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I had no idea about that at all! Breeders trying to make a profit rather than trying to improve the welfare of their dogs isn't surprising though.
ltc-
Heh. Thanks for your patience. Sorry to rant! Yes Staffys now going the same way as bulldogs. The "blue" dogs, grey to you and me, is a prime example as blue dogs are high risk of a range of issues, so its tupid to target them as a breeding outcome. They have also bred them much bigger, to satisfy status dog demands. Its sad as a traditional staffy is 16 inches to the shoulder, so quite a small dog.
I am really lucky as had decided to go rescue again due to the puppy money tree thing. but Dorothy was from a friend, due to an accidental coupling, so minimal costs, I am very lucky
velosaurus
Thankyou. Yes. Staffys have been massively overbred from the dogs I knew 40-50 years ago when I was a kid, so I think the mix might actually benefit. The breeders felt strongly about breeding non pedigree Staffies to mix the pedigree up a bit for health reasons. Dorothy is incredibly bright, so hopefully it works.
Staffys do suffer from their own illnesses now sadly. L-2-HGA is a nervous system disorder that is tested for, now. My Sisters dog Poppy, 20 years ago, was the first dog identified with it. Basically when Poppy became ill, she was taken to the Newmarket vet school , we had a massive struggle to get them to investigate fully. Even when they identified it, we then had a huge task to get the breed and kennel club to recommend testing. Breed standard owners have become massive tossers in pursuit of standards that serve themselves first and their dogs last..
Oh and please dont get me started on the trendy "blue" staffys being bred now and their additional health issues...