What Is Bad Breeding? A Lack Of Ethics

Quality, ethical breeders make my heart sing with joy. They produce puppies with vibrant health and longevity from health-tested, titled parents. Good breeders and their good dogs make the dog world a better place.

There are bad breeders out there, however.

So what makes a breeder unethical or "bad?" Well, there are many variables.

First of all, almost every breeder of so-called designer dogs is automatically an unethical breeder in my opinion. Someone who crosses, for example, Cocker Spaniels to Poodles to sell “rare Cockapoo” or “Doodle” dogs is a designer dog breeder, and I find that unwholesome and unethical.

Part of what makes a breeder unethical is anyone who lies about their dogs, no matter what dogs they produce. The designer dog breeders I've met sling so many lies to sell their puppies it really makes me sick; they make purely ludicrous claims! They will often say designer dogs are hypoallergenic. Or that Poodle crosses are always non-shedding. They'll claim designer dogs have hybrid vigor and never get sick or inherit genetic problems. Or they claim that they aren't mutts but “new purebred breeds.” I even saw a breeder of Schnauzer x Poodle mixes (she was billing them as "Schnoodles") telling potential buyers that their puppies are immune to getting fleas and ticks.

All of those are blatant lies.

These breeders lying about the puppy means the buyer can’t make an informed decision. It is completely acceptable for someone to decide that a breed or individual dog isn’t the right choice for them! Liars will lie to sell dogs because they are more concerned with the immediate sale than making sure the dog is the right long-term choice for the buyer. This places those dogs into situations that sometimes aren't ideal for them, or aren't ideal for the owner who got swindled, and all too often these dogs end up alone in shelters (or worse) because they just weren't the right fit.

Breeders who readily tell me the truth about their dogs earn my trust, because I can rely on their honesty.

Breeders who lie to sell dogs are unethical, period.

Most good breeders also put titles on their dogs, either in conformation showing or in a dog sport. While it's not inherently unethical to breed a dog without titles, it's generally accepted that if a dog is worthy of breeding, they should have a title. But since not all quality dogs get titled, it's not a complete deal-breaker for me if a dog lacks a title. Though I must admit, I'd expect to hear a very good reason why that step hasn't been taken. It doesn't need to be conformation showing either...I grew up with German Wirehairs who were bred primarily for their skill as a hunter, and when we were looking for our current dog (a Brittany) we were looking for a dog with field trial champion ancestors.

What about companion breeds who were never bred to hunt, or herd, or guard? There are events for all dogs, such as obedience or agility. At the very least, those dogs to be considered for breeding should be getting certified as a Canine Good Citizen. It shows some effort and dedication on the part of the breeder to prove that their dog(s) have qualities worth passing on to the next generation.

Another thing that makes a breeder unethical is knowingly breeding dogs who have not been health tested. I strongly support health testing for all dogs who are going to be bred, even though not all defects are heritable and not all health testing is simple pass-or-fail. 

From my own experiences, most breeders who don’t bother to health test or screen their dogs for defects usually fall into two types: first, people who just want to breed puppies from their beloved but haphazardly bred pet dog and may not realize that health screening even exists, and second, breeders who honestly should know better but who don’t actually care about the health or longevity of their dogs. Either way, I cannot call either of them good breeders. Not by a long shot.

It should go without saying that taking a dog to the vet and getting a health certificate does not qualify as health testing. More and more puppy buyers are becoming educated on how to make the right choice when it comes to selecting a breeder, and some are starting to ask potential breeders about health testing. I've seen a lot of designer dog ads lately where the breeder is claiming they have been "health tested," but upon questioning, the dog only has a health certificate from a vet. The certificate certifies nothing except the dog isn't currently sick. This is yet another deception from these unethical breeders, and I do not like it. It shows how dishonest they really are.

Something I mentioned earlier is that plenty of unethical designer dog breeders claim their mixed breed dogs have hybrid vigor. While there may be some good crosses, there are plenty of health problems that afflict many different breeds. I always point to hip dysplasia as a complaint with Doodles, as I've known many who have struggled with painful, dysplastic hip problems. After all, any breed of dog can have bad hips! As an example? My little three pound Chihuahua mix had atrocious hips!

I've known far more designer dog mutts who have genetic defects than I have quality, health tested purebreds. Sadly because of the popularity of these fad mixed breed mutts, their unethical breeders are cashing in...for example, hip defects rarely show up until the puppy is maturing into an adult. By then the breeder has already profited and has moved on to selling more flawed dogs to more unsuspecting buyers.

Now, it bears mentioning that there are actually ethical crossbreeders out there! With the competition world being so challenging, some people have begun to breed sport crosses to excel in the performance arena. However, these ethical breeders who crossbred never call their dog a "new breed" or pretend they're purebred, and they do extensive health testing and titling before breeding.

Frankly if all designer dog breeders would health test, title, and prove their dogs, I'd be thrilled! It would give them legitimacy in my eyes. It just so rarely (i.e., never) happens.

Before anyone claims I'm only against designer dog breeders, let me state here and now that there are plenty of unethical purebred breeders, too. In fact, the majority of purebred dogs I've groomed over the years were not bred by good, ethical breeders. Many were produced by people who have a bitch and decide to just make puppies, because they love their pet and want other people to enjoy similar pet puppies. It's not a bad sentiment, but they are still unethical if they do not utilize at least basic health testing. Others who breed purebreds unethically are as bad as designer dog breeders: just looking to churn out puppies to make a profit with no concern for the life or well-being of the dogs they produce.

Now, those unethically bred puppies can't help how they were born, and unless they are temperamentally unsound, they are often very good companions. That doesn't mean they should be bred, though!

In my area there's a Shih Tzu breeder who produces absolutely awful dogs. They're sweet and friendly, but they all have the same atrocious elbows and bad knees. We are talking dogs who have legs so crooked they literally limp. Clearly they are not an ethical breeder since they are producing dogs who can't live a pain-free life! Plus those particular Shihs tend to go blind very young, between five and ten. That is totally unacceptable for a dog who could live well into their teens! They're purebred, and registered with the AKC, and completely and unequivocally unethically bred.

I had a Cocker Spaniel that a client gave to me who was a great dog, sweet and kind, with a heart of gold. He had a beautiful soul, and I loved him dearly, but he had awful conformation. His knees and elbows weren't good and his hind end was badly put together. I cannot tell you how many people asked to breed their dogs to him because of his gorgeous markings, lovely full-length coat, and sweet, soulful expression. I did my best to educate people that, while he was a wonderful and beloved companion, he could easily pass on his badly built legs to any offspring he'd make, and that it's not fair to produce a puppy who is so likely to struggle to get around. And you'd be amazed how many people told me they didn't care if he was poorly built or haphazardly bred, they wanted to breed to him anyways because of his attractive markings.

I repeat, people would actually tell me they do not care if the puppies he'd have sired would have bad limbs and possibly suffer for it, because they'd be a very pretty color. That is the height of unethical!

It's just not fair to bring a puppy into this world who can't live a pain-free life, purebred or not.

Speaking of color, there are more and more unethical breeders who breed only for color, usually a color that isn't acceptable for the breed. I will delve into this in a future blog, but for the moment suffice to say that I have yet to meet a breeder who breeds for rare (i.e., off-standard) colors on purpose who is doing so ethically.

The fact is many people have never even seen a well-bred, ethically produced purebred. The purebreds they see are usually haphazardly bred pets who beget more pets...no health testing, no concern for well-being, just more puppies to breed even more puppies. And I hear it all too often! "I want to breed my dog," they'll tell me, and ask if I know a dog of the opposite sex for them to mate their dog to. Needless to say I politely decline. I can't stop them from pumping out a litter of haphazardly bred dogs, but I sure don't have to be a part of it.

Really breaks my heart, too, seeing so many unsound, unhealthy dogs! It also really makes me appreciate good breeders all the more.

To be fair, I don't think it's inherently unethical to breed pet dogs. But I would hold them to the same standard I do show breeders: they need to health test, and temperament test, any dog they plan to breed. And it should go without saying that only sound dogs should be bred. If a pet breeder did these things, I would be okay with them producing puppies. I just haven't ever seen any pet breeder take the necessary steps to be ethical.

In a strange twist of logic, some people claim that a breeder who makes a profit is automatically a bad breeder. I wish I didn’t have to address this, but it’s such a common misconception I feel need to discuss it.

Most breeders do not make a profit; many breeders barely break even or are constantly in the red. Raising puppies, breeding dogs, health screening, day-to-day maintenance, all of that costs money. If you add the costs of showing, competing, or field trialing the dogs, the costs skyrocket.

However, there are some good breeders who make a profit selling their pups. Why is this seen as bad? Since when is the word “profit” a four-letter word? It makes no sense to me. If a good breeder makes a profit on their dogs, more power to them for finding a way to make money doing something they love! You cannot judge the ethics of a breeder solely based on what they do or do not earn through breeding.

Frankly, I wish more ethical breeders were able to turn a profit from their dogs.

Lastly, I want to address an issue I've seen debated online: that all breeders are inherently unethical because we still have stray dogs in shelters. Many of the rescue-only crowd point out that there are purebreds in shelters.

I can say with confidence that it's a rare occasion indeed that a puppy from an ethical breeder sets foot in a shelter or rescue. If the puppy doesn't work out, the overwhelming majority of ethical breeders will take the dog back. The purebreds you see in shelters are invariably from breeders who are mediocre at best. These poorly-bred dogs are rarely good examples of their breed, both in terms of health and conformation. All too often they also lack the traits that define their breed.

For example, I know of a few people who wanted German Shorthair Pointers as their next hunting dog, but who balked at the price of a well-bred puppy when I put them in contact with the breeders I used to know (who've sadly passed away since then). Three of those people "adopted" a purebred German Shorthair from shelters. 

All three of those people have expressed deep regret to me for their decision.

None of the shelter-Shorthairs ever succeeded as even a passable gun dog. You see, not all pointing breed dogs have the instincts or sense of smell needed to become a useful hunting dog. Many poor-quality, poorly-bred German Shorthairs can’t smell a bird until they are on top of it, so they end up flushing the birds instead of pointing them, or worse they miss the bird entirely. Many times I've seen Pheasants hold their ground, or try to slip away by running instead of flying; I've also seen Woodcock you could practically pick up because their instinct is to hide, and only fly as a last resort. If the dog doesn't have any nose to speak of, all those birds will easily escape. Plenty of low-quality pointers also “creep” on point; when a pointer points, they are expected to hold perfectly still. None of the shelter-Shorthairs would hold, they'd never lock into that gorgeous breed-defining point. One of them just couldn’t figure out how to point at all, period.

Those three shelter Shorthairs? All three also had truly awful behavior problems, which was probably why they ended up in the shelter in the first place. I recently found out one of the three was returned to the shelter...and another one ran away, never to be seen again. The third, I've lost contact with the owners...we were friends through our love of hunting and they seem to've given that up, probably because their neurotic dog is a total embarrassment in the field.

Years back my dad bought a Shorthair, but he purchased the dog from an ethical breeder, who made sure to pair him up with a dog that had a near perfect nose and strong pointing instincts. My dad didn't do too many field trials with this dog (instead utilizing him as a gentleman's hunting companion), but the few competitions he did enter him in, the dog placed well or outright won. My dad once entered a multi-day trial, and just didn’t show up for one of the two days. This means his dog didn’t get a single point for half of the competition. Yet his Shorthair did so well on the single day he was competing that he was awarded second overall. My dad was pleased…I was really angry, because had he bothered to just show up for the first day, it would have been a big win!

Moreover, ethical preservation breeders are the guardians and stewards of priceless genetics. If all good, ethical breeders stopped breeding, in just one single generation the best and purest bloodlines would disappear. The world needs less Doodle-breeders, sure, but the world desperately needs every single good breeder. Without them, there will be no good, high-quality dogs left.

Without good breeders, the only people who will be left to produce dogs will be uneducated and unethical breeders. The overall quality in dogs, all dogs, will decline. How is that for the “betterment” of dogs?

This blog entry was originally posted on Jan 28, 2014. It has been re-written and re-posted here for posterity.