I'm up I showered I fed my dog I had my coffee, let's go.
First, I shall talk about why purebred dogs exist.
Dogs were not shaped randomly, they were bred by human communities with purpose. Every breed you see today comes from cultural practices, needs, and histories. Livestock guardian dogs, sighthounds, sled dogs, herders, toy companions, even specialized hunting dogs, all of them exist because people in specific regions shaped them to fit their lives.
Breeds are living cultural artifacts. To dismiss purebred dogs entirely is to dismiss those histories, and often those cultures.
When people say “purebreds are inherently cruel,” they’re usually repeating talking points they’ve absorbed from white animal rights activists who paint all breeding with the same brush.
But this erases the reality that Indigenous communities, nomadic cultures, and marginalized peoples worldwide have preserved their breeds for centuries, sometimes against and in spite colonization itself.
If you’re anti-purebred, what you’re actually saying (intentionally or not) is that those people’s cultural companions and traditions should disappear.
That’s why it’s racist: it treats white, Western-created shelters as the “moral” option, and casts global cultural preservation as “abuse.”
Second, good breeding is not the same as bad breeding.
Yes, backyard breeders and puppy mills exist, and yes, they cause immense harm. But a well-bred dog from a responsible breeder is an entirely different story. Ethical breeders:
Health test their dogs (hips, eyes, genetic panels) to reduce hereditary issues.
Breed for stable, predictable temperaments.
Select for physical soundness and long-term quality of life.
Offer contracts, support, and often take dogs back for life if needed.
That’s worlds apart from a puppy mill pumping out sickly litters in a barn.
The “all purebreds are unhealthy” line ignores the fact that responsible breeders have worked hard to reduce problems in their breeds.
By the way, that whole thing about mixed breeds being healthier? Complete myth, 'hybrid vigor' is a made up thing. In fact mix breeds are often much less healthy because they're almost always the result of unethical or accidental breeding, ergo they receive no health testing, and are just as likely to get every single issue possible from both parent breeds and ergo be more medically unstable as they are to get less.
Third, well-bred purebreds are incredibly important for dog owners.
Not everyone wants to gamble on a mystery heritage dog from a shelter. For first-time dog owners, or people with kids, or folks who need a specific temperament or skill (service work, sport, guarding), a well-bred purebred is safer and more responsible.
You know roughly how big they’ll get, what energy level they’ll have, and what temperament to expect. That’s not cruelty, that’s informed decision-making.
And the truth is, a lot of shelter dogs exist precisely because irresponsible people bred them with no plan, or bought them without preparation.
Responsible breeders reduce that cycle by only placing puppies in stable, suitable homes.
Fourth, shelters vs. purebreds is a false dichotomy.
Shelters and rescues matter, but they can’t be the only option. If everyone stopped breeding tomorrow, many breeds would vanish in a single generation.
Rare and endangered breeds would disappear forever, and with them, the cultural and practical histories they embody.
Preservation breeding is as much conservation work as saving a rare wild species.
And honestly? Shelters are not a universally “better” option.
Many dogs in shelters are there because of backyard breeding, neglect, or lack of training. They can be wonderful dogs, but they can also come with unpredictable baggage, which isn’t fair to every home.
Demonizing purebred dogs while treating shelters as the “moral high ground” ignores that both can coexist.
Finally, the cultural and racist angle again, because this is the part people often miss.
So many breeds are tied to Indigenous and non-Western communities. The Xoloitzcuintli (Mexico), the Carolina Dog (southeastern Native tribes), the New Guinea Singing Dog, the Basenji (Congo Basin), Tibetan Mastiffs, countless spitz breeds across Asia, these are living links to culture, survival, and identity.
Saying “purebreds are unethical” isn’t just uneducated, it’s disrespectful. It mirrors the colonial mindset that Western animal welfare has the right to erase the practices of other cultures in favor of a supposedly “universal” (white, suburban, ARA-approved) standard.
So when people parrot “adopt don’t shop” without nuance, what they’re really doing is flattening a very complex issue into a moral binary.
And that binary very conveniently demonizes anyone outside the white Western paradigm while ignoring the actual problem: irresponsible breeding and lack of support for owners.
Purebred dogs are cultural history and preservation.
Responsible breeders are not puppy mills, they’re essential for healthy, predictable dogs.
Well-bred purebreds are often the safest choice for new or specific-need owners.
Rare breeds will vanish without preservation breeding.
Blanket anti-purebred stances erase Indigenous and marginalized communities’ work, which is racist whether people intend it or not.
The real fight should be against bad breeding, not against breeds themselves.
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ARAs* DNI, YOU WILL BE IGNORED AND BLOCKED. I DO NOT WANT TO ENGAGE WITH YOUR RACISM/ABLEISM/ETC. JUST BLOCK ME AND MOVE ON.
*(Animal Rights Activists, not to be confused with Animal Welfare Activists, which I am)
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