Purebred, designer, hybrid and mixed breed dogs

If you're reading this blog, you, like myself, share your home with a dog or two or three. Dogs are wonderful companions, and even though we make some adaptations in our lives so that we can live with dogs, we usually make those changes willingly.

As to what kind of dog we share our lives with - purebred or mixed breed - that is a purely personal decision. My husband and I have had both mixed breeds and purebreds. Today, we have three purebred dogs, all Australian Shepherds. My co-hosts for the "It's a Doggy Dog World" show, Petra Burke and Kate Abbott, have also each owned purebreds and mixed breeds.

There are pros and cons to both; but unfortunately there is also a lot of mythology out there. So let's take a look at some reality.

The registries that recognise purebred dogs - in the United States the American Kennel Club and the United Kennel Club - have very specific requirements for purebred dogs. The parents of each litter must be purebred and registered themselves, they must be of a breed recognised by that registry, and if the dog is to be shown in dog shows, he must compare favorably to the breed's standard (the written description of the perfect dog of that breed).

Some people seem to feel that pure bred dogs are all nervous, high strung, unhealthy, and full of congential defects. Often these same people will stress the importance of hybrid vigor, saying that mixed breed dogs are superior to purebreds.

A dog is the result of his genetics: the genetic material that he inherited from his mother and his father. And this is the same for purebreds and mixed breed dogs. A mixed breed dog can have the same problems that a purebred can if he inherits the potential for those problems from his parents.

All of the breeds of dogs that we have today are the result of selective breeding throughout our history with dogs. German Shepherds were designed and created from several breeds of dogs that were used for herding and farm dog work, for example.

Today, the intentional crossing of two breeds has created a designer dog fad. Cockapoos (crosses of Cocker Spaniels and Poodles) was the first and were created 30 to 40 years ago. Then a Labradoodle (Labrador Retriever and Poodle) was designed first as a guide dog for someone whose spouse was allergic to dogs. The fad took off from there.

These dogs, no matter what their label and their price, are mixed breed dogs. A breed is not considered a breed until six or seven generations and the offspring must breed true (which means the offspring are just like the parents). As long as poodles are crossed with Labs or with Cockers, then Labradoodle and Cockapoos will still be mixed breeds.

Unfortunately, also, the claims made on the behalf of these mixed breeds are amazing. They are supposed to be allergy free, super healthy, nonshedding, and a variety of other claims. Some individual dogs may be this wonderful, but only a few. Petra, Kate and I have seen many supposedly nonshedding Labradoodles in our training classes and the owner covered in dog hair.

Anyone who is looking for a different mixed breed dog should look for one in the local humane society or shelter; many originally high priced dogs have been turned in because the owner was disappointed - the dog didn't live up to the sales pitch. Don't go to a so called breeder and pay way too much money for one of these mixed breeds.

For more on designer dogs, mixed breeds and pure breeds, see my book, "The Howell Book of Dogs" (Wiley & Sons, 2007) and listen to our podcast on the subject.

Until the next time, hug your dog!

Liz Palika