Ethical Breeders

How do we define ethical breeders? We follow the guidelines set forth by the German Shorthaired Club of America working in conjunction with setting standards with the OFA ( The Canine Health Information Center, OFA.org )

Faith in the Point Bird Dogs

David Stover III

https://www.fitpointbirddogs.com/

317-537-9000

Trafalger, IN

The GSPCA Breeder Referral is a listing of GSP breeders located through out the U.S. Some have hot links to their individual websites and those that don’t have other contact information. While the Parent Club offers this service it is important to note this is not to be considered an endorsement, guarantee, recommendation or approval. It is the Breeder’s responsibility when it comes to the health, temperament and advertised attributes of the puppies and dogs offered for sale. While the GSP breed is considered relatively free of genetic problems when compared to most other AKC breeds, there are health clearances that breeders can provide.

The coat pattern of GSPs can be quite varied ranging from solid to one with markings. The coat color of the purebred GSP will be liver and white or black and white but not a combination of liver, black and white. Some shade of liver may be very dark but the color of the dog’s nose will indicate whether it is a liver dog i.e. brown nose for a brown dog or black nose for a black dog. BUYER BEWARE: One may see advertisements for “rare” GSPs based on color. One should approach these advertisements with caution, because the responsible breeder understands there is no “rare” colors found in the breed. There is a recessive gene that can result in the dilute color of gray (d, d) or the expression of the lemon color (e,e). DNA tests are available to determine if either the sire or dam carries the recessive gene that produces these colors. Reputable breeders will not produce either of these colors intentionally.

At a minimum, breeding stock should be certified against hip and elbow dysplasia by the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) with a ranking of normal for elbows and at least good or excellent for the hips. Some breeders may use PennHIP as a means to assess the hip joint and the amount of laxity both of which can be a predictor of future hip health problems. GSPs rank 107th in hip dysplasia with only 5.3% of the Xrays submitted classified as dysplastic. This data is skewed by the probability that most bad Xrays are never submitted to the OFA, which makes the certification all that much more important.

There is also an eye clearance through the OFA Eye Certification Registry which checks for juvenile cataracts; another genetic eye condition Cone Degeneration (CD) can only be cleared by a DNA test. A dog can be determined to be a “non carrier and/or normal”, a “carrier” or an “affected”. Normal means just that, the dog doesn’t carry the genetic disease. A carrier has one half of the genetic material to produce the disease but does not have the disease. Affected dogs have inherited both halves and will exhibit symptoms of the disease which causes the cone receptors in the eyes begin to degenerate and by the time pups are 9wks of age the breeder would begin to notice these pups have a problem with depth perception, seeing comfortably during the daytime and difficulty locating a light colored object on a light background. Termed “day blindness” which is a misnomer in that the dog is not “blind” just that it sees better in low light conditions.

Some will also have thyroid levels tested; test for Von Willebrand’s Disease (VWD) a blood clotting disorder; and have heart function also cleared through the OFA.
It helps to know the health not only of the sire and dam of a litter, but also of their parents and littermates. How long did they live? What if any kind of health issues did they have?