Eighty percent of the breeds we know of today didn’t exist 100 years ago, and breeding has only
continued and gotten more intense since then (The Science of Dogs). The Finnish Lapphund, The
Entlebucher Mountain Dog, and The Cesky Terrier are all new breeds that were certified by the
American Kennel Club in 2012, and they are all products of dog breeding. (“The Westminster
Kennel Club | Latest News”)
With over 400 breeds, the dog is the most varied species of all animals in size and
behavior. This is because dogs have significantly more tandem repeats than most animals. A
tandem repeat is a string of genes that all code for one trait, but the gene is repeated over and
over in one strand of DNA, which has 2.4 billion possible base pair combinations. If one base
pair in that whole string gets changed, the dog can look totally different. This combined with the
fact that dogs can have litters of eight or more puppies two times a year means that dogs can
evolve very quickly. All dogs are 99.8% genetically identical, but that .02% can still produce a
huge variety. (The Science of Dogs)
I especially love big dogs, and I can’t disagree that Dobermans look gorgeous, German
Shepherds look beautiful, and Saint Bernards look so cuddly and friendly. Even a Whippet looks
really nice. I can’t deny that many purebreds are really stunning, but that isn’t the point. I am
trying to draw attention to the issues that come along with breeding. German Shepherds
commonly have hip dysplasia, and arthritis, and their stomachs can twist over itself trapping food
inside until it bursts. Dobermans have been bred in a way that their heart is stretched out of its
normal shape, and now most Doberman’s hearts can’t pump blood effectively anymore
(“Selective Breeding Problems”). Most purebred dogs have defective anatomy because of being
over bred, and breeding also makes a pathway for abuse, and problems within our own society.
Purebreds are beautiful, just like mixed breeds, but we need to take a step back and look at the
problems that go hand in hand with the dog culture we have created.
When people decide that a certain trait is attractive such as low haunches, short legs, long
nose, etc. they breed two dogs together that both share that trait. Some of the resulting puppies
will likely have inherited the trait, and to expand the population of dogs with this trait, you have
to breed again among this tiny family of dogs with the trait, or find another dog of the same
breed with the same trait (“Dog Breeding”). Inbreeding is a big problem because when you
single out a group of dogs that have the desired appearance or personality that you want, it can
be hard to find more dogs to breed with that will let you keep the characteristic. You’ll have to
have lots of dogs to raise the chances of finding another with this desired trait, or you could
continue breeding the same dogs over and over to duplicate the new characteristic. Once
breeders find “perfection” they want to keep it, and because gene pools are so small, breeding
can become dangerous very quickly. When a dog is bred with a close relative, the puppies have a
much higher chance of having physical or mental disabilities. Many unintentional abuse cases
come out of dogs who are being inbred with each other. They share bad traits as well as the good
traits that they’re being bred for, and when a deformation arises, it stays in the bloodline because
all the dogs are only being bred with other dogs who also have this mutation (“Selective
Breeding Problems”).
Another unintended consequence of breeding for physical (or even behavioral) traits or
skills is that when we decide to do something like push the haunches of a German Shepherd
down lower, we change their back, hip, and leg anatomy which can lead to hip dysplasia. This
type of problem happens in many purebreds. We find a trait we like, and we breed for it without
considering the issues that it will bring. Most breeds have their own problem that occurs
frequently because of unintentional consequences that come with traits we breed for. Many