The Dominant Cross Breeding Program starts with some basic precepts. There is no need to discuss a breeding program if you don't believe that genetics is of vital importance in producing high quality animals. If you don’t believe that, there’s no need for you to read further. There is no question that you can have a top-notch hunting dog that is of unknown heritage. The issue is the production of new dogs – puppies – and that has to start with the general understanding that genetics is the major determining factor in producing trainable puppies.
Without getting into a lengthy discussion of genetics, it is safe to say that dogs with more generations of ancestors uncontaminated by dogs with undesirable performance traits are more likely to carry genes for desirable performance. Every time we add another generation of dogs that show desirable traits, we decrease the chance that undesirable traits will resurface. This is best illustrated with animals that have been bred strictly for a concrete, observable characteristic, like color. Through many generations of breeding for one color, other colors no longer appear – even if the desired color is not a dominant color.
With the complexities of genetics, most breeders over the years have given up on the science of genetic selection and have resorted to "breeding the best they have to the best they can find." If we all agreed on what was best and if everyone followed this practice without giving in to the temptation of raising puppies from every ovulating female, it would be good enough. However, we don't agree and unfortunately, the laws of supply and demand cause some breeders to raise puppies, no matter what
.
Multiple generations of test breeding and careful selection (culling) is the best way to build a line or breed. Trouble is, multiple generations of test breeding cannot be accomplished overnight and – like the average hunter – we have neither the facilities nor the support of additional hunters that is necessary to seriously test breed and select over several generations. We believe there is a "second-best" alternative and we have proven that it produces positive results.
Our plan is based on prepotency, a term used to describe the dominance of a particular parent. A prepotent sire or dam has the genetic dominance to produce offspring of similar characteristics no matter what the genetic disposition of the other parent. Prepotent parents are "perfect" reproducers. They genetically dominate whatever they're bred to. However, it is important to note that the offspring of prepotent parents carry half the genes of the other parent, so prepotency is a one-generation event. It can be carried to the next generation only if two prepotent reproducers are bred to each other. As soon as a cross is made to a non-prepotent parent, the potency is diluted by one-half.
Our breeding program is built on multiple prepotent crosses – those "perfect" crosses that produce success at a rate that approaches 100%. The offspring of these crosses are very strong candidates to have the best of both sets of genes. By themselves, they are very valuable breeding stock, but no more than any prepotent parent. That is where our plan goes a step beyond "breed the best you have to the best you can find." Rather than breed randomly to prepotent stud dogs or to the offspring of a prepotent cross, we chose three dominant crosses.
We think it can be made to work with a great deal of success with any combination of prepotent crosses (of any breed or combination of breeds), so long as their dominant traits do not contradict one another. We like dogs that are medium to wide hunters, sure locators by sight or scent, super-hard tree dogs. So, we chose dogs from crosses that produce such dogs. Those crosses are Streak JR X Georgetta, Toot’s Dale X Toot’s Candy, and Duff’s Bob X Pine Knot Tiger Paws. Currently, 90 - 100% of the ancestors of every dog in our kennel are high-performing offspring from these three prepotent crosses.
Again, it’s the end result that makes or breaks the program – only the trainable, high performers can be allowed to reproduce. (Think again of breeding for color. If you are breeding for black dogs, and a white puppy is born, you wouldn’t breed that dog and hope for black puppies.) If we breed a dog, it is a proven performer.
Even in a good breeding program, there will be individual dogs are proven to perform, but they reproduce a low percentage of trainable offspring. Like non-performers, they must NOT be allowed to reproduce, either. (If a black dog fathered even 10% white puppies, you would not pollute your program – or the breed – with his white puppies – or his black puppies carrying genes for white.) The selection process is key. It may take a long time to prove that a dog is a strong reproducer, but it doesn’t take as long to prove that they are not!
The concept of building a breeding program around multiple dominant crosses is not brain surgery. It is a sensible way that hunters who don’t raise dogs for a living can develop a viable breeding program in a relatively short period of time, using the success of other breeders as a springboard. You can do it too - and a puppy from Mountain State Kennels could be your springboard.
We don’t expect that Mountain State Kennels will go down in history as "Hall of Fame" breeders. Those spots are reserved for those who go through multiple generations of test breeding and careful selection.
On the other hand, there’s a reasonable chance that a dominant cross could come out of our breeding program. At the very least, a prepotent parent is likely. It’s much too early to be calling Geronimo a prepotent stud, although he is producing early starting, hard treeing puppies whether he’s bred to Original Mountain Curs, treeing curs, or hounds. We never bred Apache to an unproven female and we have upheld that high standard with Geronimo and Mohawk. After all, the point of the whole program is to increase the likelihood that puppies from every litter will be well above average.
We approach the program from the viewpoint of committed Original Mountain Cur hunters and we believe that every aspect of the program improves the overall quality of the breed and answers the exploding demand for higher quality OMC tree dogs.
If you would like to breed to a stud dog or purchase a puppy whose blood is 100% from multiple prepotent crosses, give us a call!
