I have been concerned about all the fuss about our dogs being KC registered. I do understand about breeding, so please don't have a go at me about that, the question I'd like to ask is, why is it so important? I have a dog that is not recognised by the KC, yet she has a 'long name', but, in certain circles, that isn't good enough.

Can someone enlighten me on this

KC registration is important inasmuch as it means your dog's ancestry is traceable, and, if the pedigree papers you are given with the dog turn out to be false, you have legal redress. It also means that the dog can be tested and be officially scored for various hereditary conditions.

Hope this makes things a little clearer.
:)

What do you mean she has a long name?? KC reg has nothing to do with 'a long name' it is to do with be as certain as you can about your dogs ancestry and hence being able to check on health issues etc.
KC reg is only as good as the person who is using it BUT it is as good as it gets...anything else isn't worth the paper its written on.
If I was going to have a non-KC reg dog I would have a mongrel...I would not pay top money for a pedigree dog with no papers.
Archer

My BC's have only been KC registered so I could show them in obedience etc. They were not from KC reg parents but ISDS who have also got an official stud book which records eye tests( & tattooes etc I think)ALL BC's registered at the KC can be traced back to ISDS dogs even the foreign imports

ISDS are recognised by the KC as pedigree dogs, as are certain other breeds with proper stud book records

I would never advise anyone to buy a BC without it being ISDS or KC registered with all the health tests recorded

You cannot register ISDS puppies unless you are a member of the ISDS & the mating recorded at the ISDS before the puppies are born by the stud dog owner

Of course the breeds with the longest verifiable pedigrees are working hounds - the pack foxhounds and beagles. Their ancestry can be traced back beyond the 17th century in many cases.

I think what is being referred to here archer, is the dogs KC equivilent. Where a pedigree dog has a KC name, non KC breeds have a long or breed society name. One that is registered with the particular dog breed society. This, however, is common with rare breeds. As for your reference archer, regarding that you'd rather have a mongrel, then this persons dog is probably a rare breed, and therefore more sought after than your more common breeds, and a damn sight more expensive too.

"a rare breed, and therefore more sought after than your more common breeds, and a damn sight more expensive too. "

Common?!  How dare you! :D :D sniff, flounce..............

Now tohme, that's not a tantrum you're throwing is it, lol.

Brainless, I don't know why people have to charge high prices for rare breed pups, but they do, and people will continue to pay it.

Now my breed is not very common, and probably rarer than dome of the fashionable new so called rare breeds often wanted by the genearl public and sold at very high prices.

Imports in our breed have to be made fairly often to keep the gene pool reasonably wide, yet they cost the same as most medium sized breeds.

Knowing the cost, (and thankfully bearing only a quater of it) of importing a dog, there is no way I expect to recoup this investment in the breed I love.  It is very doubtful that the dog will eve sire enough litters outside his owners kennels to even cover the initial importation and quarantine of £3000.

So why are such silly amounts being charged for some rare (often undesirable) colours of some breeeds, or for pups in some of the newer breeds?

>> It is very doubtful that the dog will eve sire enough litters outside his owners kennels to even cover the initial importation and quarantine of £3000. <<

And to be truthful it would not be a good thing if you could, over use of a stud in a breed with such small number could cause problems in future generations. Not having a go at Brainless I am sure she would agree with me.

Yep do have to agree a couple of litters per year is plenty.  Though obviously there will always be a clutch of litters at first to be able to evaluate a dogs offspring.

Of the litters bred by breeders with an affix last year 6 out of 17 were sired by one male, and the smae dog has had a similar proportion of litters over a few years.  Ours sired a further 3 and a couple of dogs sired two litters a piece, with the rest single litters sired.

An import dog that you and I both have in our pedigrees sired a total of 20 litters over a 10 year period and it is difficult to find dogs where he isn't Grandfather/Great Grandfather, so what will happen with the others used often.

I had to think long and hard before considering a repeat mating of the litter which included my Lexi.  I am generally against this practice in numerically small breeds, and know of two cases where a bitch had 4 litters to same dog, and another 3, to me that is wasting the bitches potential as well as overusing the same combination of genes in a small gene pool. 

For me there is no real choice as the bitch is not one that was easy to mate (tried her twice with another male), so mating her to a maiden dog is not an option.  I would still want another differently bred litter from her if she proves more co-operative this time.  Thankfully it was only a small litter so I don't feel quite so bad about it.  Of course she may decide that there is no way she will be doingt THAT again :D

As for our dog I would imagine he may get used now and then when his first litters have matured, and breeders consider he may be useful to them (or maybe not).  I think people are realising that one breeds oneself into a corner using the same dogs as everyone else, no matter how pleasing the results of using any one dog may be. 

I don't know what the answer is though as even with the best will in the world it is hard to find a compatible dog available outside of the ones being shown.  Maybe breeders should ask fellow breeders if they have bred a nice dog in a pet home, but then there is persuading the pet owner to allow their dog to be used, and the implications of that (cost of health tests etc for just one time use, and then a dog whose character changes).  There are quite anumber of even the shown dogs whose owners have no wish to ahve their dog used at stud.  I have found that sadly the vast majority of the males I have bred have been neutered.

Speaking to breeders in Australia where they have even fewer options they use Well bred Pet dogs all the time (as the number ownerd by breeders is very limited), but mostly the litters are being sired by artificial insemination, so the dog being inexpereinced is not a hindrance, and usually the dog never having actually mated a bitch. doesn't alter their outlook on life.