Breeders are always looking for the perfect combination of qualities that make a dog win a contest. It can take years of trial and error to come up with the right combination, and once they have it, breeders want to produce as many of these animals as possible. Often, breeders resort to inbreeding in an attempt to speed up the process or facilitate its continuation. For example, a female dog with a desired trait is bred and produces a litter of five puppies. Only one of the cubs, a male, also has the desired trait. Once the male reaches maturity, the breeder can mate the mother with her male offspring to produce a litter, all of which have the trait. Although this technique can be effective in achieving what it is designed to do, it can cause serious problems for puppies and their young. For this reason, inbreeding is illegal in many jurisdictions.
Many of the problems that we see in some breeds have arisen due to years of inbreeding. Problems caused by inbreeding include arthritis, heart problems, hip dysplasia, and even cancer. Certain breeds of dogs have been inbred to such an extent that they are in danger of extinction. The pit bull terrier has been inbred to such an extent that its future existence is uncertain.
Just as inbreeding can lead to the continuation of a desired trait, it also perpetuates the undesirable traits. Of the 30,000 genes that make up dogs, about 400 of those genes contain genetic problems. As inbreeding continues down the line, these negative traits are much more likely to appear. Problems such as blindness, mental problems, organ failure and deafness are common in blood lineages.
As can be demonstrated by the hip dysplasia condition, the only way to eliminate the condition is by carefully monitoring the lineages of the animals raised. Only lines that are not related and that have been demonstrated by several generations without dysplasia
If you are considering acquiring a pureblood dog, it is vital that you research the dog’s lineage as far back as possible. Dogs with the greatest diversity in their gene pool will be the healthiest and least likely to suffer from genetic problems. If a breeder is hesitant to reveal the story, they should be suspicious and should probably find another breeder. If you’re not sure what to look for, there are many sources online that can advise you on common problems that different breeds suffer from. With this information, you will be better able to recognize conditions in the mother and father, if you can see them. It will also allow you to specifically question breeders and even add provisions to purchase contracts.
