Jasper is a rescue. He was dumped at the local shelter at just 3 months old. The story we got was that he came from a "breeder" in a neighboring town. He is albino, and we do use him to educate others on why albinos should not be bred for. That said, he is a stunning boy. He is so unique looking that he garners a lot of attention. He also has definite issues with his skin (under control, thankfully), and his vision.
My sister, who does agility, met, what we believe to be, his sister, recently at an agility meet. The man walking her stated her age (same as Jasper) and where he got her (same town as Jasper is supposedly from). Based on this, we do believe her to be from the same litter.
She was really aggressive, baring her teeth at other dogs and people. She was squinting in the sun. When asked, the man stated she had no vision deficit, but that her pupils "sure are like pinpoints" in the sun. When my sister told him we use sunscreen and feed allergy food, etc., he insisted she has no issues, despite the fact that her skin was covered with scabs. He went on to say that his daughter was going to breed hers again for whites, and that this litter had a bunch of deformed puppies, that had to be put down. Why, oh why, would you breed again, even setting aside the fact that they are albino? The sister was in terrible shape, had a terrible disposition, had none of the musculature that Jasper has. I get that it's partly due to the fact that she hasn't had the same level of care, but it's infuriating.
I guess the icing on the cake was when another member of our dog club mentioned that she overheard him telling someone that my pup's whole litter was the result of a sister-brother breeding.
Now, knowing all this, I'm even more worried about the future health problems Jasper will have as a result of his poor genetics. I can't stop thinking about it. I waiver between mad and sad over the whole thing.
On a brighter note, we are going to be competing in our very first AKC rally event on May 11th. I'm super excited and think he's more than ready. Wish us luck!
My sister, who does agility, met, what we believe to be, his sister, recently at an agility meet. The man walking her stated her age (same as Jasper) and where he got her (same town as Jasper is supposedly from). Based on this, we do believe her to be from the same litter.
She was really aggressive, baring her teeth at other dogs and people. She was squinting in the sun. When asked, the man stated she had no vision deficit, but that her pupils "sure are like pinpoints" in the sun. When my sister told him we use sunscreen and feed allergy food, etc., he insisted she has no issues, despite the fact that her skin was covered with scabs. He went on to say that his daughter was going to breed hers again for whites, and that this litter had a bunch of deformed puppies, that had to be put down. Why, oh why, would you breed again, even setting aside the fact that they are albino? The sister was in terrible shape, had a terrible disposition, had none of the musculature that Jasper has. I get that it's partly due to the fact that she hasn't had the same level of care, but it's infuriating.
I guess the icing on the cake was when another member of our dog club mentioned that she overheard him telling someone that my pup's whole litter was the result of a sister-brother breeding.
Now, knowing all this, I'm even more worried about the future health problems Jasper will have as a result of his poor genetics. I can't stop thinking about it. I waiver between mad and sad over the whole thing.
On a brighter note, we are going to be competing in our very first AKC rally event on May 11th. I'm super excited and think he's more than ready. Wish us luck!