Put bluntly, there are currently too many poor quality Siberian Huskies being bred. These huskies are then sold on to naive, unprepared new owners with little knowledge of or understanding of the breed and when the "cute" puppy becomes a bouncy teenager, that is when they are likely to be sold on or given up to welfare for rehoming. 

If you are thinking of breeding your dog/bitch, these are some of the things you need to think about:

1. How do you know your dog/bitch is good enough to breed from?

 In order to ensure that the breed retains the qualities which make it what it is, any dogs bred from need to be as close to the breed standard as possible.  How do you know if your dog is good enough? The best way of ascertaining this is to both show and work your dog(s). Success in the show ring under knowledgable judges will indicate that your dog is of good quality. You should look to achieve at least a Kennel Club Stud Book Number as an indication of quality as assessed in the showring. On the trail, you should ascertain whether your dog retains the breed's love for working in harness. Without some degree of show success and the ability and willingness to work in harness, dogs are unlikely to be good enough to breed from.

2. Is your dog Kennel Club Registered?

Although KC registration is not a guarantee of quality, the lack of KC registration is an indication of poor quality. KC registration is at least a strong indication that the pedigree of your dog is accurate and honest. This will help in checking the health records of your dog's ancestors. Without KC registration, this will be impossible.

3. Have the appropriate health tests been carried out on your dog/bitch?

If your dog is KC registered and has proved its quality in the showring and on the trail, has it had the appropriate health tests for the breed and satisfactory results achieved.

Hip Dysplacia is not a major problem within the breed (in 15 years, we have not come across a Sibe with HD although, of course it does occur very occasionally), and the way this situation can be maintained and improved is by every breeder hip-scoring his/her dogs under the BVA scheme. The current breed average hip score is 7. No ethical breeder would breed from a dog whose hip score was in double figures or where the scores of dog and bitch added together came to more than 20. 

Eye Problems - again, these are not common within the breed, but, unfortunately are not unknown. There is some disagreement about which eye tests are necessary for Siberians in the UK, but both of the UK breed clubs and SHWA(UK) agree that sibes should be tested for both Primary Glaucoma and Hereditary Cataracts. Other conditions for which testing is recommended are PRA (Progressive Retinal Atrophy), PPM (Persistent Pupillary Membrane) and CD (Corneal Dystrophy).

4. Can you afford to have a litter?

Although commercially minded breeders regard breeding as a money-making enterprise, the reality is that if things go wrong, you could end up losing money on a litter. If for example the mother needs a caesarian and as a result rejects the pups so that you have to spend 2 weeks or more handfeeding them every couple of hours 24/7, it is going to cost you a bomb in vet fees, puppy milk, baby bottles and probably in terms of time lost from work. 

These are just some of the factors you need to think about before breeding your dog.

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