How Breeders Create a Hybrid Designer Dog

Before you go and jump on the hybrid-designer dog bandwagon, take some time to find out exact what they are. It is much more than just one breed plus another equals a new dog-- Akita x Boxer = Boxita, American Eskimo x Poodle = Pookimo, Cairn Terrier x Yorkshire Terrier = Carkie or Chihuahua x Dachshund = Chiweenie etc.

The difference lies in which generation hybrid-designer you are buying. Let me explain. Purebred dogs have genetic medical problems. Over the years, breeders would breed dogs that are close relatives and the problems were only magnified. Breeders today are careful and will not breed a dog if it has any of the more serious problems.
You can trace the history of a hybrid-designer pup just like you would a purebred.

This is where the idea of the designer dog came into play.
A hybrid dog of the first generation can still have problems, but the chance is much less than with a purebred. The pup will have genes from two different breeds and if those two breeds have different problems, the chances are less that the pup will exhibit any. The defective gene will have been passed down by just one parent, not both. So, as you can see, the two breeds chosen to create a new one have to be chosen very carefully. The temperament of the animals is also taken into consideration.

First generation, known as F1, hybrids are purebred+purebred. The pups can have any combination of the traits of both parents. They will not look like litter mates. Be sure you like the qualities of both breeds, because your new pup could be like either one. The F1 generation is considered to have the most vigor. But if you want to increase the chances of getting a pup with certain characteristics , you need to move up a generation or so

F1b is a cross between one of the pure breeds and one of the F1 puppies. The puppies will be 25% of the one breed and 75 % of the other, with most of the characteristics of the 75% one. If you are looking for a pup that will not shed, for instance, pick and F1b that is 75% of a breed such as the poodle.

F2 is the second generation. The parents are both F1 dogs. The percentage is just like in the F1, 50- 50.

F2b is an F1-50 % of one and 50% of another breed to a Fb1 25% of one and 75% of the other.

F 3 is a combination of two F2 dogs.

Still, no matter how much a breeder tries to accentuate the positive, there is no guarantee the pup will have the exact characteristics you want. The chances are good, but nothing is 100 %.

The more experienced breeders know how their dogs have turned out in the past because they know the exact dog that is the mom and the pop and what characteristics the individual parents have. For instance if both parents don't shed, the chances are the pups will not either. But still it is not 100%.

The more homework you do on the individual breeds and the more questions you ask the breeder, the better the chance is you will get what you want.

Sources:

Dog Breed Information Center