Hah! I see we were doing the same thing on Sunday morning! I did indeed watch that program. It was fascinating. Regarding that "1 in 4 purebred dogs having genetic problems"... what wasn't elaborated on is that some of those "genetic problems" are really not... problems that is. It could be as benign as an umbilical hernia. I have heard from three different people this past week with three different vets and three different breeds where the vet told them that umbilical hernias were "genetic" and EVERY RELATED dog should be immediately neutered and not bred. That is patently ridiculous! Ginger Cleary,Rome, GA ww.rihadin.com <http://www.rihadin.com> The essence of Government is power; and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse. ? James Madison Member GSDCA Member Sawnee Mtn Kennel Club GA Director Responsible Dog Owners of the Eastern States. -----Original Message----- From: showgsd-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:showgsd-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Christina Klahn Sent: Thursday, September 06, 2007 11:04 AM To: showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [ SHOWGSD-L ] Re: showgsd-l Digest V1 #21 Ginger, I find it interesting that you bring this up. There was a special on National Geographic on Sunday morning that was on their Explorer program that touched on what you mention. It had to do with dogs in general and that something like 90% of breeds have surfaced in the past 200 years. All were created as a response to what man needed. Besides the "designer dogs," they talked about 2 new breeds in particular in the world that have been created for working purposes and that looks have nothing to do with the creation. It's all about if they can do the job. They also mentioned that 1 in 4 purebred dogs have genetic problems as a direct result of closed gene pools and temperament was mentioned as one of the problems. Brings about my issue with the ridge in our breed of American vs. European and the "mine is better than yours" attitude. The gene pool is small enough without limiting our breeding programs to just American or just European. I would think it would be beneficial to both sides to mix and maybe, just maybe, create the ultimate GSD with the best of both worlds, looks and temperament. If you can catch the special on again, I highly recommend anyone involved in our sport watching it. I don't know if it had a title since it was on the Explorer program, but the website might have more information... Tina Illusion GSDs Showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote: Msg: #4 in digest From: "Ginger Cleary" Subject: Re: Temperament Date: Thu, 6 Sep 2007 10:25:11 -0400 Unfit perhaps not... but I have seen many a cowhocked herding dog, especially in Border Collies. I have a friend with a service dog that had to have elbow surgery (not a GSD) due to elbow dysplasia. Back before the advent of "breeds" and Standards, people bred based on performance. If the dog(s) did the work they were more often bred from. To some degree that still does happen. Even in the performance venues. Saw a show some time ago where people were breeding Jack Russels with Border Collies expressly for Flyball.. Ginger Cleary,Rome, GA ww.rihadin.com The essence of Government is power; and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse. ? James Madison Member GSDCA Member Sawnee Mtn Kennel Club GA Director Responsible Dog Owners of the Eastern States. --------------------------------- Need a vacation? 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