PHOENIX — A dog breeding practice happening in Arizona is not only unethical but could also be really harmful.
The practice, called "double merle breeding," uses a gene that causes the type of pigmentation you see in dog breeds like Australian Shepherds and Border Collies.
The merle gene causes pets to have multicolored coats and striking blue eyes.
Having the merle gene is great, but becomes problematic when two dogs with that gene are paired. Birth defects in litters can happen when two dogs with this merle gene are bred together, hence double merle breeding.
"That merle gene is that gray and black kind of coloring on Willy here and if you breed two dogs who have that gene it can cause a 1 in 4 chance for the double merle. That's a 25% chance that puppy will be born with blindness, will be deaf, or both," Kimberly Vermillion said. She's a spokesperson for the Arizona Animal Welfare League (AAWL).
Some breeders are aware of the harms, but breed them together anyway to get more money for the specific coloring it causes.
"Willy is partially blind and deaf and has been with us for almost a year at AAWL and there's a lot of misconceptions about it," Vermillion continued. "But it's all he knows and it's really just about taking that extra time to work with him and our behavior team has worked with him to help him with techniques using scents and touch so he knows how to navigate his world."
How common is double merle breeding in Arizona?
"We see a few cases here and there at our shelter and any disreputable breeder, they're going to be doing that because they can get more money for those puppies so make sure you're buying from a reputable breeder or more importantly adopt don't shop."
Breeding practices have little to no regulations in Arizona. There are no regulations for the number of dogs a person owns, how they are bred, or how they are sold.
Vermillion said to make sure you ask for medical history and do your homework when purchasing a pup.
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