[ SHOWGSD-L ] Panda GSD's and other genetic issues
- From: sheila lieberman <dgshwpromo@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: the list <showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 17 Apr 2007 08:33:35 -0700 (PDT)
It was posted that the first Panda colored dogs were a mutation and would not
appear again if they were not bred.
This is likely not the case. I would wager some small item that there are
and have been for some time, other panda colored GSD's. I would wager even
more that this and many other issues will be more and more evident as the years
go on.
All our GSD's come from the same very few dogs from Germany around the end of
the 1800's and early 1900's. All the problems we see now are problems that
were there from the start, but had been diluted enough to not show up in
numbers that would make the breeders of the day take notice. If one were to go
back behind even the dogs known to start our breed, we would likely see this
Panda coloration in some of the dogs used for herding in the hills and vales of
Europe, that were used to create the GSD and all the other breeds from the
region.
I did a lot of research before breeding my bitch. It was not enough. I got
one lupus dog in the litter. No one could have predicted this, yet it is a
genetic issue. Yes, Liddy has allergies and dry eye, but she does not have
lupus, nor, to the best of my knowledge do any of her relatives. The last
things I should have had to worry about or consider showing up was autoimmune
issues of this range and with this mortality. But here I am.
If every breeder were to announce publicly the problems they experienced with
their dogs we might just be able to cull out the problems, maybe!!! If AKC
allowed outcrossing to other breeds as the UKC does with no showing of dogs
that are less than say, 80% pure of one breed, and with the ability to show
dogs that are brought back to say 80% purity of a breed, many of the health
issues and this color issue would be much less a problem, cause the dogs would
be more outcrossed than they are.
But we do not disclose our problems. In fact I am a fool to tell the world I
have one sick dog. What I should have done is kept my mouth shut. I should
show and finish the bitch that is worth showing, and breed both bitches, and
never say a word about the dog and his problems. But alas, I am made of more
honesty that is considered appropriate and so I have disclosed my heartbreak to
all.
Will I show Sissy, yes, if I am rolling in money when she is mature. She is
so well structured. Will I breed either of the girls? Never. I have no way
of knowing if they are carriers of lupus, and given what their brother is
suffering through, I have no desire to RISK breeding such a dog again, or worse
knowing that my breeding contributed to a litter of lupus dogs 5 generations
from now.
I CAN'T DO IT. But I feel alone in my resolve to care more for the dogs than
whether or not they might produce champions.
I could breed Bertha to a very long reared dog and get real quality, she has
a front to die for. I could breed Sissy to a lot of different dogs and get a
lot of quality. But how many unhealthy dogs would either create.........I have
no way of knowing and I do know I have created one unhealthy dog. That is
enough for me.
It is one thing to not breed that one dog with health or pigment or whatever
issues, but one must consider that the entire litter is at risk of throwing the
very same problem, because it showed up once.
It is unlikely that Bertha and Sissy will produce lupus dogs themselves, but
the risk is there, and the risk to their progeny down the line is great. Lupus
is lethal, black and white dogs are not lethal. They are not disqualified
either. But who would show such a dog, it is not what we are supposed to want.
So we bury them under the table and tell no one.
Maybe we should be telling. I don't expect that every breeder who has ever
had monorchids or worse or has had bad hips in a significant number of dogs
will own up to it. I don't expect that the breeders whose lines I used, ALL OF
THEM will stop breeding in case they are the ones throwing the lupus lines.
No, it will all be hidden and kept quiet, so that the breeding and winning
can go on.
That is why I am done with breeding for AKC show. That is why I will run dog
shows and make sure that they are as fair as can be, and that everyone who
comes to shows I am running will have a good time, win or loose. I love dogs,
I love GSD's beyond words. But I won't create dogs that I cannot have some
certainty of health or appearance of.
And with the intense purity and the intense breeding to only a few dogs I can
only be sure that the risks are getting greater and greater with every
generation.
I wish I had had a panda dog instead of lupus. At least I would not be
living with the knowledge that my darling Bucko will follow Dexter far sooner
than I could possibly want.
This is my opinion and nothing more.
sheila
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