Willow Valley GSD

Pedigree information is an extremely useful tool when trying to desipher the roots of where a particular puppy has come from. When I view a pedigree, I look back to trace its history for health, longevity, temperament, what line-breeding exists and how strong that is, etc. Line breeding is NOT bad...it's actually the best way to produce superior quality dogs if done correctly. I have dedicated vast hours of research on this topic and will write a separate blog in regard to this issue.***************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

You must determine what kind of dog you want to breed. By looking at a pedigree, you see what roots this particular puppy came from, if I'm bringing in "outside" or "cold" blood. Just because someone has their kennel name on a puppy they purchased from a sound and stable line, doesn't mean it's "their" production, so it's increasingly important, at this point, to look past the first 3 generations.******************************************************************************************************************************************************************

For example, if you look back to generation 3, the ancestry happens to be line bred off a well know kennel, that puppy will display and pass on traits from its origin and the solid breeding. For example, I get puppy A. Puppy A came from Kennel breeder "B", however, Kennel breeder "B" purchased that particular sire from Well Known Kennel "C" and put their own kennel name on that sire. When I see kennel "C", I understand that "B" sire is actually a production of Kennel "C" who is well known for successful line breeding and producing a strong, solid line. Kennel  "B" crossed the sire they purchased from Kennel “C”, mixed that blood with one of their current females. The blood from the original breeding, Kennel "C", is "pure-blood" within the breed and its own "line", therefore for the next 3-4 generations, no "cold" blood or new blood will make a difference. ALL traits and qualities passed are from the original breeding, which is Kennel "C". Therefore, when I choose to buy Puppy A, I can see that while I may not be excited about where the puppy was born, or perhaps the kennel I purchased from, I see where the roots of that puppy really are. I know what I'll pass to my generations and give credit to Kennel "C".

Essentially, we are talking about line breeding here, but it could be simply, a strong line from any kennel. The, what I term, "mix and match" breeding in between has no effect. It's a common misconception. I'll go into much more detail in my Line breeding series...for now, let's go back to Registration and procedure.********************************************************************************************************************************************************************

From this year forward, because I have a solid understanding of the importance of pedigree information, it's also important to put your kennel name, on all puppies you produce, so other people can look back and know the purpose of the breeding and where the puppy came from. The outside blood you bring in should have the name of the kennel that produced them. I'm proud of what I produce. I put great time and energy into making sound pairings, developing my line and breeding for purpose, not just puppies to sell. With that said, I want people to know where my dogs come from. The only way to do that and have it remain accurate is to use my Kennel name on what I produce. I have had too many people that won't use my kennel name in registration, when I just hand them the application to submit on their own. They don't understand the importance behind this. Therefore, new rules here...NO AKC or UKC Registration application will leave. I will have all puppies registered with limited registration and with my kennel name on each registration. Puppies produced will be given names that reflect that particular litter. For instance, Letter "A" litter will all have pedigree names that begin with the letter "A". You may choose a name with the Letter A and I can add that when I submit the paperwork, if you like, or I will choose the registration name, on older puppies, and you may use a call name of your choice with your puppy. If for some odd reason, I agree to grant breeding rights, which are very few and far in between, AFTER the puppy is OFA hip and elbow scored and the remainder of the contract is satisfied, I will change the registration status. ***************************************************************************************

The other issue with handing over applications is that I have had issues in the past with people taking them and registering the puppy with an "alternative" registry so that they can breed the dog to make money off puppies they can register somewhere. I have strong opinions on this as well; I don't give breeding rights for many reasons. 1. I don't know what people have for intention for my dogs and I DO NOT want them to end up in the hands of backyard breeders and/or puppy millers. 2. For the decency of life in my puppy, as well as the fact I work VERY HARD to produce superior quality puppies, if a pup leaves here with breeding rights, I have no control when they leave here, what people will breed them too, in essence saturating, washing out and/or thinning my line.

Withholding breeding rights isn't an act of ill intention, it's an act of respect out of what I do, how I do it and for each puppy I send out, it helps to ensure they are going to nice forever homes and won't end up in a Kennel bred to death. I screen the best I can, and from time to time, I have gotten burned, moreover, my puppy has...and I WILL enforce my contract and take my pup back! When I do give breeding rights, I want to feel certain things are done correctly. I have mostly given rights to good friends whom I KNOW what's happening with my puppy as well as know that dog has a great life!

Long story short...it's very important to know your puppy's roots and what kind of beginning they have had. An accurate pedigree can give you that. Which is the reason why my procedure in the registration process is changing beginning 2010. Please watch for the wonderful litters we have planned for the year.

Canine hip dysplasia is characterized by varying degrees of hip joint laxity (looseness), subluxation (partial dislocation), and ultimately, severe arthritic change. Clinically, the symptoms range from having no clinical signs in some affected dogs to severe and crippling disease in others. The severity of the clinical signs does not necessarily correlate with the degree of radiographic (x-ray) or pathologic changes seen.

Their have been years of controversy sourrounding the question of whether to OFA or NOT OFA. There are many different opinions in regard to the quality, fairness, and consistancy involved with OFA, Orthopedic Foundation for Animals. There are concerns with AKC's direct affiliation with OFA. I'm going to share with you my opinion on this matter, through much research and time dedicated in understanding hip evaluation.

It's true that there are many factors associated in the develpment of hips that play a role in the final outcome of a mature hip. First, age plays a role. A young pup doesn't have "bone" per say as opposed to cartilage. Same holds true for infant children. They don't suffer bone fractures as adults do, they suffer "green stick" fractures which is essentailly cartilage. Large breed pups should be fed an adequate diet and grow SLOWLY. The slower the growth, the better chance the hip has to form. If a puppy grows too quickly, the femoral head (the ball portion of the hip joint) can outgrow the acetabulum (hip socket).

More times than not, hip dysplaisia is related to poor nutrition, too fast of growth, too little excercise, injury and/or environmental issues. The heredity of hip dysplaisa is pretty much non existant. Many website and vets will attest to it being a hereditary disease only. While, possible, not probable. Let's focus for a second on guarentee...

NOTHING is 100%! You have people who will refute the importance of hip testing because, truth be known, you can take the best possible precausions and OFA score, PennHip, or use an over seas rating, like the SV and "A" stamp, use only the animals with the best possible hip rating of "Excellent" and it doesn't eradicate the possibility of two Excellent hip rated parents producing dysplastic progeny. Does it minimize the chances, YES, does it guarentee it?  NO.

1% of GSD's received an OFA rating of Excellent. The chances of them producing mostly GOOD hips is very strong. Possibly producing Excellent could happen, FAIR ratings are possible and even HD somewhere could pop up. What I'm saying is that it's a crap shoot. HOWEVER, I personally hip test and believe that if I'm trying to produce superior quality GSD's that it's better to gamble with animals rated well, from the beginning, than to make excuses and assign responsibility for not testing on some asinine concept like "it doesn't matter". If you test and in your career produce a bad hip, heck, it's excused, it happens, and you make it right. No one can point the finger and say you didn't breed with the utmost possible discretion. I have heard breeder say 100 times over, "It doesn't matter because even if I rate hips they can still produce puppies with HD". I think it's a cop out and if you believe in the strength of your line, health and longevity, it's an automatic.

There are different methods, as I mentioned above, OFA is kind of the "GodFather" of hip rating, Pennhip is a fairly new procedure that measures the laxity (looseness) of the hip and the posibility that, at some point, that particular dog "could" develop HD. This test can be done as early as 4 months of age, which is a draw for people to use it over OFA. HOWEVER, again, you CAN do a Preliminary exam/xray at 4 months of age and send it to OFA for rating. Because it's also true that the hips don't stop maturing until into their 2nd year, OFA doesn't "certify" the hip or give a final evaluation until 24 months of age or on. That doesn't mean that OFA won't look at films and issue a prelim report under 24 months of age to give you an idea of where you're at. I do Prelim, and have dogs Prlim GOOD at 9 months of age before the hip is finished growing.

I see many people use every method possible. Blaming OFA for inconsitancy in issuing a Fair or Dysplastic report. Alot will do an OFA Prelim, if they don't pass, turn to PennHip, if they don't pass, turn to some of the foreign organizations that do hip ratings. I do believe OFA can be inconsistant. You can submit different films, taken by different vets of the same dog, on different days, and can get a different score from OFA. I guarentee you will find inconsitancy with ALL TESTING of ANY KIND! If you send films to OFA and get a failing score...it's obvious...A BAD HIP IS A BAD HIP!!!  Period! If you get a score of "Fair", sure, perhaps the postitioning by the vet wasn't correct, which will make the hip look differently. If you use a vet that is well versed on proper positioning your chances of getting a correct reading is good. If you get a non-passing score, perhaps, instead of blaming the inconsistancies on OFA, we should encourage our vets to take their time, be well educated on the importance of proper positioning instead of just cramming them into any other film taking slot on their appointment book, snap a film to get it done, and hand them over. I HAVE had this happen and have refused to send in films that are ill- positioned.

To give the best chances for proper and healthy hip formation, Keep your dog at a healthy weight, Excercise daily, giving oral supplements can help. I do supplement, but that's a different discussion as there are those out there who don't believe there is any benefit to supplementation.

In conclusion, I do Hip Test, and believe it's a very useful tool when trying to produce top quality GSD's. I also believe that there are many things you can do to assist in good hip formation and growth and will continue to stress the importance of breeding for good hips.

Please see...You may do research of your own beginning here...

www.offa.org (OFA)

http://research.vet.upenn.edu/Default.aspx?alias=research.vet.upenn.edu/pennhip (PennHIP)

British Veterinary Association (BVA/KC)

SV issues "A" Stamps in Germany

**I have many bookmarked websites, articles and documentation regarding hips. I'm not going to list them all on here, if you're interested in learning more, please contact me and I'll be happy to foward you what I have.***

A Year in the Life of a Breeder

I've decided to invite you all to venture into my world of 19 years, to share with you the reality of breeding and enlighten you with the right way of doing something with careful, honest, and purposeful meaning. With vast experience comes the trials and tribulations, the happiness and heartache, basically, the good, the bad, the ugly, of raising dogs. It's interesting to me, the amount of stereotypical mindsets out there. For the vast majority, the word breeder leaves a negative connotation along with, even for me, a sour taste in my mouth. However, there is a huge difference in doing something you love for all the right reasons and doing something to make a buck. Without further delay, I want to map out a synopsis of the reality of breeding in my world and what that really encompasses.

First of all, I prefer to refer to myself as a "hobbyist" as my vision of a "breeder" isn't a good one. However, my belief, as a "breeder", is that if you aren't out to reproduce the best possible all-around quality you can, you have ZERO business considering it in the first place. For me, that means, start with a dog of health, one of sound mind, good conformation, solid structure, stable temperament, and superior breeding/pedigree. With what I believe to be the ultimate GSD, I then and only then, add in coat and color to tweak some variety in my line. This is mostly for personal pleasure, however, there is a call from others for the "exotic" and unique.

My dogs are NOT kennel dogs. They are all born and raised in my home and manhandled by my kids, as well as friends and extended family. They are a welcome part of our family and raised in a stable and loving environment. My pups are all taken to beginning obedience classes, at my local club, not for training, but for socializing purposes. They are taught manners, do's and don't's, and what human love and affection is all about. They are in and out of the house. Some more than others, but ALL of them come inside. Some of them are inside all the time unless by choice. Are they stuck in a 3 X 3 kennel when they are not inside, NO! Is it fair to your dog, when you leave for work, to stuff them inside either a small crate, or a kennel for 8-10 hours and if they are lucky, they come out to spend a few hours in the house with family before the day begins tomorrow? My dogs are in a 115 X 120 foot enclosure, for safety purposes when I'm not here. That's larger than most peoples back yards! They have no knowledge of being contained. With horses, and other commonalities of country life, it's important to keep my guys safe, and happy, therefore, when I'm not here, this is necessary. When I'm home, they rotate out, OFF chain with us and in and out of the house. My day job is by appointment, so I'm fortunate enough to spend the majority of my time here, for animals and kids.

I do NOT breed, on average, more than 3 litters per year, sometimes less than that. All my mommies are loved, fed a top of the line diet, supplements, and focused on for the 62 days they are pregnant with tiny little miracles. For me, babies are better than Christmas! Once labor begins, I am up, sometimes 24 plus hours, am parked in the whelping box with mom, and each and every little life, holds a special place in my heart. If that means that at birth one of our precious babes isn't breathing, I don't think for a second, of doing anything but breathing life into their little lungs. I have had kids with upset stomachs over this, however, if I were a careless and detached breeder, I certainly wouldn't put forth the kind of effort that, from time to time, is required. Even at times, on occasion, we lose one of our pups at birth, he/she is laid to rest with a proper burial. I have gotten flack about this, in the past, for wasting time on doing something you have no attachment to. I assure you, for us, that is not the case.

I have recently had friends tell me that what I do is definitely a business for me. That there is no way, that they could do this and just sell what they love. I'm here to correct this misconception.

I have a die hard love and emotional investment in the GSD and have for going on 20 years. I will admit, the first couple litters I had, were quite difficult to place because you fall in love with each and every one of them. You believe you ARE the best possible home for these little guys and want to hog them all to yourself. Then the smoke begins to clear, and common sense begins to surface. As much as you love these guys, you know out of fairness to them, mixed with simple logic, you can't keep them all. For me it's become a passion. Out of all the love, adoration, blood, sweat and tears I put into this, the reward is vast beyond a monitory sense. I reproduce phenomenal animals! I breed to share the same kind of love that I have in my heart, for these guys, with someone else. To see the person who just lost their family member of 14 years, and be able to place a companion with them, to see the light come to their eyes and the kind of smile that literally warms you, it's instant gratification for me. To bring such happiness, to share such joy with others, based on what I'm doing to better the breed and human kind is priceless.

From a monetary standpoint, let's get real people...when you do this right, you are lucky to break even. You factor in the expensive dog food, the supplements, the added nutritional requirements, the vet bills, the bills for hips and other health ratings, the religious worming, the vaccinations, toys, the value of your hard work from the second mom is bred, through the journey of each and every puppy finding a wonderful home, YOU MAKE NOTHING!!!!!!! The reward you reap is from the satisfaction of being able to enrich someone else's life and at the same time, out of love for the baby you just raised, being able to place them in a wonderful life long forever home with people to love and cherish each day with that puppy. Is there a greater feeling of fulfillment than that? Not for me! For those of you who may have doubt, please read my ?"Testimonial" page, and you may leave with a better understanding for the kind of effort I put in for other people.

It disheartens me to hear people, so lightly, dish around their opinions in regard to raising animals. If I wasn't emotionally invested, any Tom, Dick, or Harry to show up with cash in their hands, would get a puppy to do with as they so elected. I'm very selective of the homes my animals go, I screen people to match them with the right puppy, I have a lengthy contract that is signed and enforced, and for the icing on the cake, I have probably given away, FREE, as many pups as I have received money for. For that matter, this all applies to horses as well.

No one talks about the puppy you inadvertently placed in an irresponsible home, the one who calls you a month later and tells you that out of simple ignorance they exposed their puppy to parvo, whom is on his death bed with their vet and they don't want to pay the medical bills. Therefore, unless you're willing to buy the puppy back and reimburse them for their medical bills, they will elect to euthanize the puppy. HEEELLLLLLOOOOOOOO!!!!! This is utter idiocy and makes me sick! What does a caring breeder do, what did I do?

Out of no responsibility of my own and under no obligation, I bought the puppy back, paid their $540 vet bill, drove to pick up the puppy with IV still in, take the puppy to my vet and pay another $1000 for intensive care with my vet for over a week. Then bring the baby back here and for 2 months solid, nurse this puppy. Bleach my floor 3 times per day to be certain no Parvo virus could live. Feed round the clock fluids, through a syringe, feeding spoonfuls of expensive canned food 8 plus times per day, loving this pup with every beat of your heat, trying to give the baby a will to live. And after all that, loving that animal enough to again, seek out a home for them that will love them as much as you do, and love them enough to be able to let them go, and guess what...FREE, that's F R E E, that spells FREE! Was it a money deal for me, hell no! I did it based on my devotedness to what I do and my overwhelming responsibility for what I bring into this world.

The ability to breed and part with the animal isn't heartless, it's selfless!

Do I place ALL pups in fantastic homes 100% of the time? No, I have had a handful of experiences over the many years, where I have had to reclaim one of my dogs. Will I "steal" the puppy back due to neglect, abuse, or abandonment? YES! Do I make you sign a contract stating that in those kind of situations, I WILL proceed for the betterment of the animal? YES. Will I take you to court and prosecute if you're a piece of crap? YES!

How about when you place a pup and find out by anonymous calls that he is chained to a tree by a 3 foot rope, no food, no water, and thin as a rail? Do I shrug a shoulder and say, "I got my money". HELL NO! I go take my dog back!

When someone buffalos you into believing they will be one of the best homes you have ever placed in, takes 2 puppies, and turns around and resells them as a broker, to double their money, do I turn my cheek because I made my cash? NO! I take them to court! Animals are NOT MERCHANDISE! I am NOT Wal-mart on a "please return if you change your mind" policy, nor am I Burger King where you get things your way. If I don't believe you are the appropriate home, your money is no good here. PERIOD!

When one of my pups is injured, by a dog fight and you come home to a bloody mess because a puppy was accidentally bitten through a jugular vein with a pierced trachea, do you put them to sleep because the prognosis isn't good and you're told that the time and money it will take to heal will be greater than the worth of the puppy? NO!!! You bestow everything in your power... medications, changing bandages 4 times per day, blending a special diet in a blender multiples times per day so that she can get adequate nutrition, while she heals over the course of 3 months, and when it's all said and done, love her enough to place her in a home with kids, and family, for what in return??? Knowing that I saved a life, I cared enough to see it through and was able to give a second chance to a baby most people wouldn't have put forth effort to save. What did I get out of that experience? The self satisfaction of filling hearts of people just like me, whom have an overwhelming amount of love to give, AND sharing that with an animal who has given you the fight to live, out of love. That's greater than any paycheck!

Let's see, how about when you lose electric for a week long and you refuse to give your puppies creek water due to the possible infestation of parasites? So you decide to purchase Culligan water for them. You come home, open the back of your SUV, and a 5 gallon jug of H2O falls out and just happens to land on a 6 week old puppy. While horrified, you rush them to the vet, and find not one broken leg, but 2! With having splints changed every other day, at $110 per visit for 1 month, then long term casts, and then 3 months of rehab, water therapy, massage, supplements, diapers, etc., do you give up and take the easy road and euthanize? NO!!! I did not. You can do the math on that one. Again, did I place her for even a fraction of the money I had in her? Nope, I GAVE her to someone who would love her as much, if not more, than I did.

What happens, as a breeder, when someone calls you in desperation, in trying to find someone to give them information on how to heal their broken heart due to a loss of their own dog, when they can't afford what most people charge for a puppy? I'm not sure about your "typical" breeder, but here's me (this is based on puppies I get $1500 for, with no questions asked,) I invite these people over to play with my pups and see if we can work something out. I am taken by the nature of these people and know in my gut that this puppy would have a phenominal home. Do I tell them that because they can't afford $1500, they need to find another puppy, and send them packin?? No? I GIVE them a puppy because they instantly bond with him and I know beyond a shadow of doubt that they will love him, without condition.

What happens 3 weeks later when the same lady calls and tells you how much they love their little guy and also break the bad news that their mom's GSD of 13 years past away and she is just lost??? They want to know how to help her overcome her feeling of being lost when she comes home with no family member at the door wagging their tail. I tell them to bring her down here...and I GIVE them ANOTHER puppy! WHY? It had NOTHING to do with money, it had everything to do with people, respect and caring!

Doing what I do is selfless! I make little, put in a lot, and am rewarded far greater than most people could ever hope for. Those people who have no understanding of how I can do this, need to take a step back and try to understand that it isn't a matter of dogs being a "business", it's a matter of loving something and believing in something so much that the desire to share that with anyone and everyone you can, takes over.

Again, is being able to place a baby you have raised heartless? NO, it's SELFLESS!!

I was also recently told that I think more with my head and less with my heart. I'm not quite sure, in everything I do, where that has any logical place, because that is so far removed from the truth it's borderline asinine. It goes beyond trashing someone's moral fabric of being, but is really a misguided judgment. Perhaps, in return, those people who believe what I have passion for in doing, whom can't relate to the same, are more selfish in their actions than what they care about for someone or something else.

For those who can't see that, or refuse to see it, I pity them for being so self-absorbed that their personal gratitude means more to them then making the ultimate sacrifice for the love and enjoyment of good people, good animals, and a life long duty to share that wealth with others. It's my desire to share how I feel and to challenge anyone who doesn't understand or believe in the "right" way of doing this, to step outside their box and for just a moment, try to see through my eyes and walk my shoes...

 It's a pretty magical place!

Written out of amity and respect

for my canine and equine family.

Janie Vanasdal, Willow Valley GSD.