Attention

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not represent our advertisers

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

'Designer Dogs' Or Mutt, The Costs Are Adding Up

New breeds (except you can't call them that) are taking on such old-line dog registries as the American Kennel Club

The first sign that the Dog Establishment was under attack came in 1988, when a fringe Australian breeder named Wally Conron mixed a labrador retriever with a poodle. Conron’s cocktail, a labradoodle, didn’t immediately upend an old guard teeming with breeders, trainers, chewy bone manufacturers, and psychiatrists — until word of his dogs spread to the U.S. By the late ’90s a rogue market had been born, and bespoke canines the size of Birkin bags began fetching more than $1,000. By the shameless Aughts, the dog community’s dirty little secret was out: Uma Thurman, Miley Cyrus, and Jake Gyllenhaal bought their own designer pooches. Later, President Barack Obama announced that he, too, was considering a labradoodle. In January, YouTube sensation Caesar the Puggle, a gangsta-rapping cross between a pug and a beagle, became the world’s first haute mutt celebrity.

No comments: