~ Articles ~

Dogs Are People Too

Being involved in a dog breed means balancing a love for genetics with the realization that every dog is a person too. It isn’t just about making pups, but about bringing living beings into existence, with a plan for every single one of them.

One of the saddest things about mill breeding is the use of and waste of the breeding animals. They are only used for what they produce, and then often put down or dumped in shelters. They are often used for their entire breeding lives because genetics don’t matter, only production.

The nice thing about really understanding genetics is that it doesn’t serve you or your dogs to make the same pairings over and over, or to use dogs for their entire reproductive lives, like mills do. You want to improve the lines, keep pups, experience what people experience when they take home a pup from you, move your line forward, etc. After a female has a litter or two, if you don’t plan to keep her, she can go to a home fixed and fully trained, while she is young. She can have a full life. Sometimes when a male or a female is unusually good, they can stay longer, to set type, or you can keep them for life. Caspian lived here his whole life. But in general, doing good genetics does’t lead us to use up animals, but to have a balanced approach where every animal is important, plays a part, and then has a great life.

Your love and personal involvement changes the genetics of your dogs. That is a scientific fact. Genetics are way more than mechanics. That is one way that mill breeding degrades domestic animals — by generational neglect of individual animals.

Our organization won’t facilitate a pet mill. We will begin to ask questions if any pairings get done over and over, or any one breeder starts looking like a mill. Value your beautiful sires and dams. Be thinking of their full lives as part of the plans for your program.