by Alfred Iskander
I recently bought a shih tzu male and female from the same litter. They are now 8 weeks and from the article I figured out that the male is a Prapso. I love them both.
I have a question, if my breed Prapso puppy, what will be the possibilities? more Prapso puppies? Less?none?....what the Prapso puppy will inherent in general? Stronger Prapso or srtonger shih tzu appearance?
-----------------------------------------------
Hi, Janice Here from Miracle Shih Tzu
-----------------------------------------------
Congratulations on your new puppies, Alfred.
You have asked a very good question, and I am not sure whether anyone can answer it with 100% certainty. The genetic mode of inheritance of the Prapso condition has not been studied to my knowledge, so what I say is my own opinion only and should be taken as such.
Simple genetics would suggest that the gene or genes responsible for prapso could be dominant or recessive. If this were the case, then a prapso dog would have an excellent chance of passing on the condition to at least one of the offspring. If it is a recessive trait, then it would take two dogs that carry the trait to pass it on to the offspring. All of this is assuming that the genetics is super simple.
In reality, genetics is anything but simple. Sometimes two or more genes are involved in the expression of a trait, and all would need to be present to make it work.
Most traits are the result of different types of gene expressions such as incomplete dominance (when a gene does not mask a recessive gene), incomplete penetrance (when a gene does not express itself 100% of the time to look like itself and a variety of other conditions.
To make a very complicated subject simple, if you do not want to take a chance on producing another Prapso, don't breed a prapso.
Most likely, if I had to guess, there would be a chance that at least one of the puppies in the litter would be Prapso.
In my experience, both parents that I bred that ended up with a prapso puppy were "normal" with long coats and plenty of face hair. There were always normal and prapso puppies in the litter.
If one makes the assumption that the prapso condition is a simple (Mendalin) genetics, then if two dogs have a recessive gene for Prapso, then theoretically they could produce one. If one of the parents was dominant for the trait (meaning that they expressed the train themselves) and was mated with a dog that did not have the gene(s) for Prapso, then you could expect that 50% of the puppies might end up Prapso.
In your case, I am assuming that you are not planning to breed brother to sister, as that could be a problem.
All of this is purely conjecture, though because we do not know how the genes are expressed in this condition.
I wish I could give you a more divisive answer but to my knowledge it does not exist.
Comments for Breeding My Prapso Puppy
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
I hold an undergraduate degree in Psychology with a minor in biology, Early Childhood Education, and Nursing, and a Master's in Mental Health Counseling.
I'm a lifelong learner, a dog lover, and passionate about the welfare of animals. Though Shih Tzu is my favorite breed, I've also lived with Poodles, Maltese, Yorkshire Terriers, Beagles, English Bulldogs, Carin Terriers, and a Cocker Spaniel. Little critters that shared my space included guinea pigs, rabbits, chinchillas, hamsters, mice, tropical fish, and birds. (Oh, and one crayfish and hermit crab that my daughter brought home from school)
When not writing, reading, and researching dog-related topics, I love spending time with my 6 Shih Tzu dogs, husband, and family, as well as knitting and crocheting. She is also the voice behind Small Dog Place and Smart-Knit-Crocheting. Please visit my other two sites or send me a note.