Rumours
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I stumbled upon this article..
_Well, colour me surprised but I think I?m about to heap more praise on the Kennel Club than I?ve ever heaped before.
Before I go on, I must first caution - I am dealing in pure rumour and speculation. But the source is usually good.
There could be a huge announcement at Crufts that the Kennel Club is preparing to open the studbook and (finally) encourage crossbreeding to widen the gene pools of pedigree dog breeds.
Could it be that there is finally some hope for many inbred breeds and that the ridiculous, snobbish attitude to ?purity? is about to be blown away for good?
This move to open the studbook (allow breeds to be outcrossed with other breeds) is something that welfare campaigners have been asking for for many years and one that scientists have stated is what is needed to help get dogs out of the genetic bottleneck that many find themselves in.
Of course, such a move would be a monumental change in pedigree dogdom and would no doubt create some explosive debate within the dog world. But it is unquestionably the right move and would instantly mark Crufts 2009 out as the event that began to set dogs on a fast track to recovery.
Let?s hope that this is one Crufts rumour that actually comes true. But, I must again reiterate, it?s a rumour. Still, we can but wish for it to be confirmed!
Update: Further to the earlier rumour, more fuel to the fire, it is now rumoured that in an effort to halt the genetic decline, the KC is going to INSIST on outcrossing in any breeds with high average COIs (coefficient of inbreeding). So that would include all the endangered breeds such as Dandie Dinmonts, Sealyham and Cesky Terriers. What a truly fantastic response from the KC (if true!)._
