Breed Misidentification

[SkySoaringMagpie]

Have had a couple of experiences where people felt sure they had a [specific breed] dog through rescue, but the dog clearly is not pure, and probably not even a mix of that breed. When corrected by someone with breed expertise, they have rejected the assessment even if it's allegedly a 24 inch "Wolfhound" or a breed variety where there are only about 15 in the country, all tightly held.

Normally my reaction to breed misidentification is to correct it and then let it slide if they persist, who cares? In rescue tho' holding a dog out to be a breed or a breed mix that it clearly is not, can create problems. And some punters don't want some mixes, and that is their right. In their shoes I also wouldn't want some mixes. I suppose I also wonder why a dog being a specific breed is so important or attractive to people who don't want to get [specific breed] from a breeder or breed rescue.

Before this descends into DOL whacking of the unwashed, I don't think there is much to be gained by doing the snotty pure bred thing, but I really find it hard to get my head around people who are sure that there is an unlikely exotic breed in a mixed breed rescue despite expert advice to the contrary.

So how do you deal with it?

[Clyde]

Ten years ago I wouldn't have been able to let it go These days I just grin and bear it. The 'mastiffs' online are still something which irritates but as a groomer I have lots of "Shih Tzus" and "Maltese Terriers" which come in and I just can't be bothered. Just recently I groomed a "Shih Tzu" they adopted from a pound which was a rough coated JRT :laugh: I do a lot of mixed fluffies which all get called Shih Tzus by their owners.

[mita]

I've had a couple of examples in the opposite direction. Rescues have advertised dogs from the pound (background unknown) as Tibetan Spaniel X or Some Other Small Fluffy X.

In these cases, each dog had the look of a purebred. I've got knowledgeable people to look at the pic....& they've said the dog has the features that'd make you think 'purebred'. When I've told those rescues, they have quite rightly said that in the absence of actual evidence, they won't claim a dog is purebred.

So I now think it's fair enough for a rescue to state that a breed label is only their best guess. But because of no actual evidence, they will make no claim of purebred. When there is any evidence, like the papers have been surrendered with the dog, then they can state 'purebred'.

In both cases, the rescues changed the label to Tibetan Spaniel......but they made no claim that the dogs were purebred. They did the right thing, IMO.

Edited April 17, 2012 by mita

[Dogsfevr]

we get alot through boarding that don't resemble what they claim.

Yes we do tell them & let them make there own choice simply because most are microchipped as *** breed/mix & if found you would never ever list it as that breed or say Yes we have something like that in the pound/vets etc etc.

Not many do anything about it but they can't say they weren't told.

[rebeldog]

Well I dont have a rescue. But I do suffer from people mistaking my dogs for designer mutts. I have Portuguese Water Dogs and I have to say I hate royal shows. Every second person is an expert and tells me how they have a "doodle" at home that looks just like my dog, but yours is better trained and more relaxed!!! I could kill someone after a day at the show. I clearly have signs that say Portuguese water dog. I have met people at the beach before that have what they think are mastiff crosses, that are definately only am staffs.

[Rysup]

8 out of 10 dogs that come through our work (grooming) are not what their owners think they are! It does not bother me in the least. Sometimes I might ask where they got it, or if they saw the parents, but generally I dont bother unless its really interesting.

[Meea]

Tee hee

The same folk who knowledgably discuss my 'wolfhound' UNDERneath the sign that says Deerhound. Oh the joys of the Royal.

My personal fav is the guy (it is always a guy) who assures me there us no such thing as a Deerhound Because He Has Never Heard Of Them.

Hello! Does the fact that I am at the other end of the lead of three of them not prove their existence??

[Poodle Mum]

Well I dont have a rescue. But I do suffer from people mistaking my dogs for designer mutts. I have Portuguese Water Dogs and I have to say I hate royal shows. Every second person is an expert and tells me how they have a "doodle" at home that looks just like my dog, but yours is better trained and more relaxed!!! I could kill someone after a day at the show. I clearly have signs that say Portuguese water dog. I have met people at the beach before that have what they think are mastiff crosses, that are definately only am staffs.

I feel for you....I had my dogs out for a walk & meet a women who almost wanted an argument with me about my Std Poodle. She kept telling me "no thats a labradoodle" ...... she was pointing at my show dog in puppy trim!! I just laughed and walked away muttering :laugh:

[raineth]

the most I've ever one is say "it reminds me of a *insert breed name* do you see that?

But mostly I just say "oh o.k."

Or with the following dog I said "oh wow what a lovely curly-coat retriever!" and they said no he is a Labrador.

They got him from the vet were his previous owners had dumped him and his littermates. They thought he was a Labrador. He's a lovely dog, and so they decided about a year ago to go to a breeder and get 'another' Labrador. Now I have to wonder if they really still think their curly coat is a labrador because it is so obviously very different in size, coat and head to their true labrador- surely they must wonder a little bit? :laugh:

[darlingdog]

I am involved in pointer rescue ( the english kind )and friend of mine recently adopted a pointer pup from an RSPCA shelter in the country ... this pup is not papered but purebred as we know the lines the backyard breeder is using ( a whole other story !). Right up to when the pup left the shelter kept telling my friend...'no love not purebred, something else in there maybe a great dane cross !! I STILL tease my friend about her cross bred dane LOL!!! The upside was he was cheap ... not being a purebred. :)

[DeltaCharlie]

Tee hee

The same folk who knowledgably discuss my 'wolfhound' UNDERneath the sign that says Deerhound. Oh the joys of the Royal.

Reminds me of a Pet Expo I attended a few years back as a representative for Springwood District Dog Training Club (written in big letters above our stand, which was in amongst the breed stands).

We had numerous people come up and ask us about the temperament of a "Springwood" and why they all looked so different (we had everything from amstaffs to beardies there that day). My personal favourite was the guy who informed us he had a Springwood at home

I have been informed by numerous Koolie "experts" (including breeders) that Charlie is likely to be a pure koolie. Nevermind that his mum was some sort of cattle/staffy mix and dad is likely to be a kelpie/BC.

[Inevitablue]

Tee hee

The same folk who knowledgably discuss my 'wolfhound' UNDERneath the sign that says Deerhound. Oh the joys of the Royal.

Sitting there letting the general public pat a red ACD bitch, I lost count of the 'OMG they have dingo's here!' :laugh:

[Meea]

Based on that criteria I must have a Springwood or two lying around the house!!

[capanash]

One of our Standard poodles in lamb trim was refered to as a short coat poodle and our show dog in continetal trim was the long coat. The "expert" went on to explain to his friend that only the long coated poodles could be shown!

[Esky the husky]

Thanks to Esky's long coat I often get asked if she's a samoyed cross.

At races last I was even asked if she was a belgian shepherd crossed with a rough collie.

Uh, never mind the fact her face would be a lot lot lot different.

This was coming from husky owners too

Esky and I will be at an exhibition on Saturday, gotta get my game face prepared :laugh:

[Alkhe]

My boyfriend thinks everything with black and tan markings is a Dobermann, or 'must have some Dobermann in him', even if it's Chihuahua sized. It doesn't matter how many times I've shown him pictures of CKCS, kelpies, .. myriad breeds that can be black and tan, he won't learn!

I do think it's funny when people are trying to work out the breed composition of a rescue or something, and decide that it must be a Dandie Dinmont cross or something. Yeah, cause they turn up ALL the time in pounds, that's a far more likely explanation than some variation of SWF. Occam's razor, people. Bah!

[Salukifan]

Without papers anyone's guess can be as good as another's BUT I think it strays into danger with bull breed mixes in BSL states and when people start attributing characteristics to the dog in question and trying to train it based on breed.

I do have a chuckle at the number of 'Deerhound" crosses that are simply wire haired poodle mixes and when the rare breeds get trotted out into mixes.

Your average pound bitser in this country is probably a mix of the most commonly owned dogs. Funny how in the USA on the rescue shows they get lots of lab and chow mixes when we get bull breed and working mixes - and the little fluffies of course.

As for supposed 'purebreds' - its really hard to be definitive. A dog can look like a dead ringer and still be a mix.

[Jumabaar]

Tee hee

The same folk who knowledgably discuss my 'wolfhound' UNDERneath the sign that says Deerhound. Oh the joys of the Royal.

Reminds me of a Pet Expo I attended a few years back as a representative for Springwood District Dog Training Club (written in big letters above our stand, which was in amongst the breed stands).

We had numerous people come up and ask us about the temperament of a "Springwood" and why they all looked so different (we had everything from amstaffs to beardies there that day). My personal favourite was the guy who informed us he had a Springwood at home

I have been informed by numerous Koolie "experts" (including breeders) that Charlie is likely to be a pure koolie. Nevermind that his mum was some sort of cattle/staffy mix and dad is likely to be a kelpie/BC.

Anything spotty is a Koolie, and anything with tan points is a Kelpie X (even if its my fluffy finnish lapphund that is a 'pure kelpie' and the solid chocolate kelpies next to her are mutts )

I do get annoyed that anything with tan points is a kelpie- I think there are a few Tri borders out there that get labeled as Kelpie x BC. And if it weights 1kg then I don't think its a Kelpie x

ETA- I met what I would have sworn was a pure Rotty (maybe the markings were just a tad smutty) and it was a Rotty x GSD (they had met the parents).

Edited April 17, 2012 by Jumabaar

[tdierikx]

I'm picking up some pups from the pound tomorrow... breed ID is going to be a lot of fun... they are obviously crosses of crosses of crosses.

The big issue is that the microchip registry only allows up to 2 breeds listed in the cross... and you can't just put "crossbreed"... grrr!

T.

[DeltaCharlie]

Going slightly off track but I remember a few years back we had flyball training at Parramatta. A friend was there with his pedigree fawn coloured Briard, Dudley. Someone from the public happened to be walking their dog on the field at the time and struck up a conversation with us as his dog was almost identical in appearance to Dudley (only the owners could tell them apart). We stood the 2 next to each other for a photo (don't have the photo sorry) and we all swore it was another Briard. Turns out the neighbour's GSD had got to their Old English Sheepdog and this dog was the result.

Sometimes the most pedigree looking dogs can be made of completely unrelated breeds. I'm sure that somewhere in the past Briards, OES, and GSDs all have a common heritage but they have been bred pure for a very long time now and I was amazed at the similarities between these dogs. Had he ended up in the pound I have no doubt he would have been labelled as a briard.