health tests before i breed my min pin?

Question

Can anybody tell me what are all the health test i need to get on my min pin before i breed him? I am just starting out with breeding and want to be a very good breeder. I dont want to start up one of those nasty puppy mills or anything i want to breed to better the breed so if anyone can tell me what the tests are that i need to do on my min pin that would be great thank you

Answer 1

First, if you want to be a serious breeder, you need to join the breed club.

http://www.minpin.org/

That is the club that sets the breed standards and is affiliated with the AKC

By the way, most breed clubs require that you be sponsored by 2 members. That is not hard at all. Contact the President or other officer and they will get you invovled and, if you are serious, round up sponsors. (That kind of requirement of sponsohip is to keep puppy mill breeders from just joining up and causing the club to fall in to disrepute.)

Second, you need to prove that your dog is a superior (not just good) example of his breed.. That means showing him in AKC breed/conformation competitions to get his Championship.

The Min Pin club members would be your best source of help and information.

Now, if he isn't from a family that has produced a lot of AKC Champions (look at his pedigree - you want to see a CH before mom and/or dad and 3/4s of his grandparents and then look further back) be prepared for the fact that he might be a good example of his breed or an above-average pet, but he is not a superior specimen of his breed and should NOT be bred.

If you don't do the show thing, no serious reputable breeder will take you or your dog seriously (sorry - that was not meant as a play on words.) You will not have any good quality females booked to him - just the random pet of lesser quality.

If he doesn't turn out to be an AKC conformation Champion, do obedience and agility with him. My best performancee dogs couldn't win on a bet in the conformation ring but smoked the obedience ring and tracking! In the meantime, get to know the breeders in the club -these will be the top peoople in this breed with vast experience and knowledge about bloodlines and conformation - explain you want to show and breed, and you will get all kinds of help - including mentoring to find the best show prospect available for you. Do consider doing a co-own with the breeder of such a dog - they have as much interesting seeing him succeed as you do. (In a co-own with a breeder, you get to pay the bills for the dog and showing, they have the expertise on the showing and the breeding. Really the best way to get into a breed.)

Third, here are some of the statistics on the different health checks in your breed:

MINIATURE PINSCHER
Registry Rank Evaluations Percent Abnormal Percent Normal
CARDIAC N/A 15 0.0 100.0
ELBOW N/A 4 0.0 100.0
HIPS N/A 58 0.0 100.0
LEGG-CALVE-PERTHES N/A 42 0.0 100.0
PATELLA 24 66 4.5 9 5.5
THYROID N/A 7 0.0 85.7

Cardiac
Elbow dysplasia and other deformities
Hips ditto
Sorry - have to look up Legg et al -not a problemin my breed. It will be explained on the OFA website -link below
Patella - the slipping knee cap
Thyroid abnormalities

And on not listed - a CERF eye exam by a board-certified veterinary opthamologist (try the nearest vet school)

There might be more specific to the breed - excellent section on min pins and health issue and testing on the club website


GO to the OFA to read about health problems in breeds and the club website. Now when you see the statistics, remember that the dogs whose tests wee submitted were primarily owned by (1) show breeders who wanted the clearances for breeding and (2) the dog appeared to be just fine.

http://www.offa.org/




GOOD LUCK!!!!

Answer 2

Following are health screenings often performed on breeding Miniature Pinscher adults; http://www.qualitydogs.com/Miniature_Pinscher/information.html :
# CERF Screening (Canine Eye Research Foundation)
# Hip Dysplasia (OFA or PennHIP)
# Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease (by X-Ray)
# Mucopolysaccharidosis VI (genetic test)
# Patellar Luxation Test - OFA

Answer 3

Well, since you already have two excellent answers , all I can add is Good for you!!!!! I wish more people cared as much as you.

Good luck :-)