line breeding

[juststarting]

My son and i are thinking about breeding our dogs, the pups would be for ourselves mainly and other family members so the question is this the female we are going to breed, her sire and the male we will be using as the stud his dam's sire is the same dog is this to close to breed or is it ok? So the female is the daughter and the male is a grandson of the same stud on the bitches side.

[kninebirddog]

It can be a good thing if both the dam and sire have healthy traits clear hips no other health issues and that they have the desired field traits.

Be sure you have a plan if pups do not sell and find homes ...Friends and family are great but many times when pups hit the ground well intentioned people will back out faster then a straight guy walking into a gay bar

[Mybeagles]

I have raised beagles for 30 years and inbreeding is really deteriorating the breed in my opinion. As stated, it could be a good thing if you are dealing with superior specimens of the breed, however most dont fit that category.

Im a firm believer that every breeding should have improvements or bettering the breed in mind. Inbreeding two dogs for convenience sake usually waters down imporvements made by serious breeders.

If you would like to improve upon what you have now, make an honest assesment of your female both the good and bad. Contact a reputable kennel in your area and look for a stud that has strengths where your dog might be a little weak. Stud fee's are relatively inexpensive, and you could sell the pups with confidence knowing you did your best to produce some excellent pups.

Mybeagles

[BlueRiverKennel]

I have raised beagles for 30 years and inbreeding is really deteriorating the breed in my opinion. As stated, it could be a good thing if you are dealing with superior specimens of the breed, however most dont fit that category.

Im a firm believer that every breeding should have improvements or bettering the breed in mind. Inbreeding two dogs for convenience sake usually waters down imporvements made by serious breeders.

If you would like to improve upon what you have now, make an honest assesment of your female both the good and bad. Contact a reputable kennel in your area and look for a stud that has strengths where your dog might be a little weak. Stud fee's are relatively inexpensive, and you could sell the pups with confidence knowing you did your best to produce some excellent pups.

Mybeagles

Good post...... Also that is close but not undoable as said health tests first. Especialy so in close related dogs as they may have the same markers that will produce problems. And as said match them up for size and weeknesses. For example U do not want to breed 2 hard mouth bird crunchers togeather, or 2- 30 LB labs. Match them up to better the breed, not create more problems as many do.

[Whispering Hills]

My son and i are thinking about breeding our dogs, the pups would be for ourselves mainly and other family members so the question is this the female we are going to breed, her sire and the male we will be using as the stud his dam's sire is the same dog is this to close to breed or is it ok?

That is a very tight line breeding. As BlueRiver mentioned, line breeding can be a good thing if a breeder has real expertise in the selection, and is trying to "set" specific characteristics, and knows the dogs don't have any high risk flaws.

The dangerous side of it is that just as you will "set" the qualities you want, you will also "set" weaknesses that you don't want or may not be aware of. Every dog has weaknesses, whether they be poor conformation (which can make the dog susceptible to injury), instincts, temperament, or health related. There's no such thing as a perfect specimen, and once a genetic trait is set, it's very difficult to breed it back out.

So, in the best interests of whatever breed of dog you have, I hope you reconsider breeding your own. It really is best left to experience. Remember that if it weren't for breeders who truly know the job, you wouldn't have a chance at being able to get a well bred dog.

Jeff Jennings
Whispering Hills Kennels