Is breeding mutts always wrong?

In a perfect world, anyone could mix n match, producing any breed combination they wanted. In a few nations, dogs are scarce, and any puppies are in demand.

I love mutts, too.. I wouldn't take a million for my little mutt. She has actually saved my life, and I wouldn't part with her.

But she was a rescue.

There are so many wonderful dogs in rescue, that deserve a loving home. It is so sad that over 7 million dogs were killed last year in shelters..Just because they were born, and no one wanted them.

This just isn't a responsible time to be breeding more shelter dogs. Even if you have wonderful homes lined up for 7 puppies, those seven pups can each produce several litters of 7 more pups, and before you know it, there will 1,000 mutts produced..just because one owner decided not to spay.

Each person that decides its time for a dog for their family, begins looking for one..Unless they want a purebred, they will check craigslist, newspapers, and shelters.

If they choose a dog from an ad in the paper, then they never go look at the dogs in the shelters, who are on death-row, and so deserving of that good home..Seven dogs in the shelter will die, without a home, because an irresponsible person bred their pet and produced 7 puppies.

And, I am betting that that 'breeder' always tells us how much they love dogs..

It is just plain irresponsible. .(or selfish, careless, or ignorant)

Added: I'm not including the real working dogs, such as sled dogs or herding dogs.

You are right that irresponsible people drop their dogs at shelters or the street, and then us responsible people feel we have to rescue them, whereas it is not our fault. But face it, this is the situation, in this world. And since the problem exists, people who care MUST adopt, because otherwise puppies DIE and suffer.

Plus, the ones who abandoned their dogs are not the only ones to blame for teh situation. The ones who produce extra dogs are also to blame, because there are not enough owners in this world for the ones who are now alive, let alone new ones.

So, I wouldn't stop at saying that breeding mutts is wrong. I have no problem with mutts. They are quality dogs as any! I believe that even with "purebreds", breeding is wrong unless a family has already been found for the new puppies and has been checked to prove that they are responsible owners, and the law makes sure thay are recorded and cannot abandon their puppy. The same way as it would have been done with a child.

In addition, with mutts there is a bigger problem, because they are usually the ones who are abandoned and unwanted. It is sad, but many people still have this mentality, and breeding mutts will only create more suffering animals.

Yes, there is quite a bit of thought process behind the answers advising against purposely breeding mutts. Generally by people who understand the complications that could arise and how having to dogs that are healthy on their own does not always equate to a healthy litter. When you combine two diverse gene pools, you never know how they are going to pair up.

Example, per your theory:

Let's say you have a perfectly healthy, female Yorkie and a perfectly healthy male Shih Tzu. Per your theory, they are both healthy and there should be no problem breeding them, right?

Consider this-- Shih Tzus have a much larger cranial structure (head) than Yorkies. Yorkies are very prone to difficulty whelping and often require a c-section to deliver the pups--NOT ideal. So now you have a Yorkie, a breed that already has difficulty with pups fitting down the birth canal, delivering a litter of pups with even bigger heads. Do you see the dangers here?

Example 2:

Say you have a Pug and a Beagle--both free of genetic issue and given a clean bill of health. You are now combining gene pools for a dog (Pug) prone to joint issues, due to the physical structure of the breed itself that you are combining with a dog (Beagle) notorious for certain types of arthritis. Can you imagine the joint issues a poor dog would have when combining both of those traits?

These are just two, very simple examples.

So yes, there is a great deal of thought process involved. A lot of examining every possible aspect and possibility and looking at the big picture.

The bashing of mutts is mainly originating from purebred breeders themselves who call themselves "reputable" when in fact many of them don't have a clue about genetics and health. (not ALL of them, it's not fair to lump every purebred breeder into one group, but if you go by many of the answers on this and many other similar posts, you'll see what I mean)

The fact is that breeding purebred dogs (those within the same breed) increases homozygosity i.e. recessive mutations are more likely to be expressed in their homozygous form (ie clinical Health problems). Many purebreds are also inbred/ line bred and many breeders think this is a great idea (again, because most have no clue about how genes work). Actually this increases homozygosity even more rapidly (not a good thing) Breeders generally don't like to talk about this and will attempt to deny this happens. The best way to see the proof of this is to study purebred pedigrees and you'll see what I mean. If you find common ancestors, that's called linebreeding. You'll also find that among many breeds the genetic diversity has been significantly limited by the increase in artificial insemination (AI). Typically you have a small number of sires that are continually used in high frequency because they are "champions". NOT a good thing.

You also see by all the posts on this subject (mainly purebred breeders) who will say "STOP producing more mutts and get your dogs spayed and neutered" and I agree. But for most "purebred" breeders to look down their noses with their "holier than thou" attitude and point fingers... they are being hypocrites. Just look at all the purebred rescues there are. What is the origin of all these unwanted purebred dogs? Purebred breeders may be doing all the testing and think in their own mind they are doing the right thing just because they showing dogs and spending a bunch of money for the "betterment of the breed" when not all dogs end up in the next generation's breeding pool, many of them end up as unwanted rescue dogs and not all originate from puppy mills and back yard breeders.

There's nothing wrong with mutts. Mutts are great. I've grown up surrounded by mutts and think they are amazing creatures.

But when it comes to "breeding" mutts without any porpuse, just for "fun", then it's rubbish. People should try to adopt all the dying dogs - pedigrees or mutts, who cares! - in shelters before breeding for fun like little children. The only breeding you should do is on FurryPaws.com - if you are responsible enough.

It wouldn't be so wrong if there weren't millions of unwanted doggies getting put to sleep every day. Pure bred dogs have a better chance of people actually wanting them, but they get put down too. If mutts are bred, even if they do find homes, there is no telling if those dogs will be fixed or not, and if they have puppies or make puppies those might not be able to find homes.

I think that breeding dogs that come from a great blood line is a good thing, because people WANT them, and usually if they are willing to pay the amount of money that they cost they will have the brains to get them fixed or breed them with another dog with a good bloodline, thus making more wanted dogs.

Sure, there are people who will take in mutts. They can be excellent dogs and there is nothing wrong with them. It's just the fact that there are far too many of them out there now because of irresponsible breeders. It's just not fair.

In that aspect yes. As you know there is an over-population of dogs so breeding more pet-quality mutts is just making it worse. If a mutt was bred for a purpose; a working purpose then ok fair enough but i wouldn't support any other mutt breeding.

Have a look in shelters, breeding mutts with unpredictable traits, looks, temperament time and time again are always turning up in shelters. No, i don't agree with everyone getting guilt-ed into going to a shelter however, i do not agree they should buy a mutt from a breeder.

A litter of 4/5/6 causes 4/5/6 dogs to die in shelters.

If we weren't killing thousands of unwanted mutts every year, I would be more than happy to support the breeding of any healthy dogs. Until that problem is solved - forget it. It is simply not ethical to breed that which is available in abundance in shelters and rescues.

The ONLY time it is okay to breed mutts is when they are working dogs, ie farm dogs or sled dogs, when dogs are bred for beneficial traits for that job.

The rest of the time, regardless of health testing, it is bad. Why? Because mutts inherit such a wide range of traits that you are bound to find the same thing at a shelter.

With so many dogs in this world, the only ones that need to be bred are the working dogs and the quality, well-bred, titled purebreds either showing or working. The ones that pass the health clearances and will benefit the breed.

I don't hate mutts, but breeding them intentionally for profit is bad, especially when there are so many dogs that need homes.

Yes it is wrong to breed mutts. There are THOUSANDS of mixed breed dogs in shelters and being euthanized every day without people going the extra distance to make more on purpose.

I HAVE a mutt. She's a nice dog. But she's from a shelter, no one went out and decided that a Samoyed and Golden Retriever would make cute puppies, let's do it. She was an accident.

Think of it this way - the people who want mutts and buy one from someone who bred them on purpose isn't going to a shelter and saving a life. So for every mutt puppy that is sold at least one dog is going to die, possibly more because that shelter dog is taking up space that another adoptable dog can't go into.

Before running your mouth on stuff you clearly do not understand, why not volunteer at your local shelter and deal with the problems these idiot mutt breeders create?

People get jumped on because there are some of us who are actually trying to help these poor, discarded creatures and we are barely making a dent. We have puppies,kittens, dogs and cats who get put down before even making it to the adoption floor simply because there is NO ROOM for the massive influx of animals we receive. There is absolutely nothing wrong with many of them, and it breaks my heart. The blame lies not only with the deadbeat owners, but also with the money hungry disgusting backyard breeders who do not demand that their pups be returned to them should an owner not be able to care for them anymore( because if that were the case, they wouldn't be at the shelter). I never try to guilt anyone into adopting. However, I always advocate it as an option since these dogs and cats are wonderful, and just dying to get out of there and find their new families. And it is incredibly gratifying to see one of them walk out the front door with a new lease on life. For that one animal, we have made a difference!

So yeah. A mutt is a mutt, and there are millions of wonderful mutts already waiting for a home. These dogs are not filling a niche for those who have specific needs for their canine that would be filled by going through a reputable breeder of pure-bred animals.

100% of mutt breeders are scum. They are not breeding to improve on a breeding program, accomplish goals or for any other reason than to fill a demand for a commodity. And then when the novelty wears off... the poor beast comes through our front door.

So until YOU want to do something about the staggering overpopulation caused by backyard breeders, don't chastise those of us who put our money where our mouth is.

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Also, to be fair... I know I may sound harsh, but that comes from my own personal experience in this. I asked this question myself on an old account that got suspended so I do understand to a point what you are getting at... Problem is, mutt breeders do not do the testing, do not compete in any venues, or do anything other than produce the dogs. It is what it is. So I do apologize if I come off harsh or preachy, but I really think that it would do you some good to really see the impact these backyard breeders have on overpopulation. It might change your outlook on things.

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I will concede that there are very few unique mixed breed programs worth a damn, but I don't lump them in with what I call "mutt breeders." They are not the same as the idiot BYBs.