Another Breed, Just What We Need
Every day, day after day, I report on the millions of unwanted dogs that are put down in this country. Today I read about a new breed, a cross between a Belgian Malinois and a Siberian Husky to be called a Huskinois.
Whether you agree with buying a purebred or not, nothing is ever going to change because there will always be people who want to purchase a certain breed. I get that, and hopefully the dog is purchased from a reputable breeder.
What I have issue with is that there are breeders looking to come up with new breeds. Do we really need another breed? Aren’t there enough to choose from? What about all the purebreds that are now showing up in shelters, is the Huskinois going to eventually end up in the same place?
Here are the details from The Press Association.
Mr Debenham, who co-owns DK9 Security Services in Ipswich, Suffolk, with his father Anthony, said the puppy was born late on Sunday last week. “People have been trying to breed the two dogs for years but for some reason they would not breed and the pups died hours after they were born,” said Mr Debenham.
“We believe this is the only one in the world and we hope now we can create a bigger and better breed. We wanted to breed the two because the Belgian Malinois is a very fast and active dog and they can get to great speeds. They also have a high prey drive, but they do tend to over-heat and get tired very quickly.
Mr Debenham – who sells dogs all over the world to police forces, the military and to celebrities – said that colleagues from the US and Canada “could not believe it” when they heard about the birth and are coming to see the puppy in the next few weeks.
Mr. Debenham talks about the new breed being great security dogs, don’t we have enough dogs that already fit the bill? Maybe it’s just me, but I simply don’t understand coming up with more breeds when there are already puppies being born simply to be killed.
Give me a bark, what do you think?
* Pic courtesy The Press Association
Maybe we need to take those dogs that are on the BSL list and make them the new police, security dogs. Give them a good rep for a change as a skilled working dog.
I think we need to stop calling these new combinations ‘breeds’. They are not, they are just mutts. It is a new trend that is just not acceptable.
To think that every breed is man made for his own convenience, no breed is natural, is rather disturbing in and of itself, and we do not need to add to it. Most of these dogs have no ability to survive without our assistance, which just isn’t right.
What really disturbs me is this part: “and the pups died hours after they were born”. I just don’t feel that we have this right to play with life like this. Especially when you think of all the dogs at the pound who are put down daily. That we can throw away life like this is, well, I don’t even have words for it. Thank you for sharing the story.
Alexandra
I totally agree with Alex. What is the difference between these designer breeds and mutts? Other than the fact that people will pay thousands of dollars for a dog with a fancy name while perfectly good mutts die everyday! It is so stupid! I get annoyed when I ask what kind of dog someone has because it is one I have never seen before and instead of getting an answer like aussie mix I hear “aussiepoo”, I just want to respond “so it’s a mutt”. I have no idea for sure what my rescue dog is and I am perfectly fine with that.
I have two rescues and I can’t believe that people are creating new “breeds” when there are dogs dying in shelters! To try and make a new “breed” in light of the situations that shelter dogs face is not only ridiculous, it is pointless. There are already security and protection dogs that do great work: German shepherds, Belgian sheepdogs, Dobermans, etc. Maybe instead of focusing on making a new “breed”, we should focus on keeping preexisting breeds healthy. German shepherds are great police dogs, but because of breeders who continue to select for the sloping hindquarters, their mobility has been affected and that has made them undesirable to many agencies. That is wrong! Thanks for making me aware of this!
Well said Horst !!
Husky x as a security dog? Are you serious? I have no problem with knowledgeable trainers and breeders mixing breeds to create a dog that does a job that they need. A trainer knows Malinois mommy has great fight drive and German Shepherd daddy as great obedience and off/on switch aggression, go ahead and create a fantastic police dog. This is not what this sounds like. This sounds like a disaster.
Malinois have tremendous drives that can be fantastic if properly directed (think BC obedience on speed) but dangerous if not. I would be a little bit reticent to mix it w/ a Husky, which is not noted for either its obedience or fight drive. (I could be wrong, but don’t they work mostly from prey drive?)
As for choosing police k-9s and personal protection dogs out of the shelter, it’s possible but not very practical. Police k-9s have to have impeccable drives and nerves and the training that a working line Czech German Shepherd lives for would irreparably damage a dog who wasn’t bred for it. You simply can’t go down to the local shelter and pick out your average lab x and put him out on the streets.
Not to mention, how many puppies died while they were trying to come up with this breed? Poor little manipulated things.
Anyone who can’t successfully mate a husky and a Malinois and keep the mutt puppies alive is doing something SERIOUSLY WRONG.
Like, maybe, starting with trying to mix a husky and a Malinois. This is not a “new breed.” It’s a cross of two common large breed dogs that has nothing to recommend it.
The Mal is already a great security dog. Huskies totally suck at this. The single mutt puppy will probably be half-assed at it.
Can’t believe the media would treat the birth of a mutt puppy as an “event” on the say-so of these nimrods.
I could care less what they want to qualify as a breed.
I can’t imagine why they wanted to cross those two breeds. For a protection dog the Husky is not going to add anything useful to the mix for one thing. That just seems like a bad combination.
I also would not call that a breed– it is a cross of two breeds. Mixing two purebreds of different breeds does not make a new breed.
As to whether there are enough breeds, I think that it’s a subjective opinion. But as to this specific case?
“People have been trying to breed the two dogs for years but for some reason they would not breed and the pups died hours after they were born”
Um, something is clearly wrong with these dogs. It’s NOT that hard and I’m sure it’s not the first Mal to be crossed with a Sibe. This man obviously isn’t taking good care of his dogs if his first litter all died and yet he tried with the same dogs again.
Besides, this isn’t a breed. A “breed” is qualified in part by generational planning..
I hate this whole thing so much. How I wish there could be a ban put on the breeding of any more dogs, period. But I realize that this is a business and it’s going to just keep on as long as there is a demand for it. As far as wanting a pure-breed, I get that too, but so what? Go to the breed-rescues for a poor needy dog, that’s what people need to do!
This is the most crazy idea ever .. Mixing dogs too some people are cool but this is not a recipe its a animal.. What the hell.. I love purebreeds .. But Mutts are for alot of people out there and there is
ENOUGH!!! Give me a break -
What is next !!!!!!!!
Dubs is probably a puppy mill result of a designer “breed” cross. Her and her many sibs were dumped at the Humane Society because, I guess, the profits expected were not forthcoming. She is a charming and unique dog and would probably be a hit if she were a “breed.” But I think the irresponsibility involved in this more often ends up an unprofitable failure than it does in a successful mix or a improvement on a existing purebred line.
And I am thankful that whoever bred my little Dubs at least had the good will to bring her in instead of dumping her and her sibs in a gutter somewhere. I expect that tragedy happens more often than any happy outcome.
Save ‘em, don’t breed them!
Why is it that some dogs are Hybrids while my mixed breed is a mutt? I guess if you’re willing to lay out serious moolah for a mutt, that makes it a hybrid. LOL
Yes I agree with all of you. What do we need with “another breed” when there are so many in need of homes. Also how do we distinguish what is a so-called mutt with one of these new designer breeds?
Being a “purebred” makes no difference at all. Look at me, I am “purebred” but was disposable. I was on death row with only hours left, at a local animal control unit until some ladies in rescue saw me and saw potential. They cleaned me up, fostered me and put me up for adoption, finding my new home with my Mom.
So purebred/mutt? All that really matters in the love we give isn’t it?
I understand wanting a purebred dog. There is nothing wrong with that. However, there are lots of mutts out there that need good homes! Angel could have been a terrific dog. Instead, she turned out terrified because somebody decided she wasn’t worth it and abandoned her. I think that unless you have shown yourself to be fully qualified, you should not be allowed to be breeding dogs.
Just another breed – I mean mutt, that will end up in shelters just like the rest of the hybrid dogs. What is sad is people are to stupid and pay lots of money for a non-vetted, non fixed MUTT! Do you hear me people, MUTT!!!!! Sad. ADOPT!
This is crap. This is not a new breed its just another mutt with a silly name. People aren’t getting this in their heads. They are paying upwards of 300 dollars for a dog that can’t be rebred, inter most shows, and by buying these mutts are contributing to the deaths of dogs that are in shelters. I walked three purebred labs at the local shelter today. THREE PUREBREDS! This is what is happening because people are making cross breeds and giving them silly names. Ok. I’m done ranting.
My husband and I were talking one night. And I mentioned “I think every single dog should be required by LAW to be spayed or neutered unless the owners can show proof that they are a knowledgable and reputable breeder” he replied “then within 20 years there would be NO dogs except those from those breeders.” I said PERFECT! “No dogs would die because of the stupidity of people wanting to make a quick buck.” It’s amazing to me how disposable and easily accessable animals lives are. That ANYONE with a male and female can produce puppies. I just don’t understand why most people see dogs lives as less valuable than our own. If a human child got terribly sick or swallowed something the child would be taken care of no questions asked. Even if the gaurdian didn’t have any money. But if it’s a dog then oh well put the worthless replaceable dog to sleep. It all just makes me sick!! Don’t even get me started these stupid “designer breeds” or MUTTS which thousands upon thousands are dying every single day because of idiots like this.
I suspect people are raising “designer” breeds because many people live in smaller spaces where they can not have large, or even medium sized dogs; they have to “sell” the dog to their landlords, so look for certain traits to ensure they can keep the animal. I have rencently looked at probably 1500 dogs in shelters and rescue. Shelters don’t know the behavioral traits of their dogs – or the health, sometimes. And some rescue groups are plumb nuts about their requirements for ownership; for example, a fenced in yard or required grooming you can usually do yourself. Then they charge $550 or more for elderly or sick animals. I love labs and other large breeds, which shelters are full of, but I don’t have the space for them now; it would be unfair and cruel. Not to mention the landlord would have a fit. If you need an animal with certain characteristics like low size and a low barker, you are forced to breeders who want $1800 or more for their animals even if you would gladly accept a mutt. I have learned that rescue groupls need to get their acts together; it sometimes seems easier to adopt a child. I could never figure out why so many rescues didn’t do well until I looked into them; they defeat their own intent, which should be a loving home.
I don’t think that it is right for us to keep creating new breeds… especially with the fact that we do have so many dogs and puppies being put to sleep EVERY day. I know there are people who want a purebred dog and they don’t want to go to a shelter because they don’t want to get an un-fixed dog, or cat for that matter. It’s getting easier and easier to find a purebred dog in a shelter, I had (at one time) found a purebred black lab at the shelter, so it’s an issue of wanting a pure breed, it’s a matter of neutering and spaying. This is just my oppinion. Someone should tell the people breeding these dogs, who may not live more than a few hours, STOP BREEDING NEW DOGS!!!!
Designer breed, hybrids, whatever you want to call them, they are all mutts. What makes a mutt from a “breeder” better than a mutt from a shelter, rescue, or simply roaming around on the streets? I found my little mutts in a parking lot, because someone couldn’t find them a home. Thousands upon thousands of mutt pups are dumped off weekly, so why do people continue to spend thousands of dollars for a designer dog from a “breeder”? Every time I look in the classifieds of the newspaper I see ads for cockapoos, chiweenies, maltipoos, goldendoodles, labradoodles, etc, etc, etc… It makes me sick that people are buying from these irresponsible people when so many puppies are at the shelter waiting for a forever home. Breeding to better the pure bred dog is fine as long as it is done responsible, but these breeders of hybrids are breeding for the almighty dollar!
“People have been trying to breed the two dogs for years but for some reason they would not breed and the pups died hours after they were born,” said Mr Debenham.”
^ That is enough said right there. Obviously it is not naturally meant to be. What a great idea.. to completely go AGAINST nature. I’m sure these dogs will have all kinds of health problems..not to mention the people that will buy these dogs without doing their homework because they want the newest designer dog- These poor, extremely high-strung dogs will be out on the street very quickly because no one will have the time to care enough and meet their needs.
When I got my Cuddles, I wasn’t looking for a designer dog ( she is a maltipom) I took 1 look & knew I had to have her, she looked just like my childhood pet. I purchased her from a store that mainly carries “designer dogs” & I’m almost sure she came from a puppy mill. I had very mixed feelings about that as I in no way condone such places. But once I saw her I had to have her! Puppy mill or not these puppies need homes too. It’s not their fault they were born into such conditions & they deserve a forever home to. This may sound as though I’m rationalizing, but I love her to death & wouldn’t change a thing. To me she is a mutt, a very lovable one at that!!
Diane
All those puppies died trying to create this mutt? Ummm…helloooo…nature talking – not supposed to happen! Duh! Stupid humans! I think the idea of using unwanted shelter dogs in this capacity (police, military, etc.) is a great idea. All those pits, rotties, and dobermans would do an excellent job with the right training. No offense to those with “designer breeds” but I believe my mutts are just as cute if not cuter. And all of them are rescues. Three lives saved. We don’t need to breed more dogs, we need to adopt more of them that are already here!
I can understand the Labradoodles. If you get the right cross, they turn out to be very helpful-they don’t shed, and therefore can help blind people who are allergic to dogs. Goldendoodles can too. But unless you have shown yourself to be a responsible and caring dog owner, you should not breed dogs. Period.
“And the puppies died hours after they were born.”
That part really makes me sick.
One more thing-you cannot just cross two dogs together and say “I have a new breed!” It takes years and years to get a new breed developed. Honestly!
i think in some cases mixing two breeds is worth it to come up with a suitable dog for a family with specific needs, but by now, there are enough breeds that can fit any family…. and security dogs? there are dozens! german shepherds, rottweilers, dobermans, hell even pit bulls make good security dogs!
now the thing that makes me pretty mad about this specific case is this: they know that the dogs have problems reproducing right? that the puppies usually DIE after birth?? why the hell would you breed a dog that you know the puppies will just die after birth anyways? talking about dogs dying in shelters, these dogs dont even get past puppyhood! how many puppies will die in the breeding process? is it worth it? aparently the people who are even ATTEMPTING to breed these two dogs dont care in the least about their well-being! i would NEVER by from someone who breeds dogs to die so they can make a profit!
Diane I feel the same way as you feel about the pet stores who buy from back yard breeders. I hope they ALL get shut down but until then the poor pups in the pet stores are actually rescues in my opinion so there is no need for you to rationalize your actions on taking home your sweet Cuddles. I know pet stores and breeders get paid, but the furs in the stores have to go somewhere and hopefully not in a raid closing the stores/breeders down and then the furs designated for a high kill shelter.
George’s Mom Diana
WOW i used to own this excact cross! i Adopted him from a shelter….now there making him a friggen designer breed??? thats not right considering how many that died..Spike (the dog i used to have that happened to be this mix) was about to be put down with his 6 other siblings…they all survived…why are so many deing now?? this is not right,,,,,,
Diane, you are rationalizing. Your darling dog’s parents were living in hell, and the money you paid to that pet store encouraged that pet store to re-order that same mix, and keep your pup’s parents and their successors living in that hell, bred every heat, puppies taken from the mom too young, and “disposed of,” usually shot or just thrown in a ditch, when they stopped producing.
Purebreds in shelters–sure there are. About 25% of the dogs in shelters are purebreds; the remainder, 75%, are mixes of various kinds. The purebreds aren’t evenly distributed; some areas (areas with more puppy mills and BYBs, generally) have more purebreds in the shelters. And “purebreds” aren’t interchangeable for the people who want them; someone who wants a mini poodle will not be satisfied with, or suitable for, a Labrador retriever–and vice versa. In my area, Labs and Lab mixes, and pits and pit mixes, are readily available in the shelters, while it’s almost unheard of to go into a shelter and find a small dog, purebred OR mixed, who doesn’t already have an “adoption pending” sign up. Saying that there are “purebreds” in shelters, does not mean that anyone who really wanted to could go to a shelter within reasonable travel distance of them and find a dog who meets their needs and desires.
Everyone here seems to be happily conflating creating new breeds, creating designer mutts for quick and profitable sale, and whatever it is these particular idiots are doing, determinedly breeding, over and over again, these two dogs who kept producing dead or dying puppies. As vile as the designer-mutt puppy millers are, profit motive alone prevents them from continuing to breed dogs who are producing puppies born dead or who die within hours. These husky-malinois breeders are a different kind of evil from the profit-motivated designer mutt millers.
As for whether or not we need any actual new breeds: Many of the current herding breeds were created when there were already herding dogs–but somebody wanted a dog to work a different kind of stock or in different conditions, or just had a different idea of what was the “best” herding dog. Likewise the multiplicity of spaniels and retrievers and pointers and setters. And the variety of guard dogs and companion dogs.
The fact that someone can point to some breed and say, that breed does this job, does not mean that someone else cannot legitimately say, but that’s not good enough, that’s not what I need. And now, of course, that’s not the situation we have, really. Now, we have less demand, not no demand, but less demand, for a lot of the jobs dogs traditionally did, but we also have new jobs for dogs, that are not the jobs they have done in the past, and for which there are no specifically created and tailored breeds. One guide dog organization, for instance, which has always used mainly GSDs but also some Labs and some Goldens, is finding that the high washout rate for guide dogs in training is lower with Lab/Golden crosses.
So no, it’s not automatically evil and corrupt to think about crossing dogs and creating new breeds, because there are dogs in shelters. What matters is the reason, and how the breeder(s) go about it, and what they do with puppies who don’t develop into what they’re striving for.
It’s not just every breed we currently have th’at’s artificial and the result of human interference; it’s dogs, rather than wolves, that are completely the result of human interference. Seriously. So, unless you regret the existence of dogs, you might want to rethink the notion that there’s something innately wrong about producing dogs who are better suited to the lives we live now.
That is so true! We don’t need to make more new breeds. There are so many pups that are in shelters and that don’t have homes or some human to love them! It just breaks my heart! They should just stop and really think about what they are doing!
I have a designer dog. Did I get her because she was a designer dog…NO! I could careless. I got her because she was 4 months old and living in a cage, she needed a home.
No matter how you look at it, a designer dog is a expensive mutt..mixed…mongrel. Why on earth do we need more dogs in this world? Why can’t we just reach out and adopt those in need???
I am a animal lover but why do people have to make breeds some are for fighting like in Mexico and some are sled dogs like Siberian Huskys and rescue dogs like St.Bernards and hospital dogs.Those dogs are here for a reson to save people but fighting dogs no if I see a dog being abused I either take it in or I call the pound NOW PEOPLE STOP KILLING DOGS AND STOP BREEDING THEM AND IF YOU DO BE A GOOD BREEDER !!! I DON’T WANT THE POOR PUPPIES AND KITTENS TO DIE MAKE THEM NOT DIE AND STOP ABUSEING THEM AND YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE !!!
AMEN ADDY*******************
This person is SOOOOooooo RIGHT in so many ways.
But there is also one thing that none of you are LOOKING at !
Dogs – Purebreeds or Mutts or whatever you want to call them all started out as MUTTS !…Think about it, ever single purebreed has multi. breeds in it to better that BREED.
Yes I agree, We really do not need any new ones when you think about the ones in shelters or on the streets..etc….
But as Addy sasid if there is need for todays lifestyles*which are always changing* , then yes IF the breeders are doing it for the bREED(s) NOT FOR THE MONEY>
Wake up People…….start with whats here 1st !
P.S. I have 9 dogs in my house.6 which is mine, out of these 9 dogs there is only 4 purebreds….5 Mutts and I wouldn’t trade a rats ass for any of them !
Jack,B T,2 Beagles………Lab/Coon Hound mix ,Pom mix, Rotten Chow, Lab/Pit mix and one that was gotten from the shelter, that we have no clue what he is.
But back to my point…….Boston Terriers are a cross between Bull Dogs / and a now extint White Terrier……Jacks are also a cross with that same White Terrier.mmmmmmmmmmm,1 + 1 = 1 ??? multi breeds equaled 1 breed, that does make B Ts and Jacks Mutts?? if so then all dogs are MUTTS !Have a nice day folks
OMG! A Mal and a Sib cross. You guys, the idiots who bred these, are total idiots! I own Mals and there is no way in that hot place that I would ever go and breed to a Sib. Siberians have there own place in the world and are a great breed on there own if that is what you are looking for.
ALL breeds have their faults and if you are breeding and don’t know what the bad and good qualities of the two breeds you can sure end up with major problems.
I know what the backgound is on my Mals and if I were going to breed I wouldn’t want to double up on some problem.
Gee there are enough “breeds” out there now. I have owned both purebreds and mixed breeds and I can’t say that one is smarter than the other. Right now I have a little rescue dog that looks like a German Shepherd but I know that she isn’t. She is as smart as a whip. I really don’t care what she is and I love her anyway.
As for you ##### that say that you wish that they would ban all breeding of dogs. Why are you on Dogster? I thought this is a place for people who love dogs. If there was no more breeding of dogs in a very short while there would be NO dogs on this earth. Whats next? Put a ban on humans over 5feet tall from having kids. If you love dogs have fun and love them. If you don’t get off dogster and get lost. All dogs whether purebred or mutts are all dogs and deserve to be loved.
I also support rescue 100 %.
Also before someone makes the comment about me breeding dogs that would be real hard as all my Purebred Malinois have been spayed. So don’t think I am one of those backyard breeders.
My next Malinois will also be from rescue.
I have no clue why We need so called designer dogs. I have a perfect pure bred German Rottie that I got from the pound. I think there should be a moritorium on breeding any kind of dags for the next year so that maybe some of the deserving pups at the pound and SPCA could have a chance at a new home.
My 2 cents worth,
Tawnya Metsch
My main concern, and the one huge red flag that this particular “breeder” should have heeded, is that fact that almost every single puppy died with hours of being born. There is something inherently WRONG with this particular mix of breeds. I sincerely hope this ‘breeder’ is continuously reincarnated as one of these “throw away puppies”. My dogs are part of my family. Now, lets say I wanted a superstar basketball player for a daughter. So I pick out a father that I think might guarantee me that daughter. But immediately after the first one is born, I find it’s a boy. No good. Hmmm. Should I euthanize it or put it in a bag with some rocks and drown it or just dump it at the nearest orphanage? So then, let’s try this again, but this time I don’t want to waste another nine months, so as soon as an ultrasound determines the sex, all boys are aborted. And then, what if science has progressed enough to tell me not only if the baby is a girl, but how tall she eventually be? Abort all those that don’t make the height cut. Anyway, you see where I cam going with this and yes, it is extreme, but the majority of pet LOVERS (not just pet OWNERs) love their pets with their whole heart and this story just makes THIS pet owner want to vomit.
I work at a vet clinic and we had a client come in with an absolutly adorable puppy.We could telll it had to be a mix but couldnt put our finger on what.We asked the owner , she told us that they had been playing around with funny names for different names of certain mixes and decided to make one!!! This puppy had come from a pit bull mother and a shi tzu father! Now Im sure you can guess what they were being called! She said that they were thinking about advertising these as a “one of a kind breed’. What is so sad is that they pup was so cute Im afraid that people would actually go for this.
I think it’s great that people want to create the new breed-especially to protect people, but they should use German Shepards, Pit Bulls, and other dogs affected by BSL. This new breed is, of course, going to be on the BSL list within way less than a year. GSDs and Pit Bulls really need to protect people. Not a new breed.
wait… if people have been trying to breed them for years, and they either didn’t take or the puppies died after birth… why would they STILL continue to try? That in itself isn’t reputable.
“Maybe it’s just me, but I simply don’t understand coming up with more breeds when there are already puppies being born simply to be killed.”
I agree. I just don’t get how people will pay 1,000’s of $$ for a mixed breed, but refuse to get one–for a much lower price–at the shelter.