Uncle bred his GSD as "promised" last year.

WARNING: This is a rant.

Those of you probably remember my uncle's GSD's puppies from last year.
Here was what I remember of the conversation between my dad and uncle Sunday morning while I was getting ready for church:
Uncle: She (Cookie, my GSD) sure is skinny.
Dad: Yeah, I know.
Uncle: Is she eating?
Dad: Whatever she can get.
Uncle: Do you give her heartworm medication?
Dad: Yes.
Mom: The vet says that she's in good condition, but she could use a few more pounds.
Uncle: Yeah, like twenty!
Dad: Actually, he said only a few. Unless someone lied to me...
Mom: She's 78 pounds and the vet said she could stand 3 or 4 more.
Uncle: 78 pounds? She sure don't look it.
Mom: They said that her muscle tone isn't as good as it used to be, so she looks skinnier than she actually is.
Uncle: Well, Indy's this wide. She's going to have puppies by Wednesday.

My reaction in the next room: 0_0...
My uncle bred his dog. What's wrong with that you say. I normally wouldn't have a problem. If my uncle was a good breeder that is.
I've been over this with him before during Indy's last litter and he talked about breeding her on purpose. sometimes. (Indy's last litter wasn't planned. She was pregnant when he got her from the so-called rescue group and they didn't tell him, so he didn't find out until she went into labor while chained (yes, chained:() in the backyard.)
1. I tried to tell him about health testing, especially OFA (tests for hip dysplicia), which is especially important in GSDs because hip dysplicia is a big problem in the breed. His reaction? Something like "I can't afford that! That's $1,000! How am I supposed to make any money off the puppies spending that kind of money?! It isn't needed anyway. Don't do any good." Riiiight.-_- (BTW, the OFA test is nowhere near $1,000.) Can't afford to health test? Well, don't breed!
2. As you saw in number 1, he's breeding for money. Health testing and the cost of following the ethics makes it almost impossible to make money off of breeding.
3. He let a customer take one of the puppies home ONE AND A HALF WEEKS too early. 6 1/2 weeks old. Poor puppy.;_; The reason that was too young is because the puppy learns things such as bite inhibition from their other and litter mates up 'til the age of 8 weeks. And that's especially important in the GSD. There's already more than enough people who have the wrong idea on the temperament of the breed as it is.
4. He didn't seem to socialize the puppies like a good breeder is supposed to. Great way to make the puppy fear-aggressive later on in life.
5. I guarantee you that he doesn't screen homes. It's first come, first serve. Smart move, uncle.-_- Let's see your reaction when/if one of the puppies ends up getting thrown into the shelter for peeing on the carpet. (Yes, that has actually happened. Though not to my uncle so far as I know. Not yet anyway.)
6. Who ever heard of breeding a rescue dog anyway? You don't know the dog's medical history before it was in your care, so it's not a smart move to breed it. And no good rescue will adopt a dog out before it's spayed anyway, and IF they do, the contract REQUIRES you to spay the dog by a certain date.
Not only that, but what good rescue would adopt a dog out WHILE IT IS PREGNANT and not tell the adopter about it? Not to mention that they would have taken care of Indy's heartworms and malnourished condition before adopting her out if that "rescue" was worth it's weight in salt.

My uncle's just shrugs my ramblings off. I can't stand it and I feel so sorry for his puppies. Not only will his interactions with the puppies while they are in his care make it harder for their future owners to train them and put them in danger of being given to bad homes, but they also face a risk of getting health problems later on in life due to their dam not fully being health tested.;_;
But it's his dog and his decision you say. I realize that. I just wish that he'd at least do his gosh dang research for breeding his poor dog.

I do not tell people about the things involved in breeding just to hear myself talk. I feel it my sworn duty to tell people. No matter how many more people call me an "elitist snob", no matter how many people tell me "You don't know Jack ****!" or "Learn to spell before you preach your garbage!", as a future breeder myself, I feel a growing need to educate as many people as I can on responsible breeding.
I do not tell people this stuff to make them feel like yesterday's trash, I tell them this to attempt to have one less irresponsible breeder. The less of those there are, the easier it will be to keep the breeds healthy.



Oh, and something else I need to get off my chest...
Many time when we post advice for people who wish to breed their dogs in Dogster answers, people who obviously don't know what they are talking about come up and say something like "Oh, sweetie, don't listen to those meanies." How is looking out for the best interest of the breed and the dog being a meanie?

What's especially annoying is when they post that kind of answer AFTER I've already posted one, because I can't correct them. In Answers, we can only post one answer per question and have only have chance to give it our best shot.

The problem is, people just can't bear the truth these days and having someone sucking up to them is going to make them more likely to make the wrong choice.
Because of those answers, I've been adding to my answers "I'm not trying to make you feel bad. Just passing along what I've learned after more than 3 years of researching the subject."

Granted, some of the answers that have good advice do tend to come off a bit harshly, but I know the people who do those and they don't intend for it to look as harsh as it reads.