I would love to hear what other crossbreed owners think about the health and longevity of their mixes. My vet says that she thinks that the fact that a dog is a mix of breeds gives it more longevity. The attributes of the breeds that have gone into the mix aren't that important for determining the health and lifespan of the dog. Does this stack up with people's experiences?
I have always found the logic that crossing Breed X that may have numerous health issues with Breed Y that may also have numerous health issues = one healthy dog with NO health issues a little difficult to come to terms with. Or that crossing one breed with another automatically means you get the BEST of both worlds and not the WORST? Where are the stats that support this theory? Eg how do mongrels stack up against many breeds that live to well into their late teens? Does this mean mongrels live into their 20s? What is meant by "longevity"? And what genes if any are responsible for it? What about the OTHER factors in longevity such as health tested breeding stock (are the parents of mongrels all health tested?)? Size Environment Medical care etc etc So how are the variables broken down in order to demonstrate that mongrels DO in fact live longer and healthier lives than pure bred animals? I would be interested to know. Are there stats to show the average age of a mongrel as there are for purebreds?
My cross breed was no healthier than my pedigree. I lost Max 9 years ago to cancer 41/2 he was an Aussie Shepherd x Rottie and maybe something else thrown in we were never sure. Ollie my Bernese 41/2 I lost recently to 3 very rare conditions none treatable or curable. So no I don't think it makes any diffrence at all. Its like humans you either have the genes to stay strong and fight diseases or you don't.
Sorry, can't come up with any stats. This was my vet talking from her experience. Maybe I should qualify this a bit: 1 Her practice deals with rural French dogs, many of them hunting dogs. I don't think that there is an awful lot of care taken into ensuring that the breeding lines are good, so I suspect that many of the pure breeds she deals with are from lines with health issues, or are inbred. 2 she may have been trying to be nice to me, as I have a crossbreed who has some Great Dane in him, which worries me as my mother's Danes never lived beyond 6. 3 my vet is lovely, but a bit bonkers!
On average, regardless as to breed or mix, the smaller the dog the longer lived, the larger the shorter lived and sadly the very big dogs do have a much shorter lifespan than you would hope for. On top of this they have also found that dogs that are kept lean live on average just over a year longer than those that are kept at what is deemed an 'ideal' weight or heavier. There are so many factors, other than genetics, than can influence a dogs longevity that it is not something that can be reliably stated. Becky
vets are their experience.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! where are the stats to support the theory? . there aren't!
Not sure that makes total sense as a x breed can inherit health problems inherent in both its parent breeds. However, I guess with a x breed there is less chance of a disease that is caused/exacerbated by a small gene pool of dogs.
Most of my dogs have been fairly healthy - both pedigree and mongrels/crosses. The exception to this was one of my Mini Schnauzer who had problems for a year until I had to have her PTS aged only 6. One the other hand Leo (another Mini Schnauzer) is now aged 7.5 years and has never been to the vet apart from his boosters.
We had two Boxer x Labradors. They inherited health issues associated with their dam (Boxer). They didnt live any lOnger than any pure bred dog we have ever owned. Our Boxer boy we have only visits the vets once a year for his booster
My last crossbreed had severe HD, hearing problems, a dicky heart & was very nervous-yes she lived until she was around 19, but then she was a small dog & had any medical conditions treated timeously. The statistics that are spouted by the likes of the PDE program are always from Insurance Companies & as the vast majority of dogs that are insured are pedigree the statistics are not valid. In the words of Leonard H.Courtney
I'm very fascinated by this topic, especially as its a hot topic since 'show standards' is currently deemed unhealthy by some (I am not going to get into how true or false that statement is but just pointing out public opinion - such as BBC dropping Crufts over it.) Dogs bred for sporting/jobs tend to be the healthiest from what I understand (as an unhealthy dog can't do its job, which means lots of angry clients with their money hungry lawyers.) Aside from that, I think the only way a cross breed may be healthier than a purebred is if its parents just happen to not be carriers of a genetic disorder. Some disorders are dominant, some are recessive, some only requires one dog to be a carrier. There are too many variables to make a valid argument for either case.
Can I just correct your statements The BBC tried to force the KC to drop certain breeds, which they refused to do & the KC then withdrew their permission for the BBC to cover Crufts, the BBC had their contract for coverage(cr@p that it was)terminated The vast majority of dogs bred for "sports"such as shooting etc are not from fully health tested parents. The same goes for dogs bred to work sheep(as in ISDS registered dogs & farm dogs)are also not fully health tested before being bred from. There are an increasing number of ISDS breeders doing hip & DNA testing but for unregistered working sheep dogs bred on farms are from dogs that have never had any testing done at all(The ISDS insist on all dogs having a current clear eye certificate or being DNA normal by parentage or test before their offspring being eligible for registration) One question: Which genetic conditions are carried on Dominant genes ?
Thanks for the corrections Joedee, although its unfortunate that sporting is just as bad since I was hoping for better breeding standards. Good to know that testing is more widespread now; I think people are becoming more aware of it which helps. As for which genetic conditions are dominant, I am not sure. I just figured since there are for humans then there might be for dogs. I'm not a vet or trained in any way, was just covering my bases. ETA: Found one autosomal dominant disorder, specifically HCSMA in the Brittany breed: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6742782
This condition is very rare in a fairly rare breed, I don't know if there is a DNA test for it, however it would appear to be related or similar to DM in GSDs(& other breeds)for which there is now a DNA test
Depends what type of breeder its coming from! a cross breed from a breeder carrying out no health tests, has the ability to suffer just as much as a pedigree dog from the same sort of breeder. Simples.
I had 7 welsh springer's all the parent are health tested and they range in age from 2-9. Apart from Dice who suffers with is ears and the girls who go for a post natal check up none of the have visited the vets. In fact Spence whos almost 9 hasnt set foot in a vets since he was 12 months old. Not bad fro badly bred pedigree's
