Question For Breeders

[peony]

Join our free community today.

Connect with other like-minded dog lovers!

Login or Register

Been mulling this one over for a while now and would be interested to hear more experienced, knowledgable peoples views

How much of a pups character is predetermied by parentage ? Hypothetically, lets just say that a bitch was to be used for breeding, who didnt have the 'sunniest' disposition, would that be carried through to the puppy ? And if it were, would a stricter regime during the puppies developmental stages quash any aggressive/thieving tendencies??? Are all puppies demons in the making, only calmed by diligent training?? :blink:

I know of a lady who is expecting a litter in a month or so, her bitch is very talented in competition but is quite honestly, unpleasant to have around. She has been known to be aggressive towards other dogs ( and on a few occasions, has even drawn blood when biting her owner (w00t) ) and isnt allowed to run loose with the womans other dogs. She, to me, is rather high maintenance , in that the owner cant even eat when the dog is around as its a thieving hound. How much of this is down to a lack of discipline early on, or traits gathered from the parents. I just dont know. :blink:

So, are the babies likely to be rosette winning dogs who arent socially safe, or are they, in the right hands, destined to be successful in competition and in the home? :- "

 

[whippetsrus]

IMHO I don't think a dog with such a temperament should be bred from.

 

[Karenhb]

I agree with Whippetsrus.....our James is from "good stock" and would never hurt a fly but he has always suffered from separation anxiety which we have now got under control but although people have asked us if we would use him for stud, we have always thought that he wasn`t of a laid back enough dispostion to let him make babies. There might well be no problem if the dam`s genes were dominant but we wouldn`t think it was fair to take the risk as not everyone is happy to keep a dog that has caused £1000`s worth of damage. :unsure:

 

[morganna]

Personally I would NEVER breed from any stock with such fundamental faults as, what sounds to me, to be ABYSMAL temperament. It's just as bad as any other fault, in fact it's probably worse as you would never be able to trust such a dog.

In two of the breeds I have owned I have to say that there were well known lines of bad temperament issuing from certain dogs over the years which suggests to me that blood does carry this fault the same as any other fault.

Even with the best training and rearing in the world if there is an inheritance it WILL reoccur, better to be safe than sorry.After all who wants a stunning looking,brilliant worker who will take your hand off??? :b

Just my opinion. :- "

 

[jayp]

I agree totally, everything is in the genes including temperament, it may not surface straight away but will come out to haunt someone in the end!!!!!!

Bad temperaments along with bad health should never be bred on

 

[kris]

ah the old nature/nurture debate!psychologists have been debating this for centuries.criminal psychology has always fascinated me.why 5 or 6 kids in a family all with virtually the same rearing and yet one becomes a psychopathic murderer. why?they still dont know why but ive read a lot of interesting theories recently and they now think that a lot of it is nurture in that what affects one child in a family adversley wont affect another for different reasons.also age has a lot to do with it.things that a child could shrug off in the normal scale of things if they happen at a certain psychologically 'frail' or vunerable time in a childs life can have tremendously bad effects.if its true for humans why not dogs too?

there are certain lines i myself wouldnt touch in the breeds ive been in cos i knew they had temperament problems,and that a lot of the dogs in that line were very 'sharp'but who is to say that if those animals were reared differently those problems would still have surfaced?

 

[rodders]

ah the old nature/nurture debate!psychologists have been debating this for centuries.criminal psychology has always fascinated me.why 5 or 6 kids in a family all with virtually the same rearing and yet one becomes a psychopathic murderer. why?they still dont know why but ive read a lot of interesting theories recently and they now think that a lot of it is nurture in that  what affects one child in a family adversley wont affect another for different reasons.also age has a lot to do with it.things that a child could shrug off in the normal scale of things if they happen at a certain  psychologically 'frail' or vunerable time in a childs life can have  tremendously bad effects.if its true for humans why not dogs too?there are certain lines i myself wouldnt touch in the breeds ive been in cos i knew they had  temperament problems,and that a lot of the dogs in that line were very 'sharp'but who is to say that if those animals were reared differently those problems would still have surfaced?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

​

Glad you said that Kris :thumbsup:believe dogs behaviour is deffinately affected by events,upbringing and pack status Karen

 

[maggie217]

I am a great believer in nature over nurture in both human and the animal world. However the according to the particular characteristics inherited these may be affected to a greater or lesser amount by nurture . :thumbsup:

 

[alfyn]

Whether it's nature or nurture,the fact remains that you have an aggressive Mother that will be bringing up puppies,& i suspect that those that stay will follow her habits.

I know of someone who had a gsd bitch,& though she was fine with people,she was aggressive towards other dogs.She was duly bred from,& she couldn't tolerate the puppies coming near her head.She consequently killed half of them,& the rest ended up being hand reared as she just couldn't be trusted.

I hope to god that this doesn't happen with this due litter!

 

[gabbitas31]

: :thumbsup: Totally agree with Karen. Diane

 

[nettle]

Me and my OH was thinking of purchasing a puppy off a well know breeder, until we saw some of his young dogs in a dog run all muzzled. Put me right off.

Jayne

 

[peony]

Very interesting reading and I thank you all for taking the time to reply .

There is no way I would have considered breeding from a bitch who had such a disposition, but I guess we are all different, with different ideals and expectations. To me, a dog is first and foremost, a family member, someone who is a delight to have around, NOT someone who needs watching every second, in case they do harm to themselves or another dog/person. (w00t)

The woman in question undoubtedly has a talented dog, and I suppose her reasons for breeding were to create other 'talented dogs'. Lets just hope that this desire does not come with a heavy price and that all the new owners are able to curtail any signs of aggression/unpleasantness which the bitch may throw. To me, a dog is a whole lot more than a pile of rosettes and trophys.

Merry Christmas everyone :thumbsup: :huggles:

 

[*Lesley*]

I agree totally Peony, temprement has to above all else, having a racing Champions/show champions ect is a once a week affair at most usually, and a temporary career, the rest of the time they are a family member so disposition is all.

As with the nature/nurture debate(which it will always be) breeding is important but upbringing is just as important if not more so IMO