Mahonri, the breeders with the stud dogs you are interested in may be worried about your b*tch (i have had the same experience with 'grump'!) producing pet quality or otherwise less than desirable pups. Now, I am in no way suggesting I think your b*tch will do this, I'm just thinking this may be what the breeders are thinking. They may be concerned that when you sell or place the other pups, if they turn out pet quality, and it gets back to other golden people, the gossip will start that "so-and-so's dog produced a litter and not-a-one was show quality" and therefore hurt their stud dog's reputation.
The dog world is really quite small and a lot of gossip goes on. Their is also a lot of snobbery in the dog world, especially when the snob perceives the one snobbed at owning a lesser quality dog. People considered 'pet people' or 'pet owners' are also commonly looked down upon by some circles.
More breeders than I would care to admit are more interested in producing show quality dogs, ie beauty queens, than improving the breed's health or breeding to the standard. Some breeders actually will hide their dog's flaws with hair dying, removable braces, knee repair scars on the INSIDE of the leg, etc and breed these dogs and the faults are perpetuated generation after generation. I know because I have dealt with people like this. Some folks used to switch out OFA xrays, which is why you have to show up with the dog's papers if you are going to send in the xrays to OFA. Now they will switch out the dogs and go to a vet that is unfamiliar with the dog's appearance. They give not a thought to the best interests of the breed and you really have to wonder exactly what motivates them to do these things. I have always assumed greed, prestige and ego, but I could be wrong.
I do not breed, only train. Anytime you breed a b*tch you are placing her at risk from infections and possible death during delivery or later. I do not choose to place my beloved companions at risk; there are always a lot of dogs to choose from out there and even though they will be different you will love them all the same.
A responsible breeder always follows the lives of their pups and always has room to take a pup or grown dog back should they become homeless because the owners are divorcing etc instead of allowing one of their pups go to the shelter or be put down at the pound. I am not set up to care for extra dogs.
A responsible breeder is obligated to breed the healthiest puppies he possibly can and therefore is morally obligated to health test the dam and ask for health tests on the dog. If a pup has a defective heart, for example, a breeder will accept that puppy back and refund the purchase price or give a replacement puppy.
One of the biggest hearbreaks of my life was when the best and most intelligent dog I ever trained came down at 4 yrs old with genetic ataxia. I love my dogs and I loved this dog and invested 4 intense years of training into her and she was the 4th all time champion TDX in the breed. She was displastic, had severe skin issues and at last showed up with genetic ataxia and had to be retired at 4 1/2yrs. I had to put her down at 11 yrs when her throat froze due to the ataxia and she could no longer swallow. That is the youngest I have ever lost a dog and I hold all my dogs in my arms as they pass. The breeder denied responsibility for it and I hated her for it for a long time. I later found out that the breeder had been aware of these issues but had encouraged me to breed her anyway before 2 yrs old. I was so glad I had not.
She recently has had 3 of her own dogs come down with the same ataxia and it is now so prevalent in her lines she has had to stop breeding. She has lots of puppies out there that carry the same gene.
You wouldn't want to break someone's heart, would you? Or worse yet a child's?
There is a lot more to being a responsible and moral breeder than initially meets the eye. I would think long and hard about breeding a litter of any breed.
PS I keep a close eye on the conformation rings of several breeds and as far as I can tell you can put a championship on some d*mn ugly dogs.
The dog world is really quite small and a lot of gossip goes on. Their is also a lot of snobbery in the dog world, especially when the snob perceives the one snobbed at owning a lesser quality dog. People considered 'pet people' or 'pet owners' are also commonly looked down upon by some circles.
More breeders than I would care to admit are more interested in producing show quality dogs, ie beauty queens, than improving the breed's health or breeding to the standard. Some breeders actually will hide their dog's flaws with hair dying, removable braces, knee repair scars on the INSIDE of the leg, etc and breed these dogs and the faults are perpetuated generation after generation. I know because I have dealt with people like this. Some folks used to switch out OFA xrays, which is why you have to show up with the dog's papers if you are going to send in the xrays to OFA. Now they will switch out the dogs and go to a vet that is unfamiliar with the dog's appearance. They give not a thought to the best interests of the breed and you really have to wonder exactly what motivates them to do these things. I have always assumed greed, prestige and ego, but I could be wrong.
I do not breed, only train. Anytime you breed a b*tch you are placing her at risk from infections and possible death during delivery or later. I do not choose to place my beloved companions at risk; there are always a lot of dogs to choose from out there and even though they will be different you will love them all the same.
A responsible breeder always follows the lives of their pups and always has room to take a pup or grown dog back should they become homeless because the owners are divorcing etc instead of allowing one of their pups go to the shelter or be put down at the pound. I am not set up to care for extra dogs.
A responsible breeder is obligated to breed the healthiest puppies he possibly can and therefore is morally obligated to health test the dam and ask for health tests on the dog. If a pup has a defective heart, for example, a breeder will accept that puppy back and refund the purchase price or give a replacement puppy.
One of the biggest hearbreaks of my life was when the best and most intelligent dog I ever trained came down at 4 yrs old with genetic ataxia. I love my dogs and I loved this dog and invested 4 intense years of training into her and she was the 4th all time champion TDX in the breed. She was displastic, had severe skin issues and at last showed up with genetic ataxia and had to be retired at 4 1/2yrs. I had to put her down at 11 yrs when her throat froze due to the ataxia and she could no longer swallow. That is the youngest I have ever lost a dog and I hold all my dogs in my arms as they pass. The breeder denied responsibility for it and I hated her for it for a long time. I later found out that the breeder had been aware of these issues but had encouraged me to breed her anyway before 2 yrs old. I was so glad I had not.
She recently has had 3 of her own dogs come down with the same ataxia and it is now so prevalent in her lines she has had to stop breeding. She has lots of puppies out there that carry the same gene.
You wouldn't want to break someone's heart, would you? Or worse yet a child's?
There is a lot more to being a responsible and moral breeder than initially meets the eye. I would think long and hard about breeding a litter of any breed.
PS I keep a close eye on the conformation rings of several breeds and as far as I can tell you can put a championship on some d*mn ugly dogs.
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