It's over

[Darrell]

If we're going to talk about dogs, consider this:

Clear Thinking on Genetic Diversity




Every breeder of domestic animals with a closed studbook should read this, all of it. Most important is the section the writer, Jeffrey Bragg, calls Principles for the Breeder.
(MANY thanks to Daniela Imre).

"The great majority of dog breeds have been bred within a completely closed studbook for sixty to a hundred years or longer, with little or no fresh genetic input throughout the entire period from breed foundation to the present. In most cases the stud book was opened for a year or two, a small number of founders, often closely related to one another, were registered, and the stud book was then closed. Thereafter, only dogs descended from the founders could be registered. And for those sixty to a hundred or more years, artificial selection, random drift, bottlenecking and other forms of attrition took their toll of whatever genetic diversity was present in the founder group. It is exactly as though a bank account had been established with a single initial deposit (the genetic diversity of the founders), with no further deposits permitted; meanwhile bank fees and direct debits (diversity losses from drift, selection, etc.) chiselled away at the balance. It is a sure and certain recipe for bankruptcy.

"Similarly, many individual bloodlines have been treated in exactly the same way, bred in relative genetic isolation from other bloodlines -- except that in this case additional deposits are at least allowed, in the form of bloodline outcrosses. Therefore each breeder probably ought to consider the desirability of locating and using a true outcross within his or her own breed (unrelated to one's own stock for at least ten to fifteen generations) at least once and to integrate the resulting progeny into one's kennel bloodline.

(Snip)

http://stephenbodio.blogspot.com/2013/0 ... rsity.html

Bodio writes a good bit about Asian hunting dogs, tazis, Salukis, Afghans and such. He's concerned about show dogs vs hunting dogs.

The original article is here:

http://www.seppalakennels.com/articles/ ... actice.htm

[SoupOrMan]

Wild turkeys will retreat if charged. It is especially true if the turkey finds himself defending the top of a footbridge from a college student who refuses to bow to academic pressure and let the wild critters do as they please in the world of man. No, you stupid jake, the top of the north bridge that connects the east and west campuses of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale is not a fine place to find a selection of lady turkeys for hot turkey lovin'. That is what the woods are for. The footbridge is where a very tired student is walking home from a night of drinking and gaming and he isn't about to retreat just to assuage the twisted morals of the Student Environmental Justice Committee. No, Señor Turkey, you are not Publius Horatius Cocle and this is not the Pons Sublicius and you are not defending it against the Clusii. However, this student will overrun you like Lars Porsenna did the legionary recruits at the Janiculum. And, turkey, you will get the hell out of the way.

So, while turkeys might be smart and ruthless, they often have no idea what they should do when being charged by a drunken student while standing at the apex of a footbridge's span.

[martini]

Funny how working and show strains of theoretically the same breed can be so different, but beagles would hardly be the only breed where that's true.

Poodles... yeah...

Best gun dog and retriever I ever knew was a standard Poodle. That do was scary smart.

My dad kept a pair of standard poodles as gun dogs, Tug and Barge. Before my time, but to hear him tell it, they were the best gun dogs he ever owned or worked with.

[skb12172]

Soup: Two thoughts.
1. My Bro in law taught at SIUC in the mid 90s. I know that bridge and can picture the scene.
2. Hot Turkey Luvin' would be a great name for a rock band.

[Greg]

Soup: Two thoughts.
1. My Bro in law taught at SIUC in the mid 90s. I know that bridge and can picture the scene.
2. Hot Turkey Luvin' would be a great name for a rock band.

The only wildlife I ever encountered on long walks home in the wee hours of the morning is skunks. Happened to me twice, walked up on a skunk and got close before I realized it. They are kindly and polite little fellows, if sometimes a bit nervous and fussy, and will move out of your way if you ask *nicely*. An armed society is a polite society, or something...

[Precision]

Soup: Two thoughts.
1. My Bro in law taught at SIUC in the mid 90s. I know that bridge and can picture the scene.
2. Hot Turkey Baster Luvin' would be a great name for a Lesbian rock band.

FIFY

[SoupOrMan]

Soup: Two thoughts.
1. My Bro in law taught at SIUC in the mid 90s. I know that bridge and can picture the scene.
2. Hot Turkey Luvin' would be a great name for a rock band.

Which college was he in? If he taught in 1998 I may have run into him.

[skb12172]

Business. He's an Economist. However, he left in 1994 or 1995.

[SoupOrMan]

I wouldn't have bumped into him, then. Just mentioning Economics made three of my faculty advisors in the history department hiss and burst into flames.