Monday, November 3, 2014

My past posts have demonstrated the importance of genetic variation; the more mixed the parents are, the more the puppies will be. If a dog has parents that are mixed and have genetic tendencies selected out, the puppies will have even less of a genetic tendency for diseases. The type of dog that would then be healthiest, is a mutt. Mutt is considered to be an insult, but a mutt will be the best dog you could get. Mutts do still have some known health issues such as hip dysplasia, allergies, ear infections, and cancer. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hip_dysplasia_(canine)

My first dog, Olive, was a mutt, as a result of two neighborhood mutts. The only breed we know Olive had in here for sure was black lab. The mystery dog that resulted from two mutts was a healthy, smart, friendly, and obedient mutt. She needed very minimal training. Olive would not run off, bite, or go to the bathroom in the house without any prompting. Her temperament, health, and energy were great her entire life. Olive was killed in an accident, so she may have eventually developed a disorder, but from what we know she had no genetic disorders. I believe that a mutt is the best dog that you could own, but I am very biased.

http://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/mutt

Sunday, October 26, 2014

The very first hybrid dog that was designed for health and behavioral benefits was the cockapoo. The cockapoo is a mix between the Cocker Spaniel and, again, the poodle. The cockapoo has been around since the 1960s, which actually makes it less genetically varied than the newer mixed breeds. http://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/cockapoo#health There are different sizes of cockapoo, teacup, toy, miniature, and standard. The sizes come from the different type of poodle that is used in the mix, or from two cockapoos of a certain size.

The health issues of a Cocker Spaniel that pass to a cockapoo are cataracts, patellar luxation, hip dysplasia and allergies. A serious health issue that is kept from being passed to cockapoos is primary seborrhea, which affects the skin. Seborrhea is the overproduction of skin cells and a malfunction of the sebaceous glands, which cause the skin to get oily, flaky, and causes a bad smell. http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/dog-seborrhea This condition is not a serious health risk, but does not make the dog very enjoyable to cuddle with or pet. The breeding with the poodle gets rid of the tendency for this skin issue. The cockapoo shows that the health benefits of genetic variation not only increase a dog’s lifespan, it makes the dog a more enjoyable pet to have.

For information about finding a cockapoo breeder visit the following link: http://www.americancockapooclub.com/train_info.asp

File:Cockapoo1.jpg

Sunday, October 19, 2014

Goldendoodles are not the only popular mixed breed with health benefits. It is hard to understand, with all of the diseases that can increase when a dog is purebred, why breeders still feel that a purebred dog is better. The trend of mixed breeding of dogs is slowly increasing and is very poodle oriented. The mix between Labrador retrievers and poodles is very common. This mix is referred to as a labradoodle. Labradoodles receive genetic susceptibility to certain disease from both labradors and poodles.http://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/labradoodle Purebred labrador retrievers and poodles are known to have a genetic tendency for over 10 ailments each. Labradoodles are know to only have a genetic tendency for around 8 ailments or diseases.

(Taken by Searchtempo, no changes)

This a significant decrease, especially when the decrease includes some serious illnesses. Tricuspid valve dysplasia(TVD) is a serious illness that is increasing in prevalence in purebred labrador retrievers. TVD is a congenital heart disease that ranges in severity. http://www.akcchf.org/canine-health/your-dogs-health/disease-information/tricuspid-valve-dysplasia.html The dogs are born with this disease, and depending on the severity the dog may not be able to live a full life. This is only one of the group of ailments lost due to mixing breeds. The loss of the genetic tendency for TVD should be reason enough to breed labradors with other dogs. I feel that dog owners and breeders need to become more aware of the issues with purebreds, and begin to keep up the mixing of breeds, rather than inbreeding to keep the lines pure.

Here is a link that contains a list of the known diseases common in labrador retrievers: http://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/labrador-retriever#health
Picture from: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Labradoodle-male-australian-9-months.jpg

Friday, October 10, 2014

It is a common known fact that keeping dogs purebred entails a lot of inbreeding. We all know that inbreeding leads to health issues in humans, and it is the same for all animals. The lack of genetic variation caused by inbreeding makes the genes unable to select for good traits, and phase out the bad. This lack of variation leads to certain breeds being known for certain ailments, and why some purebreds have temperament issues. The ailments brought on by inbreeding have started the new trend of making mixed breeds to select for the good traits of each breed.

One of the most popular mixed dog breeds is the goldendoodle, a mix between the golden retriever and the poodle.This breed is advertised as hypoallergenic, the mix is supposed to prevent shedding and produce less dander. The genetics of a goldendoodle allow for the selection of better genes. However, this does not mean that goldendoodles are without medical issues. Both breeds used to make a goldendoodle pass ailments to the offspring, but the list of illnesses is much smaller than that of a purebred poodle or golden retriever. Only one health issue from poodles is passed down to goldendoodles is patellar luxation. The ailment of golden retrievers that carry to goldendoodles are elbow dysplasia, allergies, and gastric dilation-volvulus. There are some ailments that poodles and golden retrievers share and pass to goldendoodles. These ailments include hip dysplasia, Von Willebrand’s disease, and hypothyroidism. This list of ailments does not make for a completely healthy dog, but there are serious illnesses carried by golden retrievers and poodles that do not get passed down to goldendoodles. The most serious of these illnesses in Von Willebrand’s disease, a disease that interferes with the blood’s ability to clot. The smaller list of health issues that result from the mixed breed shows the benefits of genetic variation.

The pictures above are of my goldendoodle, Snicker doodle. She is four years old now. Snicker is a 60 lb dog that behaves as a lap dog. The only problem we have with her is her being extremely friendly. She is one of the nicest dogs you could encounter. Her temperament and health are both great. The idea that they are hypoallergenic is not true for Snicker. She does still produce dander, and when she does not have her coat trimmed she sheds a lot. This isn’t to say that there won’t be a goldendoodle without shedding, but I am not experiencing that with Snicker.

The examples of illnesses in these breeds does not mean that you are going to get a sick dog if you purchase a purebred golden retriever or poodle. The examples simply show evidence that it is healthier for the dogs to have genetic variation, rather than making sure a dog is purebred.