Good Breeding

Someone got me thinking today...what does a good breeder do??
The obvious is doing the appropriate health tests etc...but what about only breeding in order to better the breed in terms of health/temperament/working ability etc???
I know I have been part of a general discussion on this before but this person got me changing my mind today.

Is breeding a couple of litters a year (not necessarily from the same bitch) with the same partners wrong? When does breeding a number of litters a year cross a boundary?

I don't want to be controversial (for a change) and don't want a nasty debate please...I am genuinely interested in people's opinions on this...
So does doing the ehalth checks, rearing the pups in a home environment etc make you a good breeder or is there something else you have to do? Do you always have to be looking to better the breed or just to continue it as it is?

I think it is the responsibility of breeders to ensure that they are bettering their breed, therefore just breeding the same two dogs together does not do that. You limit genetic diversity if you don't use dogs from different lines, hence you start to get issues with the old 'popular sire' syndrome, especially if that sire turns out to be a carrier or affected for a genetic disorder!
For me the intention of any litter is to retain one to further your lines, if there is no intention of that then it doesn't matter how many health tests you do you aren't at the top of my list of good breeders all you become is a puppy producer.
However, because everyones interpretation of their breed standard, working ability, type etc is different then I can't condemn people on the basis that that isn't the same as my own but intention to further your own lines and retain a puppy should be quite high up the list, otherwise, what's the point in breeding?
Becky

Thanks Becky,I suspected you would say that!!! (in a nice way!)
What about the breeders who don't try to alter anything, just produce nice pups?

I certainly am no expert never having bred a dog before and not likely too,but I would of thought bettering the breed should be top of the list with all the other things.

Thanks Lynn, I used to think it was okay as long as health checks etc were done...now I'm not so sure. Bit confused actually...
Example....if a breeder is KC accredited, does all the right things, seems really nice...but then the Breed Society wouldn't register their litter for one reason or another....does that make them a bad breeder???????

For me it has to be with the intention of producing better than what you currently own and to further your lines,so therefore keeping a puppy back.
This is not always the case though with some Breeders,as they may want to keep a bitch and end up with a complete litter of dogs,it doesn't mean they are simply puppy producers.
I have no problem with using the same dog,on different bitches whether related or not,as long as he is reproducing his qualities and breed type and producing excellent quality pups that you are looking for.

My bitches grandfather has time & time again reproduced puppies that ooze quality & breed type,one I know off has gone to be made CH/International CH.I also think some off his offspring are better than he is,so yes he has improved our breed.

But as Becky has said Breed Standards are open to Interpretation and alot can and does go wrong from mouths going,to fly away ears etc....so rightly or wrongly some Breeders will move these pups on to a pet home,if they had been purposely bred for showing etc....

We took a chance with Meg,her Dam had an undershot mouth,her grandmother had a level bite,but our bitch has a perfect bite,complete scizzor bite,with angulated canines,so it is not always the case that they will inherit faults,but we all aim to breed the "perfect" dog as close to the Breed Standard as we can get but every dog will and does carry a fault,it is up to us to recognise and try and eliminate faults.

Now I'm Rambling So I'll shut up

No Sal thats really interesting and you're not rambling at all!

So for you good breeding is bettering the line in some way, not just the breeding 'conditions' if you like?

What about...say always using the same sire on the same bitches to produce pups? Not varying at all? Sooo always sire a with dog a for 4/5 litters????

If the breed society won't register then there's something underlying IMO that isn't right. KC Accredited actually means very little in terms of being a good breeder.

To be KC Accredited you need to do certain health checks, for example Hip Scoring, but it doesn't state that the SCORE of that test should be below an average, so you can have a dog with very bad hips being bred from because the KC don't state which individual breed should have what score !!! so what;s the point of the scheme ??

Health checks can be done on any dog, whether it be a crossbreed or purebred, so that alone does not make a good breeder.

Good breeders breed from only the best there is (in the opinion of people who know = Judges), with the correct health checks, plus good temperament, aftercare and only when new blood is needed.

JMO

Thanks Malady, really interesting stuff.
So a good breeder isn't one who does it a lot necessarily and needs more in place than a few dogs, correct health test certificates and socialisation of pups...
Do some breed societys have stricter rules in place than others ?

I dont know what you mean by breed societies not registering a dog entirely. Breed societies dont register puppies, only the KC does that. Breed societies are there to offer membership for various other reasons.