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Our Aims
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Our aim is to breed dogs with the best characteristics of beauty, health and temperament. We hope that our work will contribute to the welfare of the breed. For that purpose:
- we select very carefully the breeding dogs, as to combine in the best way possible the good characteristics of different bloodlines.
- we show them regularly at dog shows, mainly with the purpose of knowing the opinion that knowledgeable judges have about our dogs. Although this is only one aspect of dog breeding, it let us know if we are going on the right direction. We are also in permanent contact with RR breeders from South Africa, Europe, Zimbabwe, Australia and USA, that give us their support and guidance.
- we are dedicated exclusively to two breeds, to be able to do it in the best way possible. We have few dogs, so that we can give each one of them all the care that he/she deserves.
- the puppies are born inside our home and are raised up with our family and the other dogs, not in separate kennels. By this way they are properly socialized and get used to humans and big dogs since they are small.
- we do the proper health controls in order to carry out a responsible breeding, such as hip displasia and dermoid sinus controls.
Some important issues in dog breeding are the pedigree and the choice between inbreeding and outbreeding:
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Inbreeding or outbreeding?
What is inbreeding?
Inbreeding, also called "close mating", is when the breeder mates animals that are relatives to each other, for example parent-offspring, half or full siblings, uncle-niece, etc. Linebreeding is a type of inbreeding. The individuals to be mated must be selected for having the best qualities, so that they are increased in the blood line.
It is very useful in farm animal breeding (cattle, sheep, poultry), as if the matings are well planned the productive indexes are rised. It has to be taken into account, however, that in the same way that desirable traits are increased, the undesirable traits are increased too. Undesirable traits that were hidden in the population, like hereditary illnesses, suddenly can pop up.
What is outbreeding?
Outbreeding, also called "open mating", is when the breeder mates animals that are not relatives to each other. The aim is to take advantage of two very important factors: heterosis and complementarity.
Heterosis or "hybrid vigour" is the increase in the survival and reproductive indexes that is observed in the individuals produced by open matings (it is maximal when two animals of different breeds are mated, but itīs also high when two animals of the same breed but different lines are mated). These animals are stronger, less prone to suffer from hereditary illnesses and more fertile.
On the other hand, complementarity is used when mating two animals that have different but complementary characteristics, or that share desirable traits, so that an advantageous combination is expected in the progeny. This type of open mating is called "assortative mating".
Which is more convenient in dog breeding?
Both of them have advantages and disadvantages, but from our point of view outbreeding is the most convenient when breeding dogs or other companion animals. Even if under certain circumstances inbreeding can be acceptable, we donīt advocate it as the main method for dog breeding. Our experience in animal genetics indicates that it is not the only method for the fixation of desirable traits, and that it can generate the fixation of severe genetic illnesses. From our point of view, a very strong inbreeding is OK for farm animals, that sooner or later will end on our dish, but not for companion animals bred to live with a family.
Breeders seek the "perfect dog", the ones that wins in all dog shows, and for that purpose they commonly use inbreeding as the main method. Inbreeding gives the possibility to obtain almost perfect dogs in less time, but with a high cost. How many pups are born prone to suffer from hereditary illnesses during this quest of the perfect dog? How many stillborns are produced? How many have behavioural problems? Many genetic illnesses are very severe, like epilepsy, different types of blindness, cardiac problems, allergies, bone ilnesses, etc... Is it worthy to increase them only for purely aesthetic purposes?
Outbreeding produces excelent results when the animals to be mated are selected with intelligence, and also allows to obtain the "perfect dog" according to the standard of the breed, without the problems that inbreeding carries. More time may be needed, but faster not necessarily means better.
Breeders must recognize that most people that buy a pup are not interested in shows, they only want a companion or guard dog. People take them to their homes and integrate them to their families, give them lots of love and affection and expect them to be good companions of their children and protectors of their homes. They donīt want a problem. So, breeders must provide not only beautiful, within-the-standard dogs, but also physical and psicologically healthy dogs.
What is the pedigree?
The pedigree is the registry of the past generations of a purebred animal, that is, its genealogical tree. It gives a lot of information about the animal and its ancestors. A given animal can only have a pedigree if its parents were also registered. It is of the utmost importance for the rational breeding and well keeping of any kind of animal species; it is used for production animal breeding (cattle, sheep, horses, etc) and also at zoos.
This registry is usually carried by an official institution recognized internationally. As it is an official certification we can be sure that the pedigree is true. In our country the pedigree registry for purebred dogs is carried by the Cinologic Federation Argentine, affiliated to the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI). The FCI in the most important international institution dedicated to the regulation and promotion of dog breeding worldwide, located in Belgium.
why is the pedigree so important?
The pedigree is not only to certify that our dog descends from X Champion, instead it has many functions that are of major importance:
- Is the only way to be sure that a dog is purebred, that it hasnīt got any cross with any other breed, and so, that we are not buying something we do not want.
- it indicates if the ancestors of the dog have been checked for different genetic illnesses, e.g. hip dysplasia. Under the dogīs name appears a certification number, valid through all the world, that indicates that the dog is free from it.
- It gives us information about the breeder, where the dog came from, its tatoo or microchip, etc.
- It is used to know the degree of relatedness between two dogs, in case we are planning to mate them.
- By knowing the bloodlines from where our dog comes, we can deduce certain future characteristics of it, such as physical structure, temperament, health, etc.
why it is inconvenient to buy a purebred dog without pedigree?
Because in that case no one can assure you that the pup is purebred, nor that its parents were carefully chosen before considering breeding with them.
Before buying a pup you must take into account that it will be a member of your family for 12, 14 or more years, and the least you want is to have a problem for such a long time... It is necessary to know in depth the characteristics of the breed you like before making any decision, so that you can be sure that it will fit to your way of living, and also to ask advice to knowledgeable and reputable breeders. When you make your choice about the breed, be careful to choose a good breeder. Donīt be afraid of making a lot of questions. It is important to see the dogs and how he/she has them, ask to see their pedigrees, ask for any health problems that the dogs may have, etc. It is always better to wait and choose correctly than to hurry up and buy a problem.
Many times people buy impulsively a puppy without registration or without knowing the characteristics of the breed. Sometimes they are caught by a cute little face behind the glass of a pet shop, without considering the consequences that their impulse may have in the future. If afterwards the dog is diagnosed with hip dysplasia, or becomes blind at four years of age, or its hair grows much longer than its supposed parents and it becomes difficult to care for, or the dog grows much more (or less) of what is expected for a dog of its supposed breed, or has behavioural issues... who are we going to ask for explanations? Can we complain?
Do not ever trust people that breed without registering their dogs and say pedigrees are unimportant "papers" and their dogs are just as beautiful. All puppies are beautiful and cute, the problem arises afterwards when the dog grows up and do not accomplish your expectations. Dogs without a register are usually not pure bred (their ancestors may have crossed with other breeds or with street dogs). Usually people that breed in this way donīt keep a health record of the breeding animals, and so they can transmit undesirable traits to their progeny. Moreover, without the pedigree we cannot know the degree of relatedness of the parents, and the indiscriminate breeding between close relatives can produce puppies with severe health problems.
Is more expensive a dog with pedigree?
Not necessarily, the registered dogs are more expensive if they descend from well-known Champions, but not all dogs with pedigree are more expensive than those who hasnīt.
A good breeder and the pedigree registration serves as guarantee that the pup will resemble their parents when it grows up and that it is not prone to severe hereditary malformations or illnesses. The breeder cannot assure you that the dog wil never suffer from any illness, but at least he/she had done whatever is at his/her hands to avoid it. This safety has its cost, as the breeder may have invested a lot of money to obtain such beautiful and healthy puppies. Take into account that the breeder may have bought very expensive high quality dogs for mating, has done many health checks, etc. An unregistered dog is, in turn, a lottery. It can be healthy and gorgeous all its life, or become a painful headache. What we may save in the moment of buying an unregistered dog we spend it (or more!) later on at the vetīs office.
Thanks to Eileen Armstrong.
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