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Date Posted: 12:01:06 03/14/04 Sun
Author: David I.
Subject: Breeding Best to Best
In reply to: Dan G. 's message, "Re: Dr. Seltzers comments on Dr. Paggetts. analysis of DKC breed rules" on 06:31:41 03/13/04 Sat

Dan, thanks for answering this post. However there are not two groups but all breeders (whether they know it or not) that represent a continuum of emphasis from the importance of maintaining purity of lines to the need to outcross to maintain health. At some point they must recognize the importance of population genentics considerations. Different breeders, different philosophies regardless of how we would like to view the two extremes as polar opposities, it is not useful for understanding this topic. We need more light and less heat here.

Much depends on the breed, where you are in your breeding program, the structure of your breed, the number and type of genetic disorders that exist in your breed, the effective population size, how many dogs you produce as a breeder, the level of sophistication of the breeder, and other considerations that you can pick up on if you do further reading in this area.

Diversity advocates do favor assortative (not random) mating, "best to best" they just differ in the definition of of "the best" and put more value on less related breedings. They still apply strict selection criteria, from my experience they are more stringent in their selection than formulaic high COI(Coefficient of Inbreeding) breeders.

Here is an educated laymans article outlining sound scientific reasons for doing so. (see below)

http://siriusdog.com/bragg.htm
Dr. Bragg is an individual who created a breed of sled dogs in Canada.

We could actually dismiss all of science as being "in its infancy". that doesn't mean that we do not use the technology available to us. Population genetics has been around since the beginning of the last century, it is established science and is widely used for the management of endangered species. I would submit that some very rare dog breeds current fit that category. And for all breeds, if you want to describe effects in a breeding population, it provides a framework for understanding them.

Now most of Paggett and Willis comments I think are aimed at small breeders. What they do won't impact the breed as a whole, unless, say they produce a popular sire.
_____________
As an aside: Cheetahs, Chillingham cattle, and naked mole rats are all highly inbred. Cheetahs are an endangered species (as we all know) it is not just the destruction of habitat that threatens them but the fact that their immune systems are so similar that if one cheetah is infected by a pathogen and kills the cheetah, and that pathogen if spread it will likely kill all cheetahs it contacts. Chillingham cattle and naked mole rats "never leave home" so it is of little importance whether they are immumologically competent because are so restricted in their range. If you moved the Chillingham herd to South Africa I don't think it would last a day. If the novel diseases didn't get them the lions would.

In this context let us consider dogs. Dogs are being dispersed to the four corners of the world. I think the closest model for the dog is the wolf. They are the same species. How do wolves breed?

http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/2000/wfincst/discuss.htm

Dan if you have anything to add or any questions to ask I welcome your response. I apologize for the Paggett comment I just missed it. I just ask that you respond like a man without adhominem attacks or snide comments and I will do the same, like I just did. I think you are a pretty bright guy and I take you seriously. I don't mind if we disagree but I want to make it perfectly clear why we do for the sake of anyone else reading these posts.

I am against any dog breeding regulations by any central authority. That is all we need more unenforceable laws and encroachments on our freedom.

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