I would like to know where and how i can find out what good lines to breed from would be? I don't know if that statement makes sense but ill give you an example!!

I have an Akita who has lots of champs and is along ****** lines. I know in my breed, ****** are the ones to have, why is this? Is it because they have always won at crufts and been free from health issues??

I am now looking into breeding a hound breed but would like to know where i would look to find out what are the best lines to breed from. In other words i want to research know what i am looking for before i go looking!!

Any help would be appreciated. xx

Not trying to knock your confidence but you obviously don't research properly with your akita comments.  Every line has health issues in Akitas, just some people share the problems to sort it and others sweep them under the carpet(or send them abroad).  And that's not a dig at a certain kennel, that is common knowledge easily researched

I would firstly suggest you get an honest mentor and friend.  Someone that has been in the breed for a long time and knows what lines throw what problems.  These are things you can research but to be honest, their is so much dodgy dealings and lies in dog showing/breeding that people don't always advertise when their dogs have issues.  Also, just because a kennel is winning doesn't make them the best.  These are things you learn with time and experience.  Get yourself involved with your chosen breed and get on the comittee.  Attend the meetings and find out more.  This is stuff that you should be doing for many years before breeding is even thought about.  Go to shows, go see the guys that work the breed too.  I would get myself out and about to anything involving the breed and meet like-minded people.  When you chat for endless hours over the phone, sit with a breed book and ask.  I have a dog-eared copy of a breed annual that has writing inside that only I know what it means.  It's full of scribbles where I have jotted down things like health or faults or infact how great the dog is and I took this book everywhere till I knew dogs/lines inside out.

Cracar has explained it very well. Breeding should come after years of experience of a breed, it's the final step you take, when you have been involved in the breed club, either showing or working, and have seen and got to know first hand the dogs in the pedigrees, so you know looks, temperament, health etc not just by reading bits of paper, but from seeing it first hand. You will get to learn what type you prefer -you can have winners that are totally different.

and as the above takes years to learn having reliable mentors who have this information at their fingertips will be needed the first time you venture into breeding.

These will often be the owners of the sire and Dam of your foundation bitch, but also others whose stock you admire.

There is no shortcut you have to get in there and involved in your breed.

Meet the dogs, if you can arrange to see the oldies at home behind the ones you admire, watch the young classes to see what studs and bitches produce in their offspring especially those with similar pedigrees to your own.  Then study the health data available. 

As has been said no breed or line in a breed is free from negative traits, but by avoiding combinations that have produced issues before you can move forward.  Some issues only occur when certain lines/dogs are put together yet to other lines/dogs produce well, and problem free.

Many health issues are not governed by single genes, and need to come together in an unhappy alliance to cause a problem.

> I am now looking into breeding a hound breed but would like to know where i would look to find out what are the best lines to breed from

Do you mean you intend to buy a puppy to breed from in future?  Even the best research won't give any guarantees.  Presumably you'd look to buy a bitch?  No breeder will just hand over a quality bitch without endorsements and these won't be lifted unless she meets certain criteria, including satisfactory health test results.  Most good breeders would also look for additional reasons why a mating would benefit the breed and will want consistent show results or some kind of working ability.  In theory you could have several bitches over years of ownership before finding the right one to mate and finding a good stud dog isn't easy either!  Are you planning to show your dog?

I'd guess you have a breed in mind already?  Have a good look at their breed club sites and look at breeders who might be doing well in the show or working arenas.  Try and visit a few events to see what their dogs are like in the flesh.  Once you've identified a potential breeder you can Google them to see what supportive information might be out there - KC health test results for their breeding, show results, working tests, photograph albums, owner groups on FB, etc, before you go and meet them and their dogs at home.  I don't know what your previous dog buying experience is but do be prepared to go on a waiting list for the right breeder - a really good one is worth their weight in gold! :)

The most important thing about this research is to find the best breed, and best puppy, for you and your family.  Deciding to breed is a decision for much later and shouldn't be your main motivation or imperative.  In fact, many good breeders won't make any promises in the planning stage.  Beware any breeder that tells you otherwise...  Good luck with your research

Thank you so much dogs a babe very informative and helpful :)