Cocker Maggie & Co

Do you need a pedigree, if you don’t want to go on dog shows? Aren’t the breeders just increasing the price on the puppy because they can with a pedigree, so they are making a fortune on selling puppies? Is the pedigree a guarantee for a healthy puppy? Is that some of the questions you have asked your self in the search of a puppy? Then read more here!

As I have written earlier in The process of finding your new family member there are a lot of decisions to make when you are searching for your new family member – and you should do your research as this little furry friend will be by your side the next maybe 15 years. One of the first questions that will arise for many is: should we find a puppy with a pedigree or not? Here is my take on, why a pedigree is important for everyone!

The advantages of a pedigree

First of all, you know what you get. You can see the size, colors, temperament, etc. of the mother and father of the puppies and you can even go waaaaay back in the their bloodlines. Here you will be able to see health results, field trail tests or dog show results and so on. By choosing a pedigree puppy you also know that the distinct characteristics of the breed you have chosen is kept, as it is not mixed with other breeds. This goes for all breeds but thinking about the Cocker spaniel it could be it’s genetics for hunting, that will be kept in the bloodlines. Maybe you don’t want to go hunting with your Cocker Spaniel, but if that is the breed you have chosen, that’s a part of the package deal. Another thing you can be sure of is the coat structure. By mixing breeds you don’t know what kind of coat structure you will get, which can make it both difficult for you to handle but also it could destroy the purpose of the coat which in many cases is protective for the dog.

To me the single most important reason for buying a puppy with a pedigree, is the safety net you’ll get. Buying a puppy is just like buying a TV in Denmark. You’ll have two years of guarantee and if there is a “malfunction” you can go back to the breeder to get a new one or you can get some of the money you have paid back – of course depending on what the “malfunction” is. If the breeder is not cooperative, you can always contact Dansk Kennel Klub, and they will help you. Another safety net you have is the knowledge of the breeder. Many breeder have years and years of experience with this specific breed. They know every positive and negative sides, they know about health, they can guide you on training, food, grooming and even breeding, if that is something you want to pursue. Most breeders are not more than a phone call away, and they will provide you with a life long support. I know it might sound like I’m putting breeders up on a pedestal, but honestly sometimes the breeders even knows better, when it comes to breed specific issues, than the vet does. Vets have a general knowledge about dogs, and naturally you should always listen to your vet, but we have seen many cases where the vets could give you a simple advise that will fix your dogs problem, but instead they are giving you the full treatment with medicine. Best example is the ears of a Cocker Spaniel. Many vets will not advise you to clip away all hair inside the ears, if the dog has an infection. But for Cocker Spaniels this should be the first thing you do, even before treating with medications.

What you will not get from a pedigree

A dog is a living being and naturally there are no guarantees on neither health, looks, skills or temperament when buying a puppy from a breeder – pedigree or not. So even if the parents of the puppy is checked for different illnesses that can occur in the breed, there is no guarantee, that the puppy will not suffer from something else. For instance cancer, which can be difficult to control in your breeding, as some cancer might could be inherited, whereas other kinds of cancer has nothing to do with the bloodlines. Just as with the health, you can neither be guaranteed, that your dog will be a good show dog even if the parents have won several prizes on dog show. So, nothing is guaranteed with a pedigree, this is just your insurance, that you will get a pure breed with the traits that you have found suitable for you and your family. To which degree these traits will show, you can only look in the family tree to guess, but again.. No guarantees, dogs are not something that you order on a factory, but the breeders are doing their best to make sure they are healthy and fit to function.

What to be aware of in pedigree dogs

Not everything is perfect and glamorous in pedigree dogs! Breeders does get criticized for destroying breeds by taking single breed specific traits and trying to develop these into extremes. The reasons for this are many.. It could be due to what the puppy buyers finds cute in a specific breed or maybe even celebrities have promoted something unnatural or unhealthy in the breed. For instance you can see this in pugs, where the eyes are too big and the nose is too short for it to breath properly, just because people finds this look cute and breeders have followed what is popular. Another example is “cup sized” dogs, where you specifically try to breed the dog smaller than what it usually is, because they look adorable. But breeders can also have other reasons for doing so, for instance if a trait in the breed becomes popular in dog shows. Here we actually do have a good example in the English Cocker Spaniel. The Cocker have not changed that much during the years, but what has changed is the coat. The Cocker Spaniel now a days have much more hair than they did earlier and this is probably because a bigger coat (groomed the right way) is being appreciated at dog shows. This could create an issue for the dogs going forward for two reasons: 1. they are not fit for going hunting and 2. the coat it too difficult for people to maintain. We have plenty of examples of this happening within pure breeds, where some breeds gets too long, too over angulated, has too much skin, etc. So be aware, take a look at the breed and think about what looks natural and what doesn’t.

What breeders selling puppies without pedigrees will say to you

So, if you go for a breed because you have found that this specific breed fits you and your family, then I think it speaks for it self why to chose one with a pedigree. If you end up visiting a breeder who wants to sell you a puppy without a pedigree, this is some of the arguments I will be on a watch out for:
1. “Both the mother and the father of the puppies have a pedigree, we just didn’t want to register them” (it is not the papers and registration that costs you money, so this is no reason)
2. “I will send the pedigree to your house address” (the pedigree and all paperwork from the Dansk Kennel Klub will follow the puppy, so you should get it all when picking up the puppy)
3. (In Denmark) giving you a pedigree from another association than “Dansk Kennel Klub” (Dansk kennel klub is the only associations which is a part of the FCI. It is the official kennel club of Denmark)
4. Pedigrees only matter if you want show your dog on dog shows (explained above why not – pedigrees are for family dogs primarily, dog shows are only an add on)
5. …. And so much more

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Here you have our view on why the pedigree is important. Again, we are not saying that a dog without a pedigree is worth less, is not as a good, isn’t as cute, isn’t healthy or anything like that. Especially we understand if you want to give a dog from a shelter a new life. But if everyone around the world started off by think twice before getting a dog and do their research to make sure the breed they chose fits into ones life, then we are sure there will less miserable dogs out there searching for new a home and less dogs getting abandoned.