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This is so true, especially at the dog park. Having a mixed-breed rescue is a badge of honor there.Quote:
Originally Posted by welsh
A lady was telling me about her purebred lab. He looked so pathetic conformation-wise as far as labs go. I asked what she paid for him and she said "Oh, he was free." I wanted to say, "That's good , because he ain't no purebred." but I kept my mouth shut. I have to do a lot of that at the dog park. :)
Agreed. I really don't understand it (either side of the debate, snobbery, elitism, holier than though and on and on)Quote:
Originally Posted by welsh
:)
I mean really. Ask any 8 year old child who is peeling with laughter, love and affection as their dog licks their face if they care about the dogs bloodlines
:)
I never see it as snobbery . Get the dog you need. However, if my goal is to participate in competition and maybe win a Championship some day, bloodlines are very important.
Depends what you want in a dog. You likely won't get a Heinz 57 to sweep a 30 acre field and pin down a pheasant for you or work a cover and pin a woodcock and hold it until you close in. If what you want is a family pet then it doesn't matter if the dog couldn't sniff a bowl full of lasagna if you put it on the kitchen floor.
At eight my nephew came out with the line "those aren't dogs they are really cats", in reference to the little lap dogs that yip and yap at everyone and everything that walks by.Quote:
Originally Posted by JBen
I am an owner of my second pure breed, as proud of him as I was my first, I to find there is the snobbery as mentioned; but it is a two way street and there are those of both sides that share one thing and that is the snobery.
Get a dog for what you want, with pure breeds you have the breed's history to go by, with the mixed breeds you can get the best of a few breeds. All may have problems, some pssed down the generations, some passed down from human owners.
No dog is born stupid.
Guess you haven't met my better half's dachshundQuote:
Originally Posted by Doug
Lol Cass.
Just out of curiosity Sharon, and I really hope/trust this isn't misinterpreted ( written words don't contain tone or inflection).
I can understand why "bloodlines" are important then/for you.
But maybe the question to be asked is.
Why are bloodlines important to the CKC, and various trials, shows?
God forbid a mixbreed win a trial
Well, a mixed breed is very unlikely to win a trial. If you watch trial dogs at work, you will see why. This is not to say that a mixed breed dog can't make an excellent working dog, as a guide dog, detection dog, cadaver dog, or whatever -- they are just as trainable as any other dog and are capable of learning complex, challenging tasks. But they have not been bred for their hunting instincts and as a result they will not outperform field-bred hunting breeds at hunting.Quote:
Originally Posted by JBen
Not all breeds are equal at all tasks. People have been aware of this for centuries, regardless of those who will tell you that "breed" is a new concept that arose only in the Victorian era. The first English-language book on hunting, The Master of Game (~1413), which is itself a translation of a 14th century French book, the Livre de Chasse, divides dogs into breeds or types, each suited best to particular tasks. For two of those, "braches" (scent hounds) and greyhounds (sight hounds), the text suggests that it is important to have good bloodlines. And lest we think that those ignorant medieval folk, who believed in witches and so forth, were just making it all up, modern science has confirmed a variety of breed differences.
We can see the importance of breeding to hunting performance by comparing field bred springers to bench springers, or by comparing the performance of field bred dogs (say, English setters) against dogs of similar breeds that have not been bred for trials in decades (say, Irish setters). In many cases, trials are not limited to a particular breed, and so we can easily make that comparison. Breeding matters.
The only way a cross-breed is ever likely to win a trial is if the dog is bred from similar hunting stock -- like breeding an English setter to a pointer, both from field lines.
Do you think say (grabbing names out of a hat) that a GSP and PudlePointer/Brittany would be lacking in instincts? Or maybe a Vizla/Weimanar?
Anywho ( and I did note, you noted that) :) I personally don't understand "it"....at all.
I'd be just as happy with a NFLDer interbred with a Chessapeake or Lab, as I would a NFDLR or as I was with my Greyhound, Poodle, or any of the "mutts" such as the Basenji (mix) Ive had.
Pretty sure though if my life can afford another it will be a Toller. :)
Coulda woulda shoulda.