Designer dogs??? What the heck is a designer dog you ask??

A “designer” dog (as the media has labelled them) is a cross between two purebred dogs.
A purebred dog is one that has been bred over many generations to breed true, meaning each puppy that is born looks and has the temperament and characteristics and one another.

In purebreds a standard is written and breeders must follow this. Purebred dogs are beneficial in that when you buy a purebred you know what you are getting.
Basically you know how big your puppy will grow and what type of temperament it should have.

When one breeds purebred dogs, great care must be taken to ensure the lines don’t become to thin.
To give you a simple analogy, lets say there was a law that stated only people with blonde hair, blue eyes and a high IQ could have children, with the end goal everyone in the UK to be smart, have blonde hair and blue eyes. If this were to happen, as you can imagine, our gene pool would eventually become thin and many genetic problems would occur.

So what’s the difference between a designer dog and a mutt (mongrel)?
Generally a mutt is of uncertain ancestry.
A designer dog has documented purebred ancestry and one knows for sure what it is.

So what’s up with these hybrid “designer” dogs? Are they healthier? Hybrid dogs can still have genetic problems because you are still crossing two first generation dogs, however the percentage of hybrid dogs with genetic problems is much lower because the gene pool is mixed. (See Heterosis Effect).