I am preparing to get a dog and have been researching different breeds. I am keen on natural looking, healthy breeds and have done a lot of reading about Northern Inuits lately. With the amount of health problems that have been registered in many breeds, this is obviously a major concern and I want to make sure to get a healthy dog.
The Northern Inuit seems to have a good reputation in terms of health, but I have noticed that the "Breeders Code" on the official website of the Northern Inuit Society contains no clause that addresses inbreeding, whilst at the same time disallowing out-crossing (even though the breed was created by crossing Siberian Huskies and German Shepherds, amongst others, in the first place). I am concerned that, with such a fairly new breed and a fairly small gene-pool to go with it (there are not that many registered breeders, and many of the stud-dogs appear to be closely related), the Northern Inuit will quickly become inbred and go down the same road as other breeds with genetically induced health-problems.
It would be a shame and quite frankly infuriating if this were to happen despite the widespread awareness of the results of inbreeding. I am no expert, however, and I am hoping that you might be able to advise me on this subject.
Leslie Sass, by email