Lil' Wonders Mini Aussies - Miniature American Shepherds
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

I’ve resisted posting a Buyer Beware warning to families considering adding a Miniature American Shepherd puppy to their family as I have never wanted to criticize another Program. However, when I see bad breeding practices on my own doorstep (Vancouver Island), I feel it is incumbent on me to sound the alarm, not only as a committed breeder, but as an advocate for this wonderful breed. There are several so called “breeders” and “breeding programs” that have recently started up on the Island. Most are not CKC members and many have dogs that are not registered with AKC or CKC as purebred Miniature American Shepherds but rather various Stock Dog Registries that don’t require nearly as much purebred lineage in order to be registered. These “breeders” have nice Facebook pages that might suggest that they are long established and doing their due diligence in terms of matching genetic testing, structure, temperament and desired pedigrees. These “breeding programs” have dogs with questionable pedigrees rather than pedigrees established through generational breeding of structurally sound, health tested and championed dogs. In other words, the best dogs this breed has produced. However, I’m sounding the alarm now because there is much more to this than just Pedigree. Reputable breeders spend a small fortune genetically testing each and every dog that they consider for their Program. Not “just” the sire, not “just” the dam, but every single dog in their Program and will not use an outside stud dog from a Program that does not do the same level of testing. It maddens me when I see "breeders" post that “dam is clear, sire has not been tested” because I feel strongly that potential buyers are not aware of the pitfalls in that description. Many genetic diseases are Autosomal Dominant genes which means that, even if only one dog in the pairing is affected, there WILL be affected puppies in the litter. I’ll say that again, only one parent dog needs to be affected with an Autosomal Dominant gene to have affected puppies yet “sire has not been tested” is considered appropriate? Absolutely not! An example of an Autosomal Dominant gene is a condition known as CDDY with IVDD. A debilitating disc degeneration and herniation condition. Another example of poor breeding practice is not testing for NAD (Neuroaxonal Dystrophy) a severe neurological condition. In this case the defect is Autosomal Recessive which means it requires two copies of the gene to affect the puppies. NAD is a relatively new test for our breed and has to be done through Purdue University in Indiana. Breeders that do not test their dogs for this condition (and there are many) are simply playing Russian roulette with the lives of any resulting puppies and their families! Therefore, in my opinion, to only test one of the dogs in any particular pairing is an absolute disgrace. Only doing structural X rays and a basic genetic panel, that so many “breeders” assure their buyers they have carried out, is not enough. They should also be doing all the extra genetic diseases we can now test for like, NAD, CDDY with IVDD and Non-HSF4 cataracts. However, worse than all this, I now know of Programs on the Island that do virtually no testing AT ALL! A “breeder” I recently heard about, who is detailing plans to breed her girl in the next few months on her Facebook page, admits that the mother of the litter has had limited testing other than the basic panel (no CDDY, no NAD, no structural X Rays, no Non-HSF4) and the father of the litter has had no testing AT ALL! This is unconscionable and, in my opinion, the hallmark of a Backyard Breeder who wants a quick buck without any outlay for expensive testing or any care about the long-term outcome for those puppies. My intention for this Buyer Beware message is not to promote our Program over another but rather to educate. Whether you adopt from us or any other reputable breeder, please don’t rush into the decision. It’s not enough that the puppy is ready to go now or soon. It’s not enough that the puppy appears healthy at 8 weeks old. It’s not enough that the puppy has beautiful markings or eyes. It’s about the health of that puppy at its genetic core and the years of championed, health tested, stable dogs in that puppy’s pedigree. This is truly an appropriate time to use the phrase,