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Originally Posted by HighlandYorkies  Fair enough if you think that dogs shouldn't be bred from unless they are breed standard, but that doesn't guarantee good health either, and if that were true, would you think that disabled people shouldn't be born, and have nothing to offer either ?
I personally think that no matter what the Yorkie is like, and for however long it lives, all that should matter is that they are loved and enjoyed.
You don't always get all "good" pups in a litter - what do you do with those who don't conform ? They are all worth something in my eyes for just being themselves.
Often the best of them all in character are the ones which are not "breed standard" and repay the love they receive for them being special for whatever reason in bucketloads.
"Breed standard" dogs aren't always the best dogs - I am all for variety, as long as they receive only the very best in life from their owners. I'd quite happily take on a sad-looking doggie as well as a "good" puppy - it makes no odds to me. I have done both as well, in giving the three treasured Yorkies I have the very best home....no matter where they came from.
I am sure we all feel different things though, but I don't think most of us would see any dog in a terrible state, even if they are not show-quality.   DEBRA |
Just to set the record straight the reason I don't think that dogs who arent show-quality shouldn't be bred is because there are already too many unwanted dogs in the world. There are millions of dogs killed every year in shelters because they were'nt spayed/neutered, reproduced unwanted litters and they wound up there. And yes pure bred dogs do end up at shelters too. Trust me, I love all dogs, pure, mutts whatever. I have 6 dogs 5 of which are lord knows what breed and Harley is my only pure bred dog. But he is not a well bred yorkie and has a heart murmur and therefore he should not be bred. A well bred show-quality yorkie that is bred simply to benefit the breed should have distinct and intact long history of paperwork of their background going through generations to keep track of any health issues and they should be shown to recieve honors and titles (not just an AKC paper). Harley is definately not standard, body is too long, knee problems, snout is super long, ears too big and floppy, wrong color, big nose, curly fuzzy coat, expected trachea issues, he's a tea-pot yorkie 10lbs
, heart murmur.. but I love him 100% with all my heart. He's my bestfriend and I would do anything for him.
So please don't judge me and think I am against less than show-quality dogs. But I do not think dogs should be bred other than to benefit their specific breed. I work at a dog/cat shelter for our low cost spay/neuter program and we have purebred dogs come into our facility all the time. Heck, we had Tess (a yorkie..
http://www.baacs.org/Slideshow.asp?animal_id=629) for years and she was adopted and was in a home for 2yrs then returned for potty training issues. She was bred by a woman who thought she would breed to make more babies w/o thinking or being experienced and realized wow I can't afford this, it's hard to find good trusting homes and she just couldn't handle it. I'm sorry but it's for reasons just like this that I have this opinion. Luckily, she was adopted this past month by a wonderful family who has rescued yorkies before and are well aware of their needs.
The way noid described she wanted a pet not a breeding stud. Breeding a dog does change their personality and behavior. That's why I personally recommended to her not to breed him. Breeding is a huge responsibility and is a lot more than what people think it is. Trust me, I was in her shoes once, wanting to breed and keep my baby as a pet. But I asked well experienced breeders questions, listened and learned and realized that's it's not just putting two dogs together.
My intentions were not to attack her in anyway what so ever but to give her my opinion and views just like she asked. That was the purpose of this thread. Sharing information.