WINDROCK

"Health guaranteed!"

This "reassuring" platitude is how pet shops and irresponsible breeders seek to get around the expenses of genetic testing. 

 Let's look at it from the PUPPY'S point of view. Guarantees don't help a puppy at all. You get your money back, while the puppy still has to live with the genetic health problems that could have been avoided -- if his breeder had been seeking to produce healthy lives rather than seeking to keep his expenses down by avoiding genetic health testing.

We're talking about quality of life here. Don't support any breeder or pet shop who cares so little about the future life of their puppies that they do not require genetic health testing of the parents.

Not just HEALTH problems

 

Obedience instructors and canine behavioral consultants will be happy to tell you about the temperament and behavior problems that develop in many pet shop puppies as they grow up.

Most pet shop puppies start out playful and friendly, but as they mature, their genes begin to assert themselves. If their parents or grandparents had shy or aggressive or hyperactive temperaments, those genes will show up during adolescence and adulthood.

Many pet shop puppies are nippy. Some were removed from their mother before 7 weeks of age, a critical period of time where she teaches them "bite inhibition." Some have learned to nip from interacting with so many potential owners wandering through the pet shop, including kids who tug and play roughly. Most of these potential owners thought the nipping was cute, didn't correct the puppy for it, and so the habit becomes entrenched.

Finally, raised in a small cage in which they're encouraged to eliminate freely, pet shop puppies are notoriously difficult to housebreak.

The major reason not to buy -- supporting the industry

You may wish to "rescue" a pet shop puppy. That's completely understandable. We all feel sorry for them.

But your good intentions will backfire, because you are feeding the industry by rewarding it with money.

You've emptied one cage, yes -- which creates demand for yet another litter to be produced to fill that cage. Even if you're very, very lucky, and your one individual puppy turns out okay, a large percentage of the others will not -- and YOU provided the incentive for them to be born by buying the one who came before them.

So what seems like a simple, isolated purchase actually contributes to:

The misery of adult females who spend their lives in a cage, being bred again and again to provide puppies that you and others can buy

The misery of these future puppies born with health and temperament problems 

 The misery of future families who buy these puppies and then try to cope with the health and temperament problems 

 The misery of animal rescue groups trying to deal with the flood of pet shop puppies dumped on their doorstep because families gave up on the health and temperament problems

If a breeder can only tell you that a vet checked the dog and found it healthy then they do not have the information they need to breed healthy dogs. Even in breeds with a very low rate of problems the educated breeder knows enough to know the most common problems in *other* breeds and how those problems are discovered. Again, look at the source of information. Sorry, but veterinarians *aren't* the best source of learning what genetic problems affect what breeds. They are generally more concerned with the general dog population, and what problems are actually affecting the life of the dog before them. They leave it to breeders to detect and avoid the potential for problems in future dogs.

• List the typical genetic diseases for your breed.

• Where did the list come from? What resources were used to learn about the typical genetic diseases?

• What is the level of seriousness of those diseases? Which are correctable or treatable? Which affect the quality of life for the dog, or are a burden on the owner?

• What steps can be taken to reduce the risk of the serious genetic disease?

  • For each genetic problem list how the problem can be identified. Explain whether an ordinary veterinary exam will discover the problem at the age the dog is to be bred. Confirm whether carriers can be identified by blood, DNA, or other tests (make sure you know what a carrier is). Determine how information can be gathered about problems that cannot be detected by test. What evidence can the breeder give to the buyer that these steps have been taken?

  • What books, seminars or classes were used to learn about basic genetics, breed specific problems, and steps that can be used to reduce the risk of those problems?

• What evidence can the breeder show you of steps taken for the good genetic health of this particular litter? Certificates? Paperwork?

• Are the great-grandparents still alive? If any are not, what did they die of? And the progeny of the great-grandparents? What is the health of other dogs in the line?

• Can the breeder provide you with health clearance information (OFA?CERF,etc.) of at least some other dogs in the line, not just the parents?
  For the most part a breeder should know the health and fitness of the immediate family members. Making good breeding decisions requires knowing the health of as much of the immediate family as possible. The more information the breeder has on other dogs in the pedigree the more confident you can be that the breeder has been making good decisions.

• Does the health guarantee offered reflect confidence in the genetic health of the puppies? A two year guarantee is a bare minimum. It avoids covering late onset problems such as blindness and cardiac problems. Such a short guarantee suggests the breeder doesn't really understand the difference between fault and responsibility. A breeder who truly stands behind their dogs accepts responsibility for genetic problems even if it is not their fault that those problems occur. Less than a two year guarantee is simply unacceptable as so many conditions will not be detectable at an early age.

• Steps taken to produce dogs of predictable qualities.

  • Does the breeder possess a physical copy of the breed standard?

  • What resources does the breeder use to get more technical information on the breed such as pedigrees, knowledge of genetic problems, health testing, advanced training etc.?

  • Can the breeder list the dam's strengths and weaknesses in relation to the breed standard?

    • How were these strengths and weaknesses evaluated?

    • How did the person who evaluated the strengths and weaknesses obtain the expertise to make the evaluation?

    • How can the objectivity of the evaluation be assessed?

  • Can the breeder list the sire's strengths and weaknesses in relation to the breed standard?

    • How were these strengths and weaknesses evaluated?

    • How did the person who evaluated the strengths and weaknesses obtain the expertise to make the evaluation?

    • How can the objectivity of the evaluation be assessed?

  • Compare the temperament of the dam to what is common in the breed

    • How were these qualities evaluated?

    • How did the person making the evaluation obtain the expertise to make the evaluation

    • How can the objectivity of the evaluation be assessed?

    • In what way do these qualities benefit the breed?

  • Compare the temperament of the sire to what is common in the breed

    • How were these qualities evaluated?

    • How did the person making the evaluation obtain the expertise to make the evaluation?

    • How can the objectivity of the evaluation be assessed?

    • In what way do these qualities benefit the breed?

  • List the other dogs in the pedigree that were examined for health or temperament before the decision was made to breed this sire to this dam.

    • What strengths and weakness were discovered?

    • What is the expected influence of those strengths and weaknesses?

  • Are these puppies expected to conform to breed standard? If they do not conform to breed standard then in what way do they deviate from breed standard? If there is deviation why did that occur? Note, this is not necessarily a bad thing just something both breeder and buyer should be clear on. Be aware that deviation from standard tends to represent extremes - the very worst breeders, and some of the very best. The worst situation is a breeder who either doesn't know, or doesn't care if there is a deviation (i.e. is thoughtless about it).

  • Any deviation from breed standards should be thoughtful, well researched and expressly disclosed in the contract. The breeder should be prepared to discuss the breed standard and the degree to which the puppies will conform or deviate from that standard, the goals of the breeding in general, and the reason for selecting that sire and that dam in particular.

  • What has the breeder produced already? If the breeder has produced puppies in the past has the breeder kept in touch? Is the breeder concerned with their welfare? Has the breeder recorded their health and temperament as they mature and age?

  • What is the breeder doing to follow up on what they have produced? Trying to do a good job of producing healthy puppies of appropriate temperament becomes a futile exercise if the breeder does nothing to find out whether those attempts have been successuful. What went right and what went wrong is viatl in continuing to improve. Surprises happen all the time. Genetics is complex and sometimes what seems like a perfect match ends up with unexpected problems. Really critical problems might come to the attention of even the disinterested breeder. But to ensure that apparently smaller things, like allergies, are caught breeders need to keep in touch, show an intereest and expressly ask about things the average person might not think important enough to report.

• Evaluating the buyer to determine a good match for the breed is important as is making sure there are competent buyers available. What steps has the breeder taken to locate potential buyers before the mating?

• What questions did the breeder ask you?

• A breeder who cares for dogs does their very best to make sure that the puppy goes to a home that has both the willingness and the ability to provide what the puppy needs to grow up into a happy, healthy wonderful pet. That means the breeder is going to need some information from you. Be prepared to provide the answers and please don't feel insulted. It may not feel like it but they aren't asking questions to make you feel bad. They are just doing the best for their puppies. If you aren't comfortable with the breeder, or how they deal with you, then move on to another. Just understand that their goal is to do the best they can for the puppy, and the breeder is human and may have a hard time coming up with the right tone. Also don't feel that just because you made a mistake or had a bad experience that no breeder will ever consider you "worthy" of a puppy. It is true that some just won't take a chance. Most, however, just want to know what has changed. What will prevent the same kind of problem from happening again.

• A breeder will want to know about your experience with dogs. Your experience can range from never having shared a home with a dog, to growing up with a dog, to having complete responsibility for a dog. The breed (or breeds) will be important, as will the age you got the dog, how long you had it, and your level of responsibility in caring for it (that is did you just live in the same household, or were you the primary caretaker). If you taught the dog anything more than basic good manner that is a big plus.

• A breeder will want to know who else will be sharing the household or will be regular visitors. The experience needed to have a dog in which children are a regular part of the household is higher than if generally only adults are present. If you are expecting a child within two years of getting the dog expect to be questioned especially closely as that is an extra challenge for the average, less experienced person.

• Similarly a good breeder will want to know whether other pets either share the household or will be regular visitors. If there are other pets the breeder should ask further questions about your experience on supervising and managing so that there can be a safe and peaceful coexistence. If your community limits the number of pets you can keep in one household the breeder will expect you to know that information and to commit to not violating those limits.

• A breeder will want to know about the space you live in. One of the most important questions is whether you own or rent. If you rent you should expect the breeder to ask for proof that the landlord permits dogs. One of the highest risks to dogs is being sneaked into an apartment where pets are forbidden. Many a dog has lost its life in the pound when the person faced the choice of eviction or getting rid of the dog. If the space is relatively confined the breeder will want to know whether you have taken that into consideration. Different breeds have different indoor activity levels. You may be asked whether you have a fenced yard. Some breeders will say they will never place a dog in a home without a fenced yard. I understand their rationale but I'm not entirely sure I agree with the results. All too often the presence of a fenced yard means the dog never sees anything but the house and yard. In any case you should be prepared to answer to the real concern, which is how will you ensure the dog is safe and controlled both in getting exercise and in going out for bodily relief. As part of that the breeder should be given pretty specific information about your plans for daily exercise and training - how long and how much of each.

• The more specific and well thought out your plans for teaching the dog how to be well mannered the better the breeder will feel. Even better is to have specific plans and honest commitment to getting involved in some kind of regular activity with the dog. That could be any number of things from the informal to the formal.

• Getting into the more touchy areas the breeder will want to make sure you are both aware and realistic about both the time and financial commitment you are making. Before you contact a breed you should have gotten a good idea of costs annual veterinary visits, licensing, grooming, training, food, supplies and allowance for emergency vet care. Try to save the breeder the awkwardness of asking by volunteering your awareness and ability to meet those needs.

• Expect to be asked why you want a dog, and why you want this particular breed. One of the big reasons dogs don't keep their original homes is that people aren't always realistic in their expectations. Permanent placement requires realistic expectations by the buyer.

• A common theme is to get a dog "for the kids". Any responsible breeder will instantly focus in on that reason. A dog is not an educational tool. There is certainly much value and learning in pet ownership but the desire and motivation to have a dog must start with the parties responsible for the dog - the parents. If keeping the dog is dependent upon the interest and involvement of the children a responsible breeder will not place the dog in that family.

• If you are young the breeder may again pose awkward but necessary questions about your plans for the future. Showing the breeder that you have not only thought ahead but you are realistic about your ability to continue to provide for the needs of the dog is important. For example, if you are a teenager getting a dog the good breeder will want to make sure that there are solid and realistic plans for the dog when you leave home. If you think you are going to take the dog with you then you will be expected to know and be able to deal with the difficulties and expense of finding housing. If the dog will be left behind then someone else in the household will have to show the same love and caring you have before the breeder will ever let the dog go to you. Otherwise when you leave the dog may suffer.

OK, if you have plowed through all that let me take a moment to remind you. You won't find a breeder that does all of the above. The purpose of the list is to help you get a feel for what responsible breeding is all about. It is to help you understand the reasons for requirements or provisions that might otherwise seem bizarre or overbearing. It is also to help you get enough knowledge to distinguish the good talker from the good doer. A great talker has reasons for everything, but if you know what to ask their story doesn't hold together. Don't be afraid to ask questions. The better the breeder the happier they will be that you care enough to not just swallow things whole. On the other hand don't be offensive about it. You will want to build a relationship of trust because if you have found a truly caring breeder you have found gold.