Step Four-Choose a Suitable Mate

You first have to make sure your dog is AKC registered. When you are going through the process you want to make sure that you mate animals that compliment one another. You should choose a dog whose bloodlines will strengthen the female dogs’ weaknesses and bring out her good qualities. Two factors you must keep in mind as you make your selection are health and temperament. Temperament is hereditary in dogs although it can be influenced by external factors. You should never consider breeding dog if you have concerns about there temperament.

Step Five- Know your Genetics

A breeder must have a basic understanding of the science of genetics. The genes passed on by their parents will determine everything about your puppy. You also need to be aware of the genetic problems that affect your breed. Genetic defects can occur at any time in any breed and can affect any part of the body. Many diseases follow a dominant pattern meaning they only need one abnormal gene. If only one parent is affected, the disease will show up in each successive generation. Sometimes it can be difficult to detect because of how mild it is. If that is the case, the condition can mistakenly be thought to skip generations. Some diseases follow a recessive pattern, which only occurs in homozygous individuals; dogs with two abnormal genes. Dogs that have one bad gene and one normal gene are known as heterozygous. They seem normal but they can still pass their abnormal gene down to their offspring. You can also have chromosomal anomalies, which is a defect in the chromosome number and structure. Usually dogs have 39 pairs of chromosomes on which the genes are located so major abnormalities in this could cause major defects in the breed.

Step Six- Finalize stud contract

It is highly recommended to work out a contract between the breeder and the owner of the dog. The fees should be in writing and clearly state all obligations and circumstances. All parties involved should sign the papers and each party should each get a separate copy. The dog’s owner determines a stud fee, which causes the amount and the way of payment to differ. But you must keep in mind that the AKC can’t settle disagreements between parties in regards to the breeding arrangements.

“”Responsible Breeding and Dog Mating – American Kennel Club “” – American Kennel Club. American Kennel Club, n.d. Web. 05 Nov. 2015.

Today I am going to be talking about the steps that should be taken in order to breed a dog responsibly. Yes I do believe breeding should stop all together but if it has to happen I would rather have people breed responsibly.

Step 1- Prepare Yourself for Breeding a Litter

Breeding purebred dogs is very time consuming, expensive and sometimes heartbreaking. The main purpose for breeding should be to improve the breed itself not just to increase its numbers. You need to have knowledge of breeding a litter before you begin. To become a responsible breeder you need to devote time to learning everything you can about a specific breed, about canine health and training and about AKC rules. Study your breed standard. The AKC offers videos and more detailed versions of their dog standards for more in-depth research. Attend dog events and watch and study the breeds you like and find local club meetings so you can meet other breeders. Lastly, go to your library or bookstore and read information on canine health and breeding.

Step 2- Breed to Improve

Responsible breeders take a step back and evaluate the pros and cons of their dog before they make the decision to breed. You need to examine your dog carefully and recognize its flaws. If you still decide to continue breeding, you should try to find a mate that will cancel out or balance those flaws.

Step 3- Understand the Commitment

            During the first couple of weeks the mother usually takes care of the puppies but sometimes complications can occur. A mother can have trouble producing milk or an orphaned litter can occur. The breeder needs to provide a safe, warm, dry place for the puppies. All of the extra feeding, cleanup, grooming, training, and veterinary care take away from a person’s free time. Having one dog is time consuming not to mention an entire litter. The breeder must also take into consideration the financial cost of having a litter of newborn puppies. It costs a lot of money for the genetic screening and health tests that must occur before breeding, and not to mention the extra food, supplies and medical care that are a necessity after the puppies are born. One also has to keep in mind that costs can become even higher than that if complications arise. A responsible breeder will make sure that these puppies go to an owner that will provide the same love and devotion as they did. This means they need to have a strict screening and evaluation of each family interested in getting a puppy. A responsible breeder should know all the pros and cons of that breed. It’s also important that they share all information including the negatives side with the future owner. Each breeder should be committed to finding the perfect fit for each dog and its family. A big dog that requires a lot of attention would not be suitable for a workaholic and a tiny dog would not be suitable for a family containing small, active children.

Stay tuned for the weeks to come for more steps!

“”Responsible Breeding and Dog Mating – American Kennel Club “” – American Kennel Club. American Kennel Club, n.d. Web. 05 Nov. 2015.

Dog breeding has a tendency to go bad. This is Sally; she is an 11-month-old white Golden Retriever puppy. She is very silly and playful. Apparently Sally had previously attacked her owner when trying to get a bone from her. Her owner soon became frightened and uncertain due to Sally’s aggression, and apparently this is not the first time that this has happened. It is not normal for a dog as young as Sally is to show that amount of aggression towards her owner. The owner called a dog trainer to see if she could help. The trainer recommended that Sally’s owner make an appointment with a vet that specializes in animal behavior at the University of Minnesota. In order to do that, the owner must complete a lot of paperwork for this appointment stating what behavior is concerning them and to describe in detail what situations have occurred to make them feel uncertain. During these appointments, the whole family and their other pets are required to go as well. Their appointment took up to four hours, it is a extensive process. The advice she received was that Sally should be euthanized. They don’t usually recommend this but the fact that Sally was showing such aggression at such a young age and that it was unpredictable concerned the veterinarian. You wouldn’t know what triggered the aggression and you wouldn’t be able to tell when exactly it would occur. You cannot have a dog with major aggression issues especially with two young children in the house. The aggression was not a result of how Sally’s owners raised her; they were actually really great pet parents. Sally’s aggression and her behavior was a result in her genetics. Her behavior couldn’t be fixed through behavior modification. She was too dangerous to be around and it would be very likely that she would get more aggressive and seriously hurt someone in the future. They tried talking to the breeder about Sally’s situation but they had no luck. The breeder refused to take Sally back and continued to blame Sally’s owners for her aggression. They tried to find someone that would take Sally but they had no other options left. So they took her to the dog park for one last time. They were heart broken while watching her run around, enjoying herself. She had no idea that this was going to be one of her last moments on this earth. It is way too soon for a family to have to say goodbye. This is exactly why breeding needs to stop. This innocent animal has to be euthanized because of behavioral problems that are beyond its control. We have to keep in mind that breeding is a business. They care about the money not necessarily the animal they are breeding.

https://nodogaboutit.wordpress.com/2011/04/07/when-dog-breeding-goes-bad/

This is Lizzy and Tizzy! One night their owner took them on a car ride with their mom (Izzy) and brother (Dizzy). They probably thought they were just going for a nice long, normal car ride, as that is something dogs like to do. Not knowing what was in store for them, their owner abandoned them on the side of the road. The owner parked the car and let all four dogs out. The owner then fired gunshots to scare the dogs to prevent them from running after his car. Being shocked by the loud noises the dogs ran into hiding. When the noises stopped and they came back out they realized that both the car and their owner were gone. Luckily, a stranger found the dogs on the side of the road and contacted one of the nearby rescue organizations. Izzy and Dizzy were found loving homes while Lizzy and Tizzy were transferred to Helen Woodward Animal Center. They had no injuries and were in very good shape. Lizzy and Tizzy charmed whoever came to visit and they were adopted very shortly after their arrival. They never have to worry about finding another home again. They have found their forever family.

This is Alfred! Alfred was apart of a huge litter of 13 puppies that needed help getting out of a shelter that was overburdened with too many puppies. These puppies were called the A litter because all 13 puppies had names starting with the letter “A”. The litter consisted of: Abbott, Armani, Aaron, Andes, Axel, Agnes, Akira, Adam, Alonso, Albert, Alvin, Andrew, and little Alfred. When they arrived to the new shelter the puppies were paired up and welcomed by their foster families. All was going well until the center got a concerning phone call from Alfred’s foster parents. They noticed that Alfred was limping on his right leg. They took him to the hospital and the vet discovered that Alfred’s elbow was swollen and he couldn’t fully extend one of his legs. His entire humerus was shattered and his leg bone appeared to be lytic. That means the bone was porous in nature because it was probably trying to heal, but couldn’t. The bone was not strong enough to go through surgery to fix the break so they decided to amputate it. The surgery went well but Alfred would still need to learn how to walk, move, play, and balance without that leg. He had to learn how to walk again even though he just learned how to do that for the first time not too long ago. After he recovered it didn’t take this sweet pup long to find his forever family. You can be the one to give a dog a happily ever after. Every dog deserves a loving family because they really do love you no matter what.

Have you ever seen a homeless dog and just wanted to take it home with you?

How could someone do such a thing?

In the United States, nearly 62% of Americans have a pet and more than 70 billion dogs and cats are left homeless. Only around 6 to 8 million animals enter shelters each year out of these 70 million. These shelters are maxed out with dogs and are trying to function with limited space and funds. So many pets are looking for loving homes and yet only around 20% of Americans adopt their dogs from shelters. The other 74% is coming from breeders. Shelters are so packed with dogs that you can find any breed of animal, mixed or pure bred, in your local shelter. With that being said, Americans pay hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars for dogs from a breeder. Consumers are willing to pay an exorbitant amount of money for a pure bred dog because they are told the puppy has been raised in a loving environment and that it will grow up to have fewer health problems. However there is really no way to tell because health is dependent on the individual dog. Many breeders try to avoid inbreeding, which often leads to significant health issues. There is no guarantee that these animals won’t suffer from behavioral or health problems now or in the future.

This is Leo, an 8-week-old Airedale Terrier. During the summer my cousins decided to get their first dog. They had never had any previous experience owning a puppy and they decided to buy their dog from a breeder. My family wasn’t pleased with the fact that they were using a breeder when so many good dogs need homes. They finally brought Leo home when he was around 8 weeks old, which is normally when the breeder sells them. Two days later they heard Leo crying in his cage. When they went to see what the problem was they noticed Leo was not breathing. They were in shock because they had only had him for two days and it is not common for a puppy to just stop breathing. Leo ended up dying from an abnormality in his heart. This is an example of how breeding dogs can result in the dog having serious health problems.

Most of the time buyers don’t do their research before buying their new member of the family. As a result, some end up buying their dogs from cruel puppy mills. Most of the time even certified breeders subject their dogs to mill-like conditions. A lot of puppies who come from puppy mills, end up suffering from serious health problems due to reckless breeding practices. The New York Times did a story on a woman who purchased her puppy from an AKC breeder. Later, she discovered the puppy had suffered many abnormalities as a result of reckless breeding. Two months later the facility was raided and the dogs were moved to a safer location. Most breeding is cruel and abusive and because of that the puppies are left with serious health issues. It’s the same thing as drinking when you’re pregnant. As a result your newborn child is born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, which causes them to have serious birth defects. You have to live with the fact that you are the one responsible for it. Breeders know that what they are doing is wrong and that the outcome is producing a dog with serious abnormalities. It’s our civic duty to help save these innocent animals.

Look at these precious faces? How does this make you feel?

We have all seen those heartbreaking commercials for dogs that have been abandoned or just in need of a loving home. These dogs are left on the side of the road to die because they are simply not wanted. There is a reason why dogs are often referred to as “man’s best friend.” Their loyalty, intelligence, devotion and affection are so strong that all they want is for someone to love them because they will love you unconditionally, no matter what. I have grown up with two dogs in my 17 years and they have made them the best 17 years of my life. My family and I adopted our two black labs from a lab rescue organization. Lab Rescue of the LRCP is a volunteer driven, non-profit organization. They rescue, foster, and place homeless, abused and/or abandoned Labrador Retrievers and they also provide a referral service for owners who are seeking to place their Labradors in new homes. When they first receive these labs, they are evaluated for temperament and then placed in a loving foster home where they are exercised and further evaluated as they await adoption. All of their dogs are brought up to date on their shots, they are each given a heartworm test and if needed they are spayed or neutered.

This is Kimber, she is five years old and she weighs 70 pounds. When she came to Lab Rescue she had a few health issues but they were glad to take care of them. She had two toes amputated but she will still able to run around and play. They have noticed how much better she is just because she is cared for and is given loving attention. She is currently in a foster home and has been doing very well. She recently had to have a toe removed on her right front paw because she had a tumor. It was very serious and horrible looking; Lab Rescue truly saved her life. They took her to Animal Medical Center and they took care of it right away. The doctors there were able to remove the tumor cleanly and they even took x-rays just in case to show that nothing had spread. Once her foot heals completely she should be able to walk and run with no problems. She is being very well taken care of by her foster parents. They’ve noticed Kimber is sleeping better and feeling better, especially because she loves her new doggy bed. Her life has changed dramatically and it couldn’t have happened without the help of Lab Rescue. How could you resist that sweet face? You can help save lives. By adopting a dog you are saving a life and giving a deserving animal a home. It feels great to help an innocent animal in need. They are so appreciative just to have someone love and care for them. Most rescue dogs are victims of a death in the family, illness, divorce or a move that didn’t involve them while some are just abused and left to die. You can make a difference and save a life instead of creating a new one. Next weeks post I will discuss my viewpoint on dog breeding and the negative affects it can have and why it should stop. Stay tuned!

For my passion blog I am thinking about writing about the different scandals going on in todays sports world and the lengths some players are going in order to be the best. Some players would rather cheat or participate in illegal activity to win a game rather than to actually work hard and get better. Another topic I am thinking about is animal rescue and why people choose to buy dogs from a breeder instead of adopting or rescuing a dog that is in need of a home. Dogs just want a family and someone to love them and so many dogs get killed simply because they are not wanted and they are tossed aside like they are trash.