Breeding

Breeding is something that should not be undertaken lightly and in my opinion breeding should never be undertaken for the primary purpose of profit. Actually, most persons who breed conscientiously and work to expand the gene pool by varying breedings, which typically requires distant travel,  are fortunate to recover some of the funds expended. High quality reproductive vet care, testing, registrations and certifications, training and showing in addition to routine care and feeding are more costly than most would be breeders imagine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ethical breeder: is passionate about the breed; understands the breed's strengths and weaknesses; truly understands Entlebucher structure and movement and uses that knowledge in choosing breeding pairs; is committed to maintaining and where possible is involved in improving the health of the breed; understands the responsibility he/she has for each puppy for it's entire life time; and wants to assure that only the best will be bred. There is a history of choosing breeding dogs from litters by markings in the Entlebucher breed in North America. Hopefully as our breeders become more educated these decisions will be made on a more educated basis.

Most puppies will not fall into the "Best of  Breed" category but will be great pets. However. I believe that the same consideration must go into choosing pairs for producing "just pets" as for trying to produce conformation and performance champions. The way a dog is "put together" according to it's standard determines the dogs ability to move properly and remain active and comfortable his/her entire life.

As with any rare breed   care must be taken when making breeding decisions. Most Entlebuchers share many of the same founders within the recent third and fourth generations, they all share common ancestors within five to six generations and more. Care must be taken to avoid repeated close line breeding.

Close line breeding in and of itself does not cause genetic problems but it increases the likelihood of occurrence of genetic problems such as PRA, cataracts etc. This is complicated by the fact that line breeding, in reality a form of inbreeding, is the only way to "fix" positive traits and is commonly used by breeders of nearly all breeds to "fix" those traits in their kennel line.

The Wildhorn line is in it's fourth generation and is a balance of line breeding and  outcrosses. The goal is to maintain the Wildhorn "look" and quality while adding positive genetic variables to the best of my knowledge and ability.

Entlebucher Registration

All Wildhorn Entlebuchers are registered with NEMDA, the AKC Entlebucher Mountain Dog Parent Club. Very soon, the NEMDA registry will be transferred to the American Kennel Club as part of our move toward full AKC recognition. At that time all NEMDA dogs that are not also currently registered with the AKC Foundation Stock Service (FSS) will receive AKC FSS numbers. In the meantime, if you have a NEMDA registration and you want to compete in AKC Companion events you can independently obtain an FSS number from AKC as they recognize the NEMDA registry.