Breeding a Rare Breed
And the Quirks that come with it
As you scroll through our site you'll see things that are a little different from breeders of more popular breeds. For example you'll see less titles on the dogs before they are bred. You'll see less dogs in home. You'll see us using dogs with C/fair hips or that are carriers for PRA. For us personally, you'll notice that we don't keep males as well. So let's talk about some of the reasons things seem different.
First titles are a large commitment of time and money. Some titles are easier and some take years of training. Conformation titles are harder to earn. Unfortunately, there's usually only 1 to 4 Swedish lapphunds at a given show, and points are only awarded in AKC's Open Shows when there is at least 2 and then only for 1st place. As well we may have 5 weekends of shows a year at max that we can attend. This means earning a CM in AKC (equivalent to a champion title) is incredibly hard. Take a look at how points are earned here:
All in all, it is not uncommon in Swedish Lapphunds in North America to breed without extensive titling. We strive to prove our dogs to the best of our ability within the constraints we have, but we do not have the luxury of not breeding a health tested, typey dog that fits the standard because it lacks a conformation title. Doing that would put our breed at risk of a genetic bottleneck.
We personally do not keep intact males in our home for multiple reasons. One is too avoid accidental litters. We have two special needs humans in our home and the risk would be too high. Secondly, we mostly do not use males from our own kennel. As our breed has strict rules for pairing that are set by the breed club in Sweden, more often than not the best male to pair with is not in your own home and often not in the same country. In fact our one female Tala was sired by a male who had been collected 10 years prior in Sweden.
In terms of health, as we stated we have to be very careful of creating a genetic bottleneck. That means not being afraid to pair dogs that are carriers of PRA to dogs that are clear, or pairing dogs with C/fair hips to dogs that are A or B / Excellent or Good. Mindful pairing within the Breeding Protocols set forth by the breed club in Sweden is how all litters should be planned. Dogs that are symptomatic or affected shouldn't be used though.
We mention this in our puppy section, but be prepared to travel if you want to get a Swedish Lapphuund. There's very few of us breeding in North America and no one ships puppies. You will need to travel and pick up your puppy. I often get emails asking for breeders in certain states but the reality of a rare breed is that it is rare you will get to stay in the same state for a puppy.
We often also get asked how much money we make since we "must" be charging more as the breed is rare. That's not how rare breeds work. Ethical breeding means you aren't charging more just because it's rare. You charge based on your expenses and what will help you at least break even. For us at Norrland we have never been able to recoup the costs from a breeding, so do not get into this breed thinking you will make money off of them - you will not.
Overall, there is a lot of quirks (even more than listed here) to breeding a rare breed and breeding Swedish Lapphunds in particular. We are always open to discussion if you want to learn more or have questions.