A Breeders Frustration

This entry was posted on 3/10/2006 2:58 PM and is filed under Ethics and Integrity Matters.

My friend Andrea wrote me about the blog idea saying she thinks it will be therapeutic for me. Perhaps she is right. And Andrea is very knowledgeable about something that is eating at me. In fact, she lives with the subject dog. Let me tell you a story....

I obtained a dog from a breeder to enhance my breeding program. I liked the pedigree and I love the people who were doing this breeding. I was thrilled with the FABULOUS puppy I got from them. THRILLED! I was so in love with her. She has such a great personality, she's funny and she is BEAUTIFUL! But guess what folks... she seizes. At eight months of age, she had BIG seizures that went on for two days and we had a heck of a time getting them stopped. Then more big news. A littermate brother seized too about the same time and he is deceased because of it.

We never slandered the stud dog owner, owners of the dogs that produced that male, nor the breeder of her bitch. They did not invent this. We did however believe that it was of the utmost importance to share what we knew with these folks so they were able to learn from this knowledge and adjust their breeding plans accordingly because responsible breeders want to know. The breeder of the dam's response was appropriate reflecting concern and interest in the details. However, the response of the stud dog owner and the owner of his sire response was revolting. They said that I was conspiring against them! (I think that is their excuse for not taking responsibility and for continuing to use these dogs without regard!) Now let me tell you that I do not know anyone that would do this to a dog for the detriment of another and I surely do not waste my time conspiring against anyone. It does not promote excellence and that is my mission which I am firmly committed to. I never slandered them. In fact it was a well kept secret! If I were conspiring would I not be enjoying publicly strangling them?

So here is a question for you readers..... what do you do when you find that someone will not be honorable? Do you force them to be accountable? If so, how? I am not going to slander anyone but I DO know the facts and the facts I am clear on.

Next question- when people call and ask how to find a good breeder in their area... what do I tell them when the marketing by these folks is a big bunch of talk and terribly compelling!? I am not willing to single people out as that just sounds like sour grapes and isn't what I want to do. It is such a dilemma! 

Had these people contacted either the breeder of my pup or myself and showed concern I would have trusted they cared enough not to take unreasonable risks with these dogs, but how can you trust someone that has this response? And BTW, this behavior is no different than the history of their actions towards others that proceeds this event.

I will be very interested in seeing what others think.

Oh.. and my friend Andrea... I gave her the dog and they love her. She is fully aware that she will probably not live a full life and her heart will be broken when that day comes, but in the meantime she has a WONDERFUL home on a farm with a family that choses to enjoy her every day until forever. You can see her on the website http://www.gotgoaties.com . Thank you Andrea. Your care for my baby DeeDee is something I will never be able to repay and I am forever grateful.

 

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Comments

• 3/15/2006 6:54 PM Andrea wrote:
  Pat, you know I'm working on Dee's place on my site - I will be putting links to research on canine epilepsy.
  
  As to the other breeders - Dee's breeder has encouraged me greatly to submit test data to one of the few studies that are going on now - I am thankful for her candor and respect her greatly. I have not heard from anyone else, and after I read about their reaction I'm not sure I'd enjoy that discourse. I think it's HIGHLY important for the breed for EVERYONE to submit their dog's swab (you just rub cheek cells) - healthy or not. If the breeders can't talk about this problem, they are not contributing to the health of the breed - that goes for goats AND dogs. Dee is the perfect example of a gorgeous dog that isn't healthy - conformation isn't everything.
  
  Dee has been a blessing to me, and is probably the smartest dog I've ever owned (or owned me in this case) - which says a lot after having some very well trained Airedale Terriers in my 'past' dog life.
  
  I'm glad we had the finances, time and patience to deal with her episodes - but she's repayed us in love and doggie smooches - and herding up the goats for me!
  
  For those of you with Giants - http://cgap.ucdavis.edu/Epilepsy.htm
  please request your kit! They have determined the mode of inheritance for two of the research breeds - and they are working with the AKC to determine markers and allow breeders to make smart decisions to eliminate/reduce epi in their breed. Let's make the Giants next!
  
  PS - anyone who is interested in knowing what a epi dog is like, I would be happy to tell you both the ups and downs - you can email me at thatcomputerchick@direcway.com
  
  Thanks Pat for being brave for the breed.
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• 10/24/2006 6:24 PM Cathy Kozak wrote:
  It is a shame that breeders feel that they have to hide genetic issues that arise with their dogs. My friend adopted a genetic mistake (understatement) from a standard poodle breeder. The breeder was up-front and honest and the dog has turned out to be the most wonderful dog my friend could imagine. He may or may not live the average life span of the breed, but he will be spoiled and loved until his day comes. If he was "normal" she might not have gotten him. There are plenty of people out there with good hearts that will buy or adopt an imperfect dog. A breeder that admits to finding some genetic imperfections in their dogs is probably being more honest than one that says they have never had a problem.
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• 8/22/2007 1:44 PM Julie Catherine wrote:
  I bought a genetic mistake (Giant)once too. Poor puppy had issues within weeks of getting him home. When I called the breeder for help and ideas, the breeder told me he was sick of helping me, it was not his job to answer every little nervous question I had, and told me not to call again!
  Then Sailor (my 110 lb baby) started having siezures around 3 years old. After spending tons of money and time trying to figure out the problem my vet diagnosed him with Hemolytic Anemia (sp). Sailor died before his 5th birthday. After the last attack of Anemia, his body just could not recover.
  I called the breeder after Sailor died to let him know how he died. I wansn't complaining, I just wanted him to know. He tried to make me promise not to tell anyone. He kept saying it would ruin his career as a GS breeder!
  I hung up furious! I promised I would tell anyone who asked about the breed to avoid that man!
  I've since adopted a fabulous giant though HG-Z! He is a happy, healthy, loving boy...he makes me smile every day!
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  1. 9/2/2007 12:12 PM Magna Giant Schnauzers wrote:
     

     Hello: I am so very sorry to hear about your dog! Unfortunately, there are some things we cannot control such as many physical defects at birth or those where the onset is later in life. We all wish we had a crystal ball and a magic wand to prevent and repair these things but we just do not for most things. This disease is not known to be genetic from what I know of the breed though, like many or all breeds it can occur but antibotics and other things can cause this so I think what I am getting from you is that you were terribly hurt that your breeder was not compassionate to you and I am sorry for that. I know, as you probably read that I bought a dog that had bad seizures and it is aweful! It is terrible to watch someone you love suffer and this is something I know well. I imagine that your heart felt like it wanted to perge from your chest and like your head would explode. It seems sometimes that our pain is beyond what we can endure.
     
     As a breeder I will say that we have an obligation to only those things we can control and of course that means when we know of them. We can control how we respond to problems;  when something is deemed genetic after the fact, we can test for a few things genetic and we can keep our ears open to learn all we can about our breed and the bloodlines that produce defects and do our best to reduce risk. That is all we can do. There is no DNA crystal ball to prevent nor medical magic wand to fix things when they occur.
     
     Unfortunately we have a problem in giantdom that is toxic to our breed and causes greater problems each day. It is far too easy to defame someone with the internet.
     
     On the otherhand, those that we do know about we have an obligation to act responsibly by testing and where appropriate, removing dogs from a gene pool. When nothing can be done and no ill intent or irresponsiblity caused the flaw, the breeder too is a victim and no one is to blame. The important thing here is in how people respond to such things as you illustrate so well in your post. Was the breeder responsible once s/he found out? Were they compassionate? Did they make the right decisions for dogs in the future?
     
     Your post bring ups a topic I have long wanted to comment on. There are a few problems in Giantdom and some are not found in all breeds. I am speaking of a people problem here, not those defects of our canine family members. Within the Giant circles there are the scandalizers. They are big trouble makers that like to hear themselves blab negatively about all those around them. They sit in wait of anyone who might have the slightest ding to their breeding program and then slander and spin. That in itself is hurtful and ugly. It has a lot of negative impact. Let me list them. 
     
     First, this ugliness runs off the good people from the breed. Owners duck down, rescue workers and good breeders or those who would be quit. 
     
     The most important and dangerous of all the problems caused by this is the fact that 

     
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