Pet Owners: Stop Paying Thousands of Dollars for Mutts!

The last decade of pet ownership has ushered in the era of the designer dog “breed”…hybrid crosses of existing AKC of recognized breeds that may provide cool looking and nice dogs, but in the end are little more than mutts (dogs of mixed breeding that have no pure bred value.  Despite breeders having found a market to crank out countless new “breeds” of what are little more than mutts, dog owners are falling for them in droves…and in many cases paying a much larger price for them than actual AKC recognized dog breeds.  It is beyond comprehension.

Here is a list of some of the more popular ones:

Labradoodle (Labrador Retriever standard Poodle cross)

Yorkiepoo (Yorkshire Terrier, Mini-Poodle cross)

Puggle (Beagle, Pug cross)

It is now just going crazy, as I have recently seen a Bassador (Labrador Retriever, Basset Hound cross), a Maltipoo (Maltese, Mini-Poodle cross), and a Dorkie (Dachshund, Yorshire Terrier cross).   I really could go on and on with the new and different designer mutts I see weekly in practice, with owners commonly paying over $1000 for these mutts, meanwhile hundreds of thousands of mutts continue to be euthananized each year in overcrowded animal shelters.

Newsflash folks…if you want a mixed breed dog whose genetic combinations create a unique look and personality, all one needs to do is go to a local animal shelter.   You will pay only about $60 for a dog that is parasite and heartworm screened, fully vaccinated, spayed/neutered, and you will be saving a life in the process.

Dr. Roger Welton is the President of Maybeck Animal Hospital and CEO/Chief Editor of the veterinary information and blog online community, Web-DVM.