What breed would you breed

Liesje

AgileGSD

And I'm not sure that losing money is not a prerequiste for being a reputable breeder.

 

I don't think it's a prereq but at least in German show line GSDs in the USA I don't see how it would be possible to not.  So far I haven't met a breeder I liked and thought was reputable that didn't have a job.

 Not losing money and making a living at just breeding dogs are two different things. I do think there are people who make a living breeding, training and importing dogs though.

I don't so much dream to breed dogs as I do rescuing them. Once our house is built (the groundwork will be starting soon! YAY!) and we are financially stable (me done with school & working full time) we will consider rescuing from shelters. That is a few years away but is definatly a dream of mine. To give back to the animals who have given me so much joy and have been such great companions. I'd rather take care of those who cannot find a home or who have been treated badly then deal with breeding, honestly.

~Kristi

I agree with everyone else...i would never breed. Too much money, and i would be terrified i accidentally placed a pup in a not good home. I had to sign a contract with Josie that i would spay her, and return her to the breeder if i didn't want her anymore. But, how do you know someone is going to do that?

But, if i were to pick a breed i think it would be ridgebacks. I feel GSDs would be too complex...dobes take too much work with the cropping/docking and not to mention the meticulous research of lines for health problems. Plus, i think having 2 or 3 ridgebacks would be much easier than having 2 or 3 of the other! haha! 

BCs are kind of weird, because to breed at all responsibly, I feel you almost do have to be a "pro." Breeding BCs responsibly means you are also a stock raiser, so you know exactly how your decisions affect the usefulness of the dog, in the most objective way possible - right in the pocketbook. If your dog is weak in some way that affects your ability to run your operation, you lose money.

So most of the breeders I know are breeding dogs for themselves, and then sell the rest of the pups. BCs don't have huge amounts of clinical testing required to clear them of the major issues - CEA and CHD pretty much covers it. Trialing can be expensive but not anywhere near as bad as conformation or rally/obedience showing, from what I understand. 

That means it actually IS possible to breed BCs "for profit" but it's more like a farmer who runs pedigreed sheep behind his cattle - everything needed to raise up quality pups is already in place and in fact necessary for the farm.

If you are interested in how this works, here's a rare thing - a web-savvy rancher who has a blog on life at their ranch, their dogs, and training for the top competitions. Scot Glen is a multiple North American champion and breeds some of our most important modern dogs. Jenny writes the blog and is funny and shares her husband's love for the ranch and the dogs.