had (6 tops!) and what happens when her breeding days are done. If there’s even a hint of something dodgy going on, walk away – the absolute last thing you want to do is support an operation that doesn’t care about the dog’s welfare first and foremost. For more tips on finding a breeder that’s trustworthy, check out the RSPCA smart puppy buyer’s guide.

We hope that you can find it in your heart to adopt, not shop, but if you do choose to buy a purebred, find out everything there is to know before you make any decisions.

With love,

References

Alana J. Rosenblatt, Cynthia D.K. Bottema, Peter B. Hill, Radiographic scoring for intervertebral disc calcification in the Dachshund, The Veterinary Journal, Volume 200, Issue 3, June 2014, Pages 355-36