Pedigrees…. Impressive ?
Champs and pedigrees, it’s a genetic minefield to understand !!
Pedigrees, bloodlines, champs…. Sired by, grandson of and even great grandson of, are all things you will see and read about when looking for a potential stud or even researching the lines when looking to purchase a pup. Bloodlines matter as they are the building blocks and are interesting reading but any claims about credentials directly influencing any individual SBT beyond grandparents is just laughable & fantasy !!
Why do Champions feature in bold red on pedigrees ? This is because they are Champions in their country of birth and they are recognised as Champions by the Royal Kennel club here in the UK, if they do not feature in bold red they are not recognised as champions here in the UK or indeed their home country.
Yes many bold red Champions on a pedigree make it look good, but how much influence on a bloodlines can these Champions actually have ?
lets find out……..
lets understand what matters in any pedigree
Let take this pedigree below as an example (for reference only)
There is a staggering 20 champs but does that make this SBT better…. lets see ?
Two parents ⚫ 🔴 ( one of the parents is a champ ) massive influence of course.
Four Grandparents ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ( one is a champ) still a big genetical influence to individual dog as grandparents are close relatives.
Eight great Grandparents ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ( two champs) indirect influence at best as the genetic pool is now 8, so building blocks rather than a direct influence.
Sixteen great, great grandparents ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ 🔴 (4champs) looks nice on pedigree but grasping at straws if you think any particular one of these 16 can directly influence an individual SBT.
Thirty two G,G,G grandparents ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ 🔴 (6 Champs) Really just decoration on a pedigree no 1 SBT can be claimed to be a direct influence.
Sixty four GGGG grandparents⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ 🔴⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ ⚫ 🔴 ⚫ 🔴 ( 6 Champs) there is 64 dogs in this generation, enough said.
How much can any individual SBT at the backend of a pedigree one of 16, 32 or 64 dogs in a generation play any direct influence to a pup or a stud…. very little next to none is the answer, just a tiny genetic trace. Pedigrees make interesting reading but Parents and grandparents are the ones you need look closely at and expect a direct influence to any individual SBT. Number of champs sounds good and looks good on a pedigree but don’t expect it to matter unless of course it is the parents or the grandparents in bold red.
So for me looking at this example pedigree, I would look most importantly at the quality of the individual parents and the grandparents to help me make a judgement on bloodlines and consider not a pedigree of 20 champions but a direct pedigree featuring 2 champions.
Then of course I would consider the Coi % and look at the lines that influence that number, high or low Coi ? Well that’s a whole other thing to consider and something most people don’t understand……. want to find out more about Coi, checkout the article I published in the the news section, this explains everything !!
Even for us we learn everyday, knowledge is key and everyday is a school day !!
