Hi can I please ask can I breed my bitch with her half brother. They have the same father but different mother.  please as some people say yes and other say no I am just not sure could you please let me know  Thanks

Hi Jane, according to Kennel Club rules you can register litters from this mating. You do need to be fully aware of the health status, though formal testing, of as many family members as possible though. You might find it interesting to research through the "My KC" facility on the Kennel Club site. It allows you to calculate the COI of the litter which might help you to make informed decisions.

Thanks for your help much appreciated Thanks

Registration wise yes -but beware that PET buyers will often not want to buy such pups as they have heard too many media stories about "terrible inbreeding". Show people will understand, your average pet owner will not.

I'm an (ex) show person and I wouldn't want a dog that inbred. To preserve the genetic diversity of the various breeds, it's important to keep the COI below average....

To preserve the genetic diversity of the various breeds, it's important to keep the COI below average....

You get problems when outcrossing as well. My last litter was 0.2 % COI but the breed average is 2.8 % -VERY difficult, not to say impossible, to actually preserve a breed keeping it that low, unless we're talking about hugely popular breeds. Also the COI of 2.8 % isn't very accurate when you take into consideration that two thirds of all pups registered in that breed are from working lines -totally different to the showlines that are much more restricted genetically unless you go abroad or import. (And even then we now have so much foreign blood even the imports are all related!) It's much the same as saying you should only breed from dogs with hip scores well below the average which is the official recommendation -so should you then reject a 10 because the average is 8? As so often, it's all breed related. In my other breed the average COI is 5.3 and there's LOTS more of them.

It is within the rules and I have done such a close mating where both shared the same mother who had had three litters and was 9 years old.

You do ne3ed to have a good reason and a lot of information on health and temperament of the common ancestors lines.

Show people will understand, your average pet owner will not.

Yes and No

Rare breed = Yes
Uber Champions = Maybe/Yes
Common breed not shown or worked = BYB saving a few quid. NO NO NO

Yes.   In terms of being able to register them with the KC.   Half brother to half sister is okay but they do suggest the breeder talks to an experienced fellow-breeder before doing so in case there is a 'nasty' in the common relatives.  Provided you know what you are doing, I rather like this form of line-breeding but you also need to know when you need an outcross mating, so you don't get too close.

Good point about running into potential problems with buyers who have read all the horror stories about 'incest' (which of course, it's not)  LOL

And also about outcrossing - you get the best and the worst when putting two unrelated lines together - especially if they've perhaps not been put together before!  This is the joy of line-breeding which fixes type for one thing.

The best dog I have owned was from half sibling mating. His coi wasn't higher than some of my line bred girls who at first glance don't look that closely bred.
When you breed close you compound the bad as well as the good so not a mating to be undertaken without careful research into bloodline