Dogs, though noted for their intelligent self and the ability to understand commands and cues, still behave sometimes without really considering the moral implications of their acts. They can learn, for instance, not to go inside the house, but they do not quite have the same capacity as humans about more complicated issues like breeding or genetics. This lack of awareness often leads to behaviors that may be troubling or inappropriate in human terms, with inbreeding being a prime example.
Inbreeding refers to the mating of closely related dogs, such as siblings, and is more common than many realize. Though incestuous pairings might be disturbing to humans, they occur naturally in the animal kingdom, including within dog populations.
What Happens When Brother and Sister Dogs Mate?
Dogs do not possess the same concept of familial relationships as humans do. Dogs might know littermates and parents, but they understand these relationships within the context of how they are interacting with them immediately. Studies have shown that dogs, particularly within their first 16 weeks of life, are more apt to recall their siblings or parents if they are strongly linked during their development.
Although dogs are familiar with one another, they will continue to mate because they do not view sibling interaction as wrong just the way human beings perceive it. To canines, sex is only a function to fulfill their biological urge without involvement of any moral or emotional concern. Dogs see sexuality as one aspect of their standard exercise and playtime in which inbreeding frequently occurs without compunction.
Is Canine Inbreeding Legal?
Most of the time, the breeding of a dog with its lineage is not illegal and permitted by most countries. In some jurisdictions, it can be banned; however, so long as no cases of animal cruelty exist, it is otherwise permitted to occur. For thousands of years, selective inbreeding has been the method used to maintain certain characteristics within particular breeds of dogs. Some professional dog breeders practice selective inbreeding for the purpose of maintaining specific characteristics within breeds of dogs.
Arguments for Canine Inbreeding
Inbreeding is not without its proponents. One of the most significant reasons for inbreeding is the ability to produce offspring with predictable traits. Breeders aim to strengthen desirable characteristics in specific dog breeds by mating dogs that exhibit those traits, thus refining the breed. This process allows breeders to "perfect" the physical and behavioral attributes they want, making inbreeding a common method for creating highly sought-after dogs.
For example, a process of inbreeding can be used to breed out undesirable genetic traits or diseases from a gene pool. While this may work through a potential benefit, the risks usually outweigh the gain.
Risks Associated with Canine Inbreeding
Though inbreeding might seem advantageous with regard to a few genetic traits, it poses several serious risks to the health and well-being of the dogs involved. These include:
Decreased Fertility
It can cause fertility problems, as a result of increasing homozygosity of harmful recessive genes; that is to say that the detrimental genetic traits will gain prominence, and their offspring may not be able to reproduce effectively, stopping the continuation of the genetic lineage.
Pregnancy Complications
A sibling-bred female dog can suffer severe consequences, such as miscarriages and uterine problems. The hormonal imbalance can thus make the heat cycles irregular, lead to mummified embryos, and even the death of the breeding female pregnant with the puppies.
Degenerate Gene Pool
Inbreeding will reduce the genetic diversity of a breed so that the incidences of inherited diseases may increase, while a smaller gene pool results in an increased risk of certain genetic disorders becoming widespread within a breed, with potentially disastrous long-term health consequences for dogs.
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Impaired Immunity
Inbred puppies usually suffer from the fact that their immunity is weak and predisposed to diseases and infections. Their studies also indicate that inbred dogs are prone to autoimmunity conditions, which may trigger chronic health issues.
GENETIC DEFECTS
The major danger of inbreeding is the tendency to be prone to genetic mutations. Dogs that are inbred have a higher chance of exhibiting life-altering physical and behavioral defects that may otherwise not surface with regular breeding.
Reinforcement of Recessive Genes
Inbreeding not only stresses the desirable traits but also enforces undesirable recessive genes. It can develop unwanted traits by causing the phenomenon of "inbreeding depression," where the genetic line becomes too weak to continue.
Increased Aggression and Behavioral Problems
Inbred dogs develop behavioral problems such as increased aggression, impulsiveness, and suspicion of other people or animals. Others become chronically anxious and are placed outside of adoptable programs, causing immense emotional and physical distress to the animals and their owners.
Conclusion
While it occurs by chance among single isolated populations of animals, breeding dogs should never promote this method. There would be some scatter of favorable inheritance of desired characteristics but at the same time enormous risks of health and even behavioral disorders of pedigree heterozygotes of health and even behavioral problems far outweigh such benefits. Inbreeding raises the possibility of birth defects and weakened immunity and infertility, all factors detrimental to the health conditions of animals involved.
Breeding dogs and caring for a litter can place significant responsibility on one's shoulders, thus the need to adopt proactive approaches in avoiding inbreeding. Separation of males from females during breeding periods as well as spaying and neutering prevent accidental inbreeding. A healthy gene pool provides a mechanism for the long-term health and viability of dog breeds.
