|
General Information on health and breed ethics
WEWASC will not check the correctness of the breeders statements that are issued on our website. Please check the health status of the stud dog you are interested in, puppies parents and litters, as well as the breeding goals and ethics of the breeder yourself. Each breeder has different lines of dogs, different goals in their breeding programs and different ideas in general. Please research carefully and ask as many questions as you can. A responsible breeder will answer all your questions with pleasure. It is always the responsibility of the customer to know what they are buying. Please take this responsibility seriously when obtaining a dog. We want to give you a general overview of things you have to be aware of and things you should check when you are looking for a studdog or a new dog. Australian Shepherds that are not registered in an FCI affiliated club are registered with the Australian Shepherd Club of America inc. (ASCA inc.). Dogs can be double registered. Mini and Toy Aussies are not registered with FCI or ASCA. ASCA inc. does not check any health status of dogs or breed ethics of breeders before registering litters, dogs.
Health As we are a european club, you should keep in mind, that the requirements in each country for health checks before breeding a dog might differ a bit. Generally the following minimum requirements and results for health checks before breeding are valid: Hips A hip evaluation from a vet who has a license to do official hip evaluations. Usually dogs that have hip results not worse than B2 (A1, A2, B1 and B2) can be used for breeding without limitation. If the dog has a certificate from the american OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals), the hip result should not be worse than OFA fair (OFA excellent, OFA good and OFA fair). Evaluations are done in an age of 12-24 months, depending on the country. Note: Elbows An elbow evalutaion from a vet who has a license to do official elbow evaluations. Elbow evaluations are not done in all european countries. Usually dogs that have elbow results not worse than ED 0/0 are used for breeding without limitation. Evaluations are done in an age of 12-24 months, depending on the country. ED 1/0 or 1/1 results usually lead to a limitation in the form that only ED 0/0 dogs are used as breed mates. Eyes An Eye Certificate from a vet who has a license to do official eye evaluations. (European College of Veterenary Ophtalmologists; ECVO).This certificate should not be older than a year. Puppies usually have an eye check at 6 weeks of age (but the age when this puppy eye check is done can differ from country to country). There are different diseases marked on an official eye evaluation form. Some of these diseases are minor problems that do not influence the vision of the dog. Some are major problems that influence the vision of a dog or lead to blindness and a dog with such a disease should not be bred as they are also inherited. Those diseases are: cataract, PRA, CEA, Korneadystrophie. Bites A scissors bite with a full dentition (it should be documented by a vet if a dog has lost teeth) is the generally allowed bite for a breed dog. It is up to a breeders decision if he uses a dog for breeding that has teeth missing. However, an undershot bite should be excluded as well as an overbite more than 1/8 inch (according to the ASCA inc. breed standard) Genetic Tests There are a number of genetic tests available now which can be a useful tool for a breeder. Such test results should be evaluated carefully. The following tests can be done by breeders: MDR1, HSF4, CEA/PRA Note: DNA status The following rule regarding the DNA parentage verification status of a dog that is used for breeding has been issued by The Australian Shepherd Club of America (ASCA): From Jan 1st 2010 on, each dog that produces a second litter has to be DNAed. From Jan 1st 2011 on, each dog that produces a first litter has to be DNAed. Which means, that after January 1st 2011, no litter can be registered with ASCA inc. if the parents are not DNA profiled with ASCA inc. Other health evaluations Some breeders choose to do some more health checks. You must understand that this is usually only sensible, when it is a general problem in the breedor a certain bloodline. It is up to anybodies own decision to do it or not: cardiogram, patella luxation, OCD, thyroid gland
Breed Ethics In general, the following breed ethics are followed by responsible breeders, but also keep in mind that in the different countries it may differ a bit: Keeping Dogs All dogs have to be kept according to animal rights statutes of the countries and have to be cared for properly. Males Minimum age of a stud dog that is used for breeding is 18 months. Females Minimum age for a female that is used for breeding is 24 months. A maximum age might be valid in the different countries. Usually this is the fulfilled 8th or 9th year. However, if a breeder has good reason and the female is sound, a litter past that date can be sensible. Time in between two litters should not be sooner than one year, or, in other words, there should be one heat cycle in between two litters without breeding the female. This is also depending on the number of puppies in a litter and/or the length of the heat cycle of the female. A female should have a limited number of litters in her life. Some breed clubs allow 5 litters, others allow 6 litters. Most breeders limit the total number of litters to 4. Note: Merle Dogs and Natural Bobtails (NBT) Since matings of merle to merle dogs and NBT to NBT dogs can lead to major health problems in resulting puppies, such matings are not allowed in most countries. Litters Puppies should not be given away at an age under 8 weeks. The puppy should have been dewormed regularly. Usually, buyers will get the following when purchasing a puppy:
|