Frequently Asked Questions
How Do You Make Your Breeding Decisions?
Breeding any species and doing it well is a complicated balance of decisions; with dogs its weighing the benefits to the breeding dogs, the hopeful outcome for the puppies, and stepping back and zooming out and asking how can this help the breed? When I am looking at the parents, I consider what are their blessings and what are areas that I'd prefer to see altered in the next generation and selecting for parents that are likely to compliment and balance each other.
Breeding any species and doing it well is a complicated balance of decisions; with dogs its weighing the benefits to the breeding dogs, the hopeful outcome for the puppies, and stepping back and zooming out and asking how can this help the breed? When I am looking at the parents, I consider what are their blessings and what are areas that I'd prefer to see altered in the next generation and selecting for parents that are likely to compliment and balance each other.
Tails? Dewclaws? Ears?
I believe in leaving tails natural, front dewclaws on all of our dogs, and natural ear sets. I know I am going to take heat for that decision within the purebred community, and I am fine with that - this is my position. I do not have an opinion on the decisions of other breeders and tails/dewclaws/ears - you do what is right for you and your program. With my own program, it does not make sense to remove front dewclaws and dock tails and I will leave my ear sets natural. I know that with ear sets it is common practice to influence them with different methods - however, I will not personally be doing that to my own dogs and I accept that this means that I will have incorrect ear sets for the breed standard including prick ears. I believe that the breed standard is aspirational and the goal, and my personal methodology is to arrive to that goal naturally.
That being said, I DO have a lot of the Natural Bob Tail gene - a trait that has been passed down each generation from my very first breeding dog named Lily, so it is common for my litters to have a variety of tail lengths.
While I leave front dewclaws, there have been puppies born with rear dewclaws; because they are vestigial in this breed - I do remove rear dewclaws. They are not common, but yes they can pop up.
I believe in leaving tails natural, front dewclaws on all of our dogs, and natural ear sets. I know I am going to take heat for that decision within the purebred community, and I am fine with that - this is my position. I do not have an opinion on the decisions of other breeders and tails/dewclaws/ears - you do what is right for you and your program. With my own program, it does not make sense to remove front dewclaws and dock tails and I will leave my ear sets natural. I know that with ear sets it is common practice to influence them with different methods - however, I will not personally be doing that to my own dogs and I accept that this means that I will have incorrect ear sets for the breed standard including prick ears. I believe that the breed standard is aspirational and the goal, and my personal methodology is to arrive to that goal naturally.
That being said, I DO have a lot of the Natural Bob Tail gene - a trait that has been passed down each generation from my very first breeding dog named Lily, so it is common for my litters to have a variety of tail lengths.
While I leave front dewclaws, there have been puppies born with rear dewclaws; because they are vestigial in this breed - I do remove rear dewclaws. They are not common, but yes they can pop up.
How do Co-Owns and purchasing Breeding dogs work with you? What about Mentorship?
Within a breeding program, Co-Owning dogs with other individuals that can be used within a program for breeding is a necessity and can be beneficial for both parties; several of my best dogs from my program are in co-own homes and overtime we have become great friends by working together. A successful co-own requires a few skills for the humans: good communication, the desire for things to be successful for both ourselves and most importantly the dog, and willingness and understanding. I do ask that my co-own dogs compete in sports or conformation and I allow the family that owns the dog to make that decision - I am not going to pressure for high-ranking titles or quantity of titles, but I do ask that the dogs have a skill set. I will be here to support and provide feedback (and also a cheer-squad), because I want this to be successful and positive for both sides. Each co-own is unique and I have co-owners across the United States and I am grateful for each one of them; both of our names go on their registration.
I do not believe in traditional mentorship - I think the best foundation for learning to become a breeder is by building relationships and communicating with a variety of breeders who can support you and give you different tools and ways to think about and conceptualize breeding. I am happy to talk about dogs and breeding all day long and nerd out, but you gotta make your own decisions. I love talking about dog breeding with folks that are building up their concept of what their kennel might be like.
As for purchasing breeding rights out-right, if you have an established breeding program with goals that I think match the type of dogs that I produce - I am open to it.
Within a breeding program, Co-Owning dogs with other individuals that can be used within a program for breeding is a necessity and can be beneficial for both parties; several of my best dogs from my program are in co-own homes and overtime we have become great friends by working together. A successful co-own requires a few skills for the humans: good communication, the desire for things to be successful for both ourselves and most importantly the dog, and willingness and understanding. I do ask that my co-own dogs compete in sports or conformation and I allow the family that owns the dog to make that decision - I am not going to pressure for high-ranking titles or quantity of titles, but I do ask that the dogs have a skill set. I will be here to support and provide feedback (and also a cheer-squad), because I want this to be successful and positive for both sides. Each co-own is unique and I have co-owners across the United States and I am grateful for each one of them; both of our names go on their registration.
I do not believe in traditional mentorship - I think the best foundation for learning to become a breeder is by building relationships and communicating with a variety of breeders who can support you and give you different tools and ways to think about and conceptualize breeding. I am happy to talk about dogs and breeding all day long and nerd out, but you gotta make your own decisions. I love talking about dog breeding with folks that are building up their concept of what their kennel might be like.
As for purchasing breeding rights out-right, if you have an established breeding program with goals that I think match the type of dogs that I produce - I am open to it.
Spaying and Neutering?
I personally think that spaying and neutering can be very beneficial to pet homes - when it is performed at the appropriate time developmentally for a dog, that being said I also have companion dogs, often in sport homes that remain intact because they prefer the body and athletic support that a dog's natural hormones have. I tell people, you get a B+ if you spay or neuter your dog after 1 year old, a B+ is a good grade and a passing grade, your dog has most of their juvenile development done that they needed hormone support to do as nature intended. In dogs, hormones have been show to play a developmental support role in especially the musculoskeletal system, but also overall in the whole dog's development. If you wait until after 2 years old, you get the A+ because by that point your Mini or Aussie now has their adult body and the hormones played their developmental role - from this point on they largely influence reproductive cycles which can influence behavior and temperament and many folks report a difference in coat texture becoming softer or metabolism changes. If you spay or neuter your dog before they are 1 year old - this voids my health guarantee for joint disease.
About the Female Cycle: A female dog's heat cycle, is nothing like our own human cycle - they often happen every 6-9 months and she is "in heat" (on her period) for about 3 weeks, and dog's are fertile at the very end of their cycle; when she is fertile and in what is called "standing heat" the boy dogs in the neighborhood are going to know and will do their most to have a romantic rendezvous. Remember that with dogs, there is no "Child Support" and if a male gets to a female, the blame is not put on the male in dogs its put on us as humans (I know, I know - its not like this in humans, but dogs aren't humans) because we are responsible for our pets. During heat cycles, don't leave a female out in the backyard alone without constant supervision - many animals don't have modesty the way that humans do, and breeding or a "tie" can happen very quickly. I am not going to get further into the details of breeding - there are plenty of veterinary websites with information or you are welcome to contact me if you have questions. How do folks manage heat cycles? Close supervision, they also have some fun "period panties" for dogs that use a liner because dogs have a light flow, and just wait it out.
About the Male Development: In general boy dogs start to become aware of themselves as "boy dogs" between 6-9 months of age, however young boys below 6 months of age do have the ability to impregnate females in heat - so don't assume they won't. This is the age when most boys figure out how to lift their leg and that young teenage boy type of behaviors may begin as they start to experience some testosterone. It is not uncommon for a male to attempt to mark in the house when they are maturing, remind them that this is an outdoor activity and clean the area; some boys benefit from a "Belly Band" which you can find at pet stores or Etsy has some fun ones which is like a male dog diaper for marking; some males take the hint just from having one placed on them and that is enough to end it. Male dogs are very aware of females in different stages of their heat cycle, they will very often lick urine and "chatter" their teeth when a girl is coming into heat - gross, but instinctual and natural. Males will also get "flirty ears" and suddenly become silly, playful, and a bit of a clown to try to impress her - sometimes neutered males will still do this too, most don't.
I personally think that spaying and neutering can be very beneficial to pet homes - when it is performed at the appropriate time developmentally for a dog, that being said I also have companion dogs, often in sport homes that remain intact because they prefer the body and athletic support that a dog's natural hormones have. I tell people, you get a B+ if you spay or neuter your dog after 1 year old, a B+ is a good grade and a passing grade, your dog has most of their juvenile development done that they needed hormone support to do as nature intended. In dogs, hormones have been show to play a developmental support role in especially the musculoskeletal system, but also overall in the whole dog's development. If you wait until after 2 years old, you get the A+ because by that point your Mini or Aussie now has their adult body and the hormones played their developmental role - from this point on they largely influence reproductive cycles which can influence behavior and temperament and many folks report a difference in coat texture becoming softer or metabolism changes. If you spay or neuter your dog before they are 1 year old - this voids my health guarantee for joint disease.
About the Female Cycle: A female dog's heat cycle, is nothing like our own human cycle - they often happen every 6-9 months and she is "in heat" (on her period) for about 3 weeks, and dog's are fertile at the very end of their cycle; when she is fertile and in what is called "standing heat" the boy dogs in the neighborhood are going to know and will do their most to have a romantic rendezvous. Remember that with dogs, there is no "Child Support" and if a male gets to a female, the blame is not put on the male in dogs its put on us as humans (I know, I know - its not like this in humans, but dogs aren't humans) because we are responsible for our pets. During heat cycles, don't leave a female out in the backyard alone without constant supervision - many animals don't have modesty the way that humans do, and breeding or a "tie" can happen very quickly. I am not going to get further into the details of breeding - there are plenty of veterinary websites with information or you are welcome to contact me if you have questions. How do folks manage heat cycles? Close supervision, they also have some fun "period panties" for dogs that use a liner because dogs have a light flow, and just wait it out.
About the Male Development: In general boy dogs start to become aware of themselves as "boy dogs" between 6-9 months of age, however young boys below 6 months of age do have the ability to impregnate females in heat - so don't assume they won't. This is the age when most boys figure out how to lift their leg and that young teenage boy type of behaviors may begin as they start to experience some testosterone. It is not uncommon for a male to attempt to mark in the house when they are maturing, remind them that this is an outdoor activity and clean the area; some boys benefit from a "Belly Band" which you can find at pet stores or Etsy has some fun ones which is like a male dog diaper for marking; some males take the hint just from having one placed on them and that is enough to end it. Male dogs are very aware of females in different stages of their heat cycle, they will very often lick urine and "chatter" their teeth when a girl is coming into heat - gross, but instinctual and natural. Males will also get "flirty ears" and suddenly become silly, playful, and a bit of a clown to try to impress her - sometimes neutered males will still do this too, most don't.
What are Studbooks?
What does it mean to have a Closed Studbook and what does it mean to have an Open Studbook?
With purebred dogs, the Studbook is a record of all the registered dogs that make up the breed, in the case of the Miniature American Shepherd their studbook is part of the American Kennel Club and they currently have an Open Studbook; while in Australian Shepherds their primary registries are the Australian Shepherd Club of America and the American Kennel Club and those two registries have a Closed Studbook. There are also multiple registries such as Miniature Australian Shepherd Club, American Stock Dog Registry, United Kennel Club that also register dogs and maintain open studbooks. Within purebred dogs as a whole, some breeds historically maintain Closed studbooks, some breeds maintain Open studbooks, and some breeds that have had Closed Studbooks have had to reopen them or approve breeding in an outside breed in order to fix a genetic problem that has afflicted the breed broadly.
Ok, so what? Why does that matter?
Once a studbook is closed, then only the dogs that are currently within the registry and their descendants can be in the breed. Full Stop.
When a studbook is open, then new bloodlines can come into the purebred registry often through a process of vetting and approving applicants that meet criteria. The Miniature American Shepherd in AKC has an open studbook, we can still bring in new lines that meet the criteria that have been set. After working on the Studbook Research Committee for the Miniature American Shepherd Club of the USA (MASCUSA) - I took a deeper dive into pedigrees, genetics, and population studies from a zoological stand point and consider my breeding decisions from the lense of where each decision influences the next seven generations and the impact of Popular Sire Syndrome, Coefficients of Inbreeding, Founder Effect, Population Bottleneck. We can see examples of the problems created by these things in other dogs breeds and other species - probably one of the most infamous examples is the wildly popular Quarter Horse sire Impressive and the genetic co-dominant gene that causes the disease HYPP and how prolific it became.
Link to the Studbook Research Paper HERE.
Currently, the Miniature American Shepherd studbook is set to close December 31, 2024 - although MASCUSA voted to keep the studbook open and has petitioned the American Kennel Club to extend the open studbooks for another five year increment. The reason for the five year increment is because that is the length of time that we have to move within for our studbook, theoretically it could be extended an additional five years beyond that but I do not have a crystal ball into the future. Amongst breeders, its a divisive topic that has a lot of support as well as some very vocal opponents.
Why do breeders utilize inbreeding? Historically it has been advised in all species to use Linebreeding/Inbreeding in order to improve upon the good traits that a quality animal has and strengthen them in the next generation; however you are crossing both the good and the bad - I am not against the use of linebreeding, but my primary focus is to increase diversity while we have open studbooks because once they close you can only use the lines that are already within the studbook.
What does it mean to have a Closed Studbook and what does it mean to have an Open Studbook?
With purebred dogs, the Studbook is a record of all the registered dogs that make up the breed, in the case of the Miniature American Shepherd their studbook is part of the American Kennel Club and they currently have an Open Studbook; while in Australian Shepherds their primary registries are the Australian Shepherd Club of America and the American Kennel Club and those two registries have a Closed Studbook. There are also multiple registries such as Miniature Australian Shepherd Club, American Stock Dog Registry, United Kennel Club that also register dogs and maintain open studbooks. Within purebred dogs as a whole, some breeds historically maintain Closed studbooks, some breeds maintain Open studbooks, and some breeds that have had Closed Studbooks have had to reopen them or approve breeding in an outside breed in order to fix a genetic problem that has afflicted the breed broadly.
Ok, so what? Why does that matter?
Once a studbook is closed, then only the dogs that are currently within the registry and their descendants can be in the breed. Full Stop.
When a studbook is open, then new bloodlines can come into the purebred registry often through a process of vetting and approving applicants that meet criteria. The Miniature American Shepherd in AKC has an open studbook, we can still bring in new lines that meet the criteria that have been set. After working on the Studbook Research Committee for the Miniature American Shepherd Club of the USA (MASCUSA) - I took a deeper dive into pedigrees, genetics, and population studies from a zoological stand point and consider my breeding decisions from the lense of where each decision influences the next seven generations and the impact of Popular Sire Syndrome, Coefficients of Inbreeding, Founder Effect, Population Bottleneck. We can see examples of the problems created by these things in other dogs breeds and other species - probably one of the most infamous examples is the wildly popular Quarter Horse sire Impressive and the genetic co-dominant gene that causes the disease HYPP and how prolific it became.
Link to the Studbook Research Paper HERE.
Currently, the Miniature American Shepherd studbook is set to close December 31, 2024 - although MASCUSA voted to keep the studbook open and has petitioned the American Kennel Club to extend the open studbooks for another five year increment. The reason for the five year increment is because that is the length of time that we have to move within for our studbook, theoretically it could be extended an additional five years beyond that but I do not have a crystal ball into the future. Amongst breeders, its a divisive topic that has a lot of support as well as some very vocal opponents.
Why do breeders utilize inbreeding? Historically it has been advised in all species to use Linebreeding/Inbreeding in order to improve upon the good traits that a quality animal has and strengthen them in the next generation; however you are crossing both the good and the bad - I am not against the use of linebreeding, but my primary focus is to increase diversity while we have open studbooks because once they close you can only use the lines that are already within the studbook.
Ambrosia (spayed) with 2 puppies in fall 2024