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Kennel Club to review dog breeds after disease claims

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Published Date: 08 October 2008
By Tom Graham
BRITAIN'S main governing body for dogs is to review every pedigree breed in the UK amid concerns about genetic diseases.
The Kennel Club review follows a television documentary that claimed the breeding process used to produce pedigree dogs had resulted in a high incidence of inherited genetic disease.

The club, which organises Crufts, decided to act after the programme showed a prize-winning cavalier King Charles spaniel with syringomyelia, a condition that occurs when a dog's skull is too small for its brain.

It also showed boxers suffering from epilepsy, pugs with breathing problems and bulldogs unable to mate or give birth unassisted.







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  • Last Updated: 07 October 2008 10:40 PM
  • Source: The Scotsman
  • Location: Edinburgh
 
1

Conan the Librarian™,

08/10/2008 00:24:27
About time.

I have four dogs, three are crossbred Jack Russells and one is a Kennel Club breed, the Parson Jack Russell.

Guess which one goes to the vet most often?
2

SCULLION1,

Canada 08/10/2008 02:06:46
#1, with all due respect, why then do you have the purebred?
It is the desire to have showdogs that have fuelled these genetic monstrosities.
(First and last post)
3

MarkInAlpine,

Alpine, Texas 08/10/2008 02:41:55
My purebred Labrador Retriever, and her successor, a purebred Shetland Sheepdog, both had health problems that led to their early deaths. I got the lab from a vet who had kept her rather than destroying her for being the runt of the litter, and I got the Sheltie from the local Humane Society shelter. My current dog is a mutt with recognizable breed characteristics, Lab, shepherd, Chow, and he's quite healthy.
4

Guga II,

Rockall 08/10/2008 05:17:49
Never mind the review. They should ban the participation of any of these "distorted" breeds from participation in any of their events, and from membership of their organisation.
5

Kate,

Zurich 08/10/2008 08:07:52
We used to breed golden retrievers as working dogs and they lived to between 10 and 18 years. The stud dog lived to 18, despite having a heart attack aged only 4, when a shotgun went off near his head!

My grandmother also had black labs and an uncle has had springer spaniels for years with no problems, but I must emphasise, these were bred as working dogs and not for showing!

Pure bred dogs can be fantastic, but it's obvious there are unscrupulous breeders out there who only think of the next ribbon or trophy.
6

Miss Pixie,

formerly of Dinleyhaughfoot Cottage, Roxburghshire 08/10/2008 11:41:02
Some breeders need to do what is called "back breeding" which means reversing what they have already done.
7

crazycockers,

west yorkshire 09/10/2008 19:20:26
The real culprits of 'badly bred, diseased dogs' are the 'puppy farmers' and BYB's who don't give 'two hoots' about their animals welfare, many of these dogs live in squalor, all they care about is how many litters that they can squeeze out of their dogs, many who are repeatedly bred on consecutive seasons, and when they are no longer viable 'breeding machines' they are thrown out for rescues to pick up the pieces!

These 'people' do NOT breed to a standard, prefering to use 'any male' to 'any female' regardless whether the parents are afflicted with genetic diseases or not! many pups are NOT KC reg, and are 'shipped off' to 'puppy supermarkets' many are seriously ill when the 'ill-informed' general public buy them-thinking that they are getting a 'healthy' puppy because 'it's not KC reg' or it's not a 'show dog' how wrong are they?

I have had experience of fostering a Cocker bred/bought this way, he has had no health checks, neither had the parent dogs, we don't actually know if he will develop PRA/cataracts in future, also he looks to have dysplastic hips too, and he certainly would not win at a dog show! This is because the 'person' who bred him cared more about 'pound signs' than the overall well being of their 'breeding' dogs!

Now my own two Cockers are a different story! YES they are KC reg, YES they are show dogs (but only on the weekend for two/three hours-the rest of the week they are PET dogs-who LOVE to get down and dirty in the fields!) BUT they are from breeders who have been breeding quality, health tested, fit for form and function, dogs who could do the job they were bred for!

Just because they fit the written breed standard, and look well groomed while they 'strut their stuff' at dog shows like Crufts, does NOT mean that they are unhealthy, my boys have a glut of genetic/clinical health tests proving that they will NOT go blind through PRA/cataracts or be crippled through hip displaysia-this means that i can 'enjoy' my d
8

crazycockers,

West Yorkshire 09/10/2008 19:37:10
(part 2!) dogs being dogs without having to worry about genetic diseases, in effect they are happy/healthy pets first and show dogs second, and yes i ENJOY taking them to shows and they enjoy all the attention too, they LOVE to show off their conformation and sound movement with tails-a-wagging! Best of all they LOVE to get fit BEFORE a show!

so please do NOT tar ALL breeders/show dog owners with the same brush as the minority shown on 'that one sided program' the majority DO test and produce only healthy stock-not only as potential show dogs but much loved pets as well!

 

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