On Sunday, March 30, the Dutch tv programme Zembla aired a documentary “The end of the purebred dog, 15 years later”. This documentary was, as the name suggests, a follow-up to a previous one from 15 years earlier. Both are very similar to the well known BBC investigative documentary ‘Pedigree dogs exposed’ and it’s follow-up ‘Pedigree dogs exposed: three years on’.
The Zembla-documentary focused on the health problems of purebred dogs and the role of purebred dog breeders and breed associations. The documentary was highly critical of the health of purebred dogs. It was argued that insufficient action is being taken by breeders and breed associations to address health problems. This has led to growing concerns among breed associations, breeders and lovers of (purebred) dogs about the future of breeding.
In this context, ZooEasy Online is emerging as a valuable tool. ZooEasy allows breed associations and breeders to gain detailed insight into the population by means of a comprehensive database. A ZooEasy database provides insight into the health of both individual dogs and the breed as a whole. Not only health data, but also offspring, pedigrees, relationships between dogs, and, for example, show results, work results and photos can be registered. Everything is clearly arranged in one place, and accessible via the cloud.
By using this software, breeders and associations can not only monitor the health of their dogs, but also make informed decisions that contribute to healthy breeding. For example, ZooEasy Online allows breeders to search for a suitable partner for their dog, conduct pedigree research and make test litters. This allows breeders to find out which combinations produce the best results in terms of health, welfare and inbreeding. This makes it easier to breed with a focus on improving the health of the breed.
Moreover, breed associations can easily analyze the data stored in a ZooEasy database. This helps to identify trends in breed health, evaluate breeding policies and intervene in a timely manner where necessary. A whole range of welfare and health requirements can also be programmed with the module for automatic breeding regulation control that is currently being developed. The module can then be used to check at a glance whether a litter meets all requirements.
The use of a ZooEasy database is an opportunity for any breed association to break the negative image. With this, you can show as an association that steps are indeed being taken to ensure the health and welfare of our breeds. With a ZooEasy database, breeders and breed associations can actively contribute to a better future for their dogs. All this makes ZooEasy an indispensable partner in the fight for responsible breeding.