Is breeding really a bad thing? Some of you will likely disagree with me and I truly do understand the reasons why. However, I do not believe that breeding your pet is a bad thing if (and here’s the catch!)…if the breeding is carefully planned and the two animals are carefully chosen to complement one another. In my opinion, a good breeding starts with two top-quality individuals that are chosen to produce puppies (or kittens) with traits that improve on what their parents offer.
What Should a Good Breeder Accomplish?
Breeding should not be done merely to produce puppies or kittens to sell. Your pet should never, ever be bred just so that your kids can experience the “miracle of life”. In a perfect world, there would be no such thing as an accidental breeding. In other words, breeding has one primary purpose, to maintain a breed. Good breeders breed animals that improve their respective breed. Breeding is not about quantity, it’s about quality.
Finding a Good Breeder
There are good breeders out there, breeders who work hard to produce top quality puppies or kittens. But how do we find these breeders and tell them apart from the puppy mills and “backyard breeders” that produce not-so-top-quality puppies or kittens? We do that by educating ourselves! We educate ourselves before we go out and impulsively buy a new puppy or kitten. Here’s what Dr. V over at Pawcurious has to say in her post, Bostons, Breeders and the surreptitious obtaining of important phone numbers:
“Putting puppy mills and backyard breeders out of business won’t happen until we do a better job of convincing people that it’s worth the effort and research to find a good breeder and pick the right dog. They are out there, but it takes more effort than some of the other options. It’s work. Getting a dog should be work, because having a dog is work. That is not an unreasonable prerequisite.”
And she’s right. It’s heartbreaking to see a young dog (or cat) that is already experiencing health issues resulting from a genetic disease inherited from his mother and/or father. It’s even more heartbreaking for the fact that it shouldn’t be happening. And it wouldn’t be happening if the majority of pet owners took the time to do their homework first and then made educated choices.
Advice About Breeding and Breeders
In this Animal Cafe interview, experienced breeder Jacque Redford talks about breeding and best breeding practices.
The previous podcast is the second part of an interview with Jacque. To hear more about how she screens her breeding animals and the process she goes through in planning a breeding, have a listen to the first part of the interview.
These podcasts cover a few of the considerations that a responsible and ethical breeder takes into account when planning and implementing a breeding program. What other things do you think are important? What do you look for in a breeder? If you’re a breeder, what genetic screening are you doing? How do you go about researching and planning a potential breeding? How do you care for your breeding animals?
Photo Courtesy of basykes/Flickr.com
