Page 9 - K9 News - Issue 14 - December 2020
P. 9
successful in their chosen breed, trying to work picture. By assessing the dogs of others you
out how they have line-bred and which dogs will be able to look at your own dogs with a less
have been responsible for their success. Even subjective eye and be able to recognise their
if another breeder may not necessarily produce faults and virtues.
the “look” that someone most admires, it can
be very helpful to understand that these dogs One of the biggest dangers for a breeder
have been successful in their own right and still is to become “kennel blind”, thinking that
research the breeding programme behind them. your own dogs are better than the reality, and
that no other breeders have dogs better than
In these times, economics are such that very your own. That is the road to nowhere and
few people can run a large breeding kennel with breeders will never progress if they have this
many breeding bitches on their property, and the kind of approach. It is imperative that breeders
vast majority of our show-breeders tend to keep acknowledge where their own dogs can be
just a few bitches in their home. Consequently improved and they need to study carefully how
it is vitally important that every litter bred has this can best be achieved.
much thought put into it. In the days past,
breeders could experiment when they had lots One of the best ways of getting an
of bitches to choose from, but now they do understanding of your breed overall is to study
not have that luxury. Therefore looking at how judging, and I mean really STUDYING, not just
the other breeders have got to the top can be sitting ringside chatting with friends. Clever
very helpful and save years of “trial and error” breeders sit down with the catalogue and make
breeding. their own notes on each dog that they see
competing, writing down its main virtues and
Line-breeding is the easiest method of fixing faults for future reference. It is surprising how
a type within a kennel, and litters produced from quickly you can build up a wealth of information
strongly line-bred litters will usually be far more from what you have seen first-hand. When you
consistent in both type and quality than those are considering a mating this can be invaluable
who have much more open pedigrees. When when you can refer to your observations and
another breeder makes an outcross breeding it work out the various positives and negatives
is always interesting to discover why they made that come from any particular stud dog.
that decision. Often they will have “gone out”
to improve a particular feature which they feel Another source of information that is priceless
their own dogs may lack. Perhaps the heads is of course the older breeders who have been
could be more typical, maybe there is a lack of involved with your breed for many years. You
angulation or balance or movement that needs may well have researched your own pedigrees
to be improved. and know all the significant dogs by name; you
may well have been able to find photographs
Many breeders of experience will admit that of many of them, but nothing can compare with
when they outcross they do not always see discussing a dog with someone who actually
the benefits in the first generation where the knew it from personal experience. They are
resulting puppies may be somewhat varied. in a position to explain the details of that dog,
Instead they keep the best of the outcross some of which may not be immediately apparent
litter and then mate that “back in” to their own in a photograph (that may well have been
bloodline when the best results are often seen. “enchanced”!).
When you are a breeder it is essential to Many of the old breeders made mistakes
have an open eye and be able to appreciate the in their early days, but you are in a position to
winning dogs of other breeders. Look at them benefit from those mistakes when you study how
objectively and try to understand why they are they developed their kennel. Take advantage of
winning (and maybe beating you). Analyse your that knowledge and utilise it intelligently.
competitors’ dogs and look at their individual
features as well as the all-important overall by Andrew Brace
9
K9 NEWS DIGITAL / DECEMBER 2020
