There are several ways to test a dog for parentage. However, if the animal belongs to one of the breeds not recognized by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI), the check is carried out individually.
Dog pedigree
A puppy that has a pedigree of the established sample, that is, documents issued by a kennel club, which is a member of the Russian Kennel Federation (RKF) or FCI, is automatically considered a purebred. Such a dog can attend exhibitions, where experts will assess how its exterior meets the breed standard.
The best animals have a chance to become producers - their puppies, if the mating is properly registered in the kennel club, will also have documents confirming the purebredity.
As of today, the RKF has created a unified computer database, there is a unified herd book, and all documents are issued in accordance with a unified pedigree form. Also, the RKF maintains registration of all kennel kennels in Russia and factory prefixes, that is, before purchasing a puppy, you must ask which club issued its pedigree. If the mating was registered in a club that is not part of the RKF, you should immediately find out how to draw up the necessary documents. Otherwise, the dog will not be able to participate either in exhibitions or in breeding.
Exterior assessment
If everything is in order with the documents, the purebredness of the dog is assessed by how much its exterior meets the standard. To find out, the animal must be registered for the exhibition. It is important to remember that the exhibition is also held under the auspices of the RKF or FCI, otherwise the result of the expert opinion will have no value.
Regardless of the quality of the pedigree and breed, dogs are checked for bite, all teeth, and males for cryptorchidism. Even if an animal is a descendant of world champions, upon detection of the so-called disqualifying defects, it loses the opportunity to participate in dog shows, and even more so in breeding. Usually such puppies are weeded out by breeders, their price is noticeably reduced. These dogs are recommended for those who want to have a purebred pet, but are not going to attend exhibitions with him and mate.
To check a puppy for purebredness, in some cases, you can go directly to the kennel club. There, the dog can be immediately examined by specialists and an appropriate conclusion can be drawn.
Unrecognized or partially recognized breeds
There are several breeds of dogs that are not yet recognized by the International Cynological Federation. These include, for example, the Buryat-Mongolian wolfhound, the East European shepherd dog, the Russian hunting spaniel, the Moscow watchdog and some breeds. In addition to the above breeds, which are quite popular in Russia, this category also includes those dogs that were bred by cynologists from other countries, where they became widespread, for example, the Estonian hound or Czech shepherd dog.
Despite the fact that dogs included in this list will not be able to take part in dog shows held under the auspices of the FCI, they can be exhibited at similar events organized by Russian monobreed clubs or RKF. As a rule, the organizers will inform separately if dogs of these breeds are allowed to the show.
Purebredness in puppies can be checked in a similar way - with the help of pedigree and expert assessment in the ring.
The situation is different with the so-called aboriginal or ancient breeds, which include the Caucasian, Central Asian shepherd dogs, the Armenian wolfhound (gampra) and a number of others. Despite the fact that enthusiasts are gradually seeking recognition of their FCI, and dogs are already starting to receive pedigrees of the established pattern, in exceptional cases, animals that do not have documents are also involved in breeding. Cynologists sometimes go for such experimental mating if the dog has outstanding conformation or working qualities.
Working qualities
In hunting and some breeds of service dogs, their working qualities are also a sign of purebredity. In order for an animal to be admitted to breeding, it must pass a certain standard, for example, show how it knows how to hunt game or badger (depending on the breed). If a dog, despite its beautiful exterior, in a field or forest demonstrates complete failure, most likely, its puppies do not have very many chances to get a pedigree, that is, to be considered purebred.
