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Originally Posted by BamaFan121s  But at least with a purebred, you know what genetic defects the dog is at risk for. These issues are (ideally) emiminated by very careful breeding--any dogs with this issues are eliminated from breeding stock. Every breed is subject to breed specific ailments. If you combine them, you've done nothing but double the offsprings chance of having them passed on. And just because the illness didn't present itself in the first generation doesn't mean it won't show up down the line. Purebreds with lots of health problems are more commonly the result of irresponsible, poor breeding, not because the dog was a purebred. |
That's not true that it would double the risk because most genetic illnesses are recessive meaning that two dogs that both have the genetic recessive mating would be more likely to get it than one dog that has the recessive and one that doesn't have the gene. Now I'm not saying this is true for all genetic diseases but cross breeding does cut down on the risk for example- my yorkipoo puppy is still at risk for knee displasia so that must be dominant but it is very unlikely that she will get liver shunts. Now if you take my spaniel/rottweiller/??? mutt she has ZERO defects- 100% healthy dog- it's just a fact that pure breds tend to have more genetic problems- whether you try to breed them out or not!