In October 2014 the Victorian Basenji Breed Association Inc. launched a breeder guide and recommendations for the prevention of heritable diseases that affect the Basenji. The guide and recommendations firmly place health, well being and temperament as top priorities for this Club. The recommendations assist breeders with:
- priority health issues; concerns that directly affect the health and well being with extreme outcomes including death,
- other non-major health concerns to inform breeders to be on the lookout for these, much rarer health concerns,
- modes of inheritance of diseases, including autosomal recessive, incomplete penetrance and the law and rules surrounding ‘normal by parentage history’,
- puppy socialisation including information about the critical periods of a puppies development and a directory of informative videos about puppy socialisation,
- record keeping, what records the ANKC and its member bodies expect breeders to keep in regards to their breedings,
- recommendations of what to include in a puppy pack provided to the new owner when they collect their puppy,
- recommendation of how to set out and what to include in a contract of sale so that the sale conforms with relevant legislation in Victoria giving the breeder, purchaser and puppy safeguards for the future.
The majority of people looking to purchase a puppy believe that all breeders carry out best practice when it comes to the health testing to prevent heritable diseases being transferred to the puppy they are about to purchase. Unfortunately, that is not the case.
The VBBA Health Recommendations have been compiled with input from canine health professionals, leading researchers and with consultation and input from Club members.
The Club has also launched an Assured Breeders Programme; the first of its kind for Basenji Breeders in Australia. The Assured Breeders Program is optional for breeders. However, if breeders opt into the programme outcomes are based on certain mandatory testing for each breeding. Verification of the mandatory testing must be provided to the Club for breeder to awarded Assured Breeder – each breeding must be verified. This logo offers puppy purchasers an additional assurance that the VBBA Historian (a non breeder member of the VBBA) has reviewed health testing documentation provided to the Club for the breeding being considered. And has determined that the breeding qualifies for this award.
Further information about our programmes will be available in due course.