Breed Standards and distortion

[Pinot's Mom]

I, too, think the time has passed for docking. It's a painful disfigurement for no reason at all.

GSD's - why DO they encourage that sloped shape? It most certainly has contributed to the hip problems with the breed.

[Karen]

I, too, think the time has passed for docking. It's a painful disfigurement for no reason at all.

GSD's - why DO they encourage that sloped shape? It most certainly has contributed to the hip problems with the breed.

I do not know. I asked, and was told their show "stack" - how they pose the dog, is meant to show the proper right angle the back leg makes in that position, but I didn't get any indication of why they'd want a lower back end when the dog is standing normally ...

[Alysser]

Have you never seen the documentary on the royal kennel club? They breed cavaliers to have such small heads that the skulls are to small for their brains, causing the skull to push on the brain and the dogs have all sorts of issues including muscle spasms, seizures, etc. Owners often go for the surgery that removes the part of their skull pushing on the brain but it is very risky. Another example is the Rhodesian ridgebacks, they must have a ridge to compete in shows and meet the breed standard. The ridge is considered a health issue, I forgot exactly what it was. But anyway, breeders started taking these perfectly good pups to be put down and they were actually the most healthy out of the litter. The German shepherds that show in England have a terrible gait because of the sloped back.

It really is disgusting how they say they're bettering the breed when in reality they seem to be worsening it. It's disgusting to me how you can sell a pup you know is going to become a beloved member of the family and they have thes issues and die at a young age. They know of it because it has happened before yet they don't do anything but keep breeding more and more of the unhealthy pups.

[Varga]

It really is quite... unsettling... to see where dog breeding is heading. Especially today with modern science. Already with sperm banks there is line breeding going on which would never had been possible in the past. At least before, when a popular sire was gone, he stopped producing more pups. Now it's becoming common practice to breed a bitch to her great-great-great grandfather.

Now just imagine when cloning becomes more reliable and affordable. With the current way kennel clubs are operating, it's basically just going to be a race to start cloning champions. If they don't really care about genetic diversity in the breeds now, why would they care in the future.

...

I did see that documentary about the royal kennel club, yeah. Seems they are even worse off than AKC and FCI. The rules of import are so strict that hardly any new bloodlines are being introduced and it's having obvious effects on several breeds.