The dangers of purebreeds

When people go to pick out their pets, many are very particular about what they’re looking for.  Instead of thinking about how healthy an animal is going to be and thus how long it’s going to live and be their companion, people seem more preoccupied with the way the animal looks and, unfortunately, the quality of its breeding paperwork.  While having “good breeding” may seem like a beneficial thing simply by nature of what it implies, the truth of the matter is that purebreed animals are notorious for having many complicated health issues.

Despite being more valuable, market-wise, pedigree animals are, due to the proliferation of inbreeding among a very select population, inherently unhealthy.  A small gene pool means more problems.  Animals that are “mutts” weed out these genetic weaknesses by virtue of natural selection.  With people interfering, that natural selection goes out the window and diseases are kept alive within the purebreed population.

Dog and cat shows often require that the animals, in order to be winners, have very specific traits.  This means that breeders are prone to breeding sisters and brothers and even parents with their own offspring.  The results are not only potentially painful to the animals but can also have effects that make them poor pets.  If you pick up a purebreed animal, you may end up with a pet that has a foul temperament or one that has to visit the vet every month or so.

One particular documentary talks a bit about these dangers and shows how the emphasis on specific physical traits overrides breeders’ good sense, leading to poor health.  To make matters worse, dog and cat shows generally do not require that an animal be healthy in a genetic sense in order to be a winner.  This encourages people to sacrifice the health of their animals in favor of trophies.

According to one pet medical site, the instances of breed-specific diseases can become quite a problem within the selective population when a breeder doesn’t take the time to seek out new genetic material.  Since buyers of a particular breed are more likely to go to the breeders who produce award-winning animals, it encourages the breeders to keep doing what they’re doing, regardless of long-term consequences.  All it takes is a few generations and genetic diversity can shrink to the point where genetic diseases spread like wildfire.

In addition to being just plain cruel to the animals that are born with all these health problems, it can be quite expensive for your standard buyer.  If you want an animal that has a good personality and will be with you a long time, stick with something a little less pure or at the very least do your homework on the breeder before buying.  You’ll end up with a healthier and happier animal in the long run and you can avoid contributing to what has become a horrible problem.

Pedigree Cat Exhibition photo courtesy of MOs810 via Wikicommons