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A KC press release dropped through my door the other morning along with a defensive letter from the KC regarding all the recent bad publicity surrounding pedigree dogs.
I was encouraged by the odd ray of light appearing, such as this statement near the beginning of their letter.
[SIZE=14pt]“.....we need to accept that this is not a problem for a few breeds only – the challenge is going to continue and grow and ALL breeds (their capitals) will eventually be affected unless we all take avoiding action now......”[/SIZE]
Well done KC I thought, you've noticed that there is a time bomb ticking. Why then is the question and answer section that accompanies the letter so incredibly backward looking and ill written?
Here is a sample:-
Q. Why doesn’t the Kennel Club ban inbreeding?
A. There is a difference between ‘in’ breeding and ‘line’ breeding. Inbreeding was practiced in Victorian times to produce a particular breed, however, it is now uncommon.
Line breeding is very different and is where animals are bred for particular (healthy) characteristics. If a dog is line bred it may appear more than once in a pedigree and so names within generations will be repeated. That does not mean that the dogs are likely to be unhealthy. That is far from the case.
Their own genetics consultant, Jeff Sampson states frequently in publicly available documents that he does NOT recognise a difference between inbreeding and line breeding. So who wrote the Q and As for them.
Their statements are woolly, ill written and poorly informed..
Why can't they just wake up, smell the coffee and get a few sensible rules in place. Their excuse that breeders will leave the KC in droves and set up their own societies is patently ridiculous and shows that they put the survival of the KC above the health of pedigree dogs! How very sad.
Here is what I would like to see them do before it is too late
~Only allow the registration of litters with an inbreeding co-efficient of 3% or lower. (Other KC s are doing this, why not ours?)
~ Set up their database so that breeders can go and look at the co-efficients to help them plan matings.
~Ban sibling matings, parent x offspring matings and grandparent x grandchild matings.
~Insist that all breeding stock should be micro chipped and tested for any disease, for which there is a test available, that is present in the breed. Institute a passport system & web site showing the test results for all breeders to see.
~Roll out the existing education programme for breeders of pedigree dogs. Make genetics seminars readily available to all breeders.
~Tackle the problem of Popular Sire Syndrome by setting a limit on the number of bitches they can cover.
~Set a minimum age for the use of breeding animals at stud.
~Insist that breeders obtain a certificate of health from a vet within a month before a mating
~Implement a strategy to ensure that registrations are accurate, by DNA if necessary. At the moment there are NO checks that the sire and dam named on litter registration forms are correct.
I do not think that breeders with closely bred dogs currently in the ring or as breeding stock should be penalised under a new system or in the ring in any way. The KC needs the full support of its customers.
Most of the above is already in train in other KCs around Europe
_________________________________________________________________________
Our KC can set its own rules, their leaders go to the same seminars as those from other countries, They are well aware that there are major problems stacking up in pedigree dogs, so why are they stuck in the Victorian age. If they don't do something similar to the above then what is the point of their statement.
[SIZE=14pt][/SIZE]
“..... this is not a problem for a few breeds only – the challenge is going to continue and grow and ALL breeds (their capitals) will eventually be affected unless we all take avoiding action now......”
Are others as concerned as I am? What do other breeders want to see done by the KC to keep our pedigree dogs healthy?
It is time for the KC to act, actually that time has passed for some breeds so why are they sitting on their hands instead of implementing a world class programme for the succesful maintenance of pedigree dog breeds in the 21st century.
They want to take "avoiding action" what should that be?
Cathie
I was encouraged by the odd ray of light appearing, such as this statement near the beginning of their letter.
[SIZE=14pt]“.....we need to accept that this is not a problem for a few breeds only – the challenge is going to continue and grow and ALL breeds (their capitals) will eventually be affected unless we all take avoiding action now......”[/SIZE]
Well done KC I thought, you've noticed that there is a time bomb ticking. Why then is the question and answer section that accompanies the letter so incredibly backward looking and ill written?
Here is a sample:-
Q. Why doesn’t the Kennel Club ban inbreeding?
A. There is a difference between ‘in’ breeding and ‘line’ breeding. Inbreeding was practiced in Victorian times to produce a particular breed, however, it is now uncommon.
Line breeding is very different and is where animals are bred for particular (healthy) characteristics. If a dog is line bred it may appear more than once in a pedigree and so names within generations will be repeated. That does not mean that the dogs are likely to be unhealthy. That is far from the case.
Their own genetics consultant, Jeff Sampson states frequently in publicly available documents that he does NOT recognise a difference between inbreeding and line breeding. So who wrote the Q and As for them.
Their statements are woolly, ill written and poorly informed..
Why can't they just wake up, smell the coffee and get a few sensible rules in place. Their excuse that breeders will leave the KC in droves and set up their own societies is patently ridiculous and shows that they put the survival of the KC above the health of pedigree dogs! How very sad.
Here is what I would like to see them do before it is too late
~Only allow the registration of litters with an inbreeding co-efficient of 3% or lower. (Other KC s are doing this, why not ours?)
~ Set up their database so that breeders can go and look at the co-efficients to help them plan matings.
~Ban sibling matings, parent x offspring matings and grandparent x grandchild matings.
~Insist that all breeding stock should be micro chipped and tested for any disease, for which there is a test available, that is present in the breed. Institute a passport system & web site showing the test results for all breeders to see.
~Roll out the existing education programme for breeders of pedigree dogs. Make genetics seminars readily available to all breeders.
~Tackle the problem of Popular Sire Syndrome by setting a limit on the number of bitches they can cover.
~Set a minimum age for the use of breeding animals at stud.
~Insist that breeders obtain a certificate of health from a vet within a month before a mating
~Implement a strategy to ensure that registrations are accurate, by DNA if necessary. At the moment there are NO checks that the sire and dam named on litter registration forms are correct.
I do not think that breeders with closely bred dogs currently in the ring or as breeding stock should be penalised under a new system or in the ring in any way. The KC needs the full support of its customers.
Most of the above is already in train in other KCs around Europe
_________________________________________________________________________
Our KC can set its own rules, their leaders go to the same seminars as those from other countries, They are well aware that there are major problems stacking up in pedigree dogs, so why are they stuck in the Victorian age. If they don't do something similar to the above then what is the point of their statement.
[SIZE=14pt][/SIZE]
“..... this is not a problem for a few breeds only – the challenge is going to continue and grow and ALL breeds (their capitals) will eventually be affected unless we all take avoiding action now......”
Are others as concerned as I am? What do other breeders want to see done by the KC to keep our pedigree dogs healthy?
It is time for the KC to act, actually that time has passed for some breeds so why are they sitting on their hands instead of implementing a world class programme for the succesful maintenance of pedigree dog breeds in the 21st century.
They want to take "avoiding action" what should that be?
Cathie
