Saturday 16 May 2015

A Wirehaired Foxairn smooth Jackapoo

Muffy's facebook friends sometimes share the E card stating something along the lines of 'a Cockerpoo etc is not a breed but a mutt.'  Muffy (with tongue firmly in cheek) will respond with outrage and insist she is a Wirehaired Foxairn Smooth Jacapoo. 
A DNA analysis , revealed that she is about a quarter wire fox terrier, an eighth smooth fox terrier, then a general mishmash of breeds including Jack russell terrier and Cairn terrier. She looks like a small odd looking Cairn or a large grey Yorkie. In the early days, we sought help and got it in abundance, from the Cairn forum, as lots of people thought she may be a Cairn cross. A lovely bunch of people, they have overlooked the fact that she is only a little bit Cairn and still welcome her.  
Muffy's friends are absolutely right about crosses not being a new breed of course and it seems a little odd to me that people will pay lots of money like they will for a purebred dog when the shelters are full of mixed and crossed breed dogs. 
The way I see it whether pure breed or mixed breed, all dogs should be afforded equal worth and value. I understand that if you have a soft spot for a particular breed that you may have to pay more because it will be harder to find and more in demand. That is just how the market works like it or not. I don't feel that the money exchanged for a dog should in anyway be related to her actual worth. I paid the standard adoption fee for Muffin and would not part with her for any sum offered. I am sure all the pure breed owners and the purposely cross bred dogs, owners feel exactly the same.
I am sure there are many who would have written Muffy off as an unhappy accident with some dodgy genes. The way I see it, she is just a small dog trying her best to cope in a world she doesn't always understand. Yes she has some anxieties and came to us with some less than desirable behaviours. We found that the biggest aid to calming things down was to accept her for who she is and respond accordingly. Just the same as humans, dogs have insecurities, emotional struggles, physical differences or disabilities. Sadly it sometimes feels like we live in a world that has a narrow set of criteria and if we don't fit it, life can be harder. It seems to me that half of the issues are created by an intolerant and impatient society anyway. A little time and understanding can go an really long way.
I do not in anyway, apportion blame people who choose to pay a lot of money for what is essentially a mixed breed dog. I think that is a predictable response, in a commerce based society, to concerns about health issues in some breeds. If something is cleverly marketed, there will be customers. We are all guilty of falling for the sales pitch. As with all decisions to have a dog they are often heart led and once a pup has your heart there is no going back. I just feel sad that our poor dogs may yet again suffer as more designer 'breeds' are reproduced for profit while the shelters fill up. I hope that one day going to the shelter will be the norm when we would like to extend our families. In an ideal world there would be no need for shelters but I am a realist.
There are, of course, lots of arguments and points of view when it comes to dogs, breeds and breeding. I love that we all have the freedom to express our opinions, but if Muffin and I hear anybody implying that any dog, or human for that matter, deserves any less respect, love and dignity than another, you will find us in the corner, paws and fingers in ears, singing and howling, la la la we're not listening.
Mutt she is, or as I prefer to say 'terrier cocktail' (with a dash of German shepherd, great pyrenees and poodle) We defend your right to call your dog whatever you want as long as it isn't late for dinner. Be proud, whatever genes created your precious pooch. They are all wonderfully unique and special.

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