Pedigree the Breed of a New Threat
Since the dawn of humanity, humans have tried to mimic the archetype of creation. Even though we do not have the power to create as an omega, we sure have indulged in creating abominations. These abominations are not seen as defects but are ironically praised and called purebreds. As a matter of fact, these abominations are even called a man’s best friend. Dogs, or to be more precise, pure-bred dogs, are these abominations. However, these purebred dogs do not have the fault to be born with defective genes but are rather victims of an old practice called inbreeding or artificial breeding. Inbreeding or artificial breeding on dogs is causing a lot of genetic disorders, as a result, dogs are having physical and …show more content…
Inbreeding, also known as selective breeding, is when the breeding of organisms or individuals are closely related. For example, Mother and son, Father and daughter, brother and sister. Farrell, et al states (qtd. in Beuchat) "Conditions not relating directly to breed standards account for over 75% of all inherited disorders in pedigree dogs and have been attributed to breed formation and small effective population size, the repeated use of popular sires and inbreeding. The development of the breeds has been associated with the increasing prevalence of many genetic diseases."(Par.5). This means that genetic disorders have thrived because the breeders use the popular method of inbreeding. All of this is done for maintaining a certain breed pure. On the other hand, artificial breeding also affects the genetics of the dogs. Artificial breeding is an ancient practice which involves the breeders choosing which traits are going to be passed down by mating certain breeds to get those traits. This practice can be beneficial for controlling which traits to be passed on to the next …show more content…
The physical problems range from skin problems such as dermatitis, an inflammation/infection of the skin, all the way to bone disorders such as Chondrodystrophia, a condition in which the cartilage grows and matures abnormally and the long bones fuse faster than normal, leading to stunted growth. These physical problems and more, affect not only the lifestyle of the dog but also shortens its life spawn drastically and makes the dog suffer in the process. Furthermore, purebred dogs are also susceptible to develop cancer. According to Bell, Jerold S. the most common cancers are lymphoma, osteosarcoma, hemangiosarcoma, melanoma, and mast cell cancer (Bell). These problems, physical and health problems, are caused by genetic disorders which are common on inbreeds. These types of disorders are the result of inherited genes passed on from generation to generation. This is because purebred dogs are a product of the same line of genes, meaning they do not mix with other dogs to maintain their pureness. Over the time, the gene pool narrows to the point were only defective genes are left to pass to the new generations. In other words, the blueprints that build the dog to a cellular level are only left with faulty blueprints that build ironically impurities to the