Norwegian Buhund Club of Canada (NBCC)
NBCC Members agree to the following:
- Member shall always conduct themselves in a manner which reflects good
sportsmanship, in all areas of competition, and reflects well on the Norwegian Buhund
breed, the Norwegian Buhund Club of Canada (NBCC) and The Canadian Kennel Club. - Members of the NBCC should be willing to share their knowledge and aim to serve as
mentors to those new to the breed. - Members should strive to always maintain good standards of housing, nutrition, and
provide regular health care for their dogs. All dogs should receive proper health
protection through regular de-worming, inoculations and veterinary examinations. - Members will make sure their Norwegian Buhund is representing the breed well by
being properly socialized, regularly exercised, well controlled and licensed. - Members should aim to educate all their puppy-owners and the public at large about the
Norwegian Buhund, its care and requirements, as well as any hereditary defects found in
the breed. - Members, if breeding any litter, should do careful screening of all puppy purchasers as to
their suitability as owners and their ability to care for a Norwegian Buhund for its
lifetime.
Breeder responsibilities:
- This Code of Ethics is intended to act as a guideline to responsible breeding practices for
the preservation of the Norwegian Buhund. - Recognizing that the Norwegian Buhund is an ancient herding breed nearing extinction,
and that the narrowing of the gene pool is detrimental to the breed, the NBCC stresses
that maintaining a rich and diverse gene pool is important for the long-term health of
the breed. A focus on health and longevity, the working ability and temperament of the
dogs, in any given pedigree, is strongly recommended. - Breeders are encouraged to make the results of all health testing, (orthopaedic and
ophthalmologist reports) publicly available by submitting these to the Orthopedic
Foundation for Animals (OFA) online registry. Keeping the information up to date on
online data bases, such as the Breed Archives, would also be ideal.
Selection of Norwegian Buhunds for breeding purposes :
- A Norwegian Buhund breeder must ensure that all breeding is based on the
requirements of the Canadian Kennel Club’s Norwegian Buhund breed standard. - The breeder uses only healthy adults. As breeding decisions are based on health
clearances, the recommended age to start breeding is 24 months or older, especially for
females. However, starting a stud dog with preliminary orthopaedic clearances at 18
months, along with a current ophthalmologic report, is acceptable- but must be
followed up by final hip and elbow reports. - To ensure the overall improvement of the breed, the breeder must decline any breeding
when the presence of any undesirable, potentially debilitating genetic or behavioural
trait is known or suspected in either the sire or the dam.
At a minimum, all breeding stock should hold:
- a report of examination from the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA)
indicating no evidence of hip dysplasia at 24 months. - or a report of examination at 24 months from BVA (British Veterinary
Association) indicating no evidence of hip dysplasia. - or an evaluation report from PennHip at a minimum age of 18 months
indicating no evidence of hip dysplasia. - or an appropriate report from the dog’s country of residency.
- A current annual certificate of examination indicating no evidence of inherited
eye disease from a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary
Ophthalmology (ACVO) or a member of the Canadian Association of Veterinary
Ophthalmologists (CAVO) or an appropriate clearance from the dog’s country of
residency. Annual eye examinations are required until at least 7 years of age on
all dogs used for breeding. - It is advisable that some consideration is given to other conditions that have a
genetic component and might limit longevity and overall health of the breed.
These include, but are not limited to: Other orthopaedic disorders; such as elbow
dysplasia, osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) and patellar luxation, Cancers
(especially those that through pedigree research have been shown to have a
familial connection), epilepsy, hypothyroidism, skin disorders and allergies.
4. Before deciding to produce a litter, the breeder considers the possibility of properly
placing puppies which cannot be kept by the breeder. Breeders should also be willing to
take back any dog of their breeding, at any time, and/or be prepared to co-operate in
the re-homing of dogs they have bred or owned.
5. Breeding Management: The breeder should space the litters of any bitch by allowing a
maximum of two consecutive litters and a maximum of three litters within five heats.
Exceptions to this general recommendation is when the females cycle only once yearly
or when the health of the female is best served by consecutive litters. It is
recommended that a female not be bred after the age of eight years of age.
Advertising and sales:
- All advertising, (print or electronic), is factual. It is not so worded as to be misleading or
misrepresentative, or to attract undesirable buyers. - All breeders agree to abide by the Code of Ethics for the Norwegian Buhund club of
Canada and the Canadian Kennel Club . - The breeder never supplies puppies or adult dogs to pet stores, commercial dealers, for
raffles, give-away prizes, or other such projects. - The breeder sells Norwegian Buhunds, permits stud service and leases studs or bitches
only to individuals who give evidence that they will give them proper care and attention,
and who are in accord with this Code of Ethics. - The breeder does not sell puppies via web brokers.
- The breeder abides by the Canadian Kennel Club Bylaws (29.2) and may not charge an
additional fee for CKC registration. - The breeder does not engage in breeding non-purebred dogs.
Contracts:
- The breeder sells Norwegian Buhunds, permits stud service and leases studs or
bitches with a written contract which outlines the obligations and responsibilities
of both seller and purchaser. - The written contract must clearly state the maximum time limit for all terms and
conditions of the contract and/or warranty and must state that any dog can
always be returned to the breeder. - Conditions of acceptance of deposits on puppies or stud services and terms of
full or partial refunds or forfeiture of deposits must also be clearly stated. - The breeder provides buyers with written details of feeding, general care and
training, dates of deworming and a certificate of all inoculations given. - The breeder will provide buyers with a printed or digital pedigree and the results
of any hip and eye examinations carried out on any adult dog being purchased. - In the case of the sale of a puppy the results of orthopaedic and ophthalmologic
on its sire, and dam must be provided as well as a written or digital pedigree. - All puppies leaving the breeder’s possession should preferably be 8 weeks or
older, be identified by a tattoo or microchip, have received initial inoculations or
titres (or nomograph report on the dam) and have received a certified veterinary
health examination. - All pet Norwegian Buhunds sold in Canada should be sold on the Canadian
Kennel Club Non-Breeding (NB) Agreement. - The NB agreement should not be canceled unless the adult dog obtains the
minimum requirements for selection of Breeding Stock. - Exceptions to this NB clause may be made in cases where breeders are selling
Buhunds to another breeder, to foreign countries, or to individuals wishing to
exhibit in a foreign country such as the United States. In such cases, a private
purchase agreement must be executed between the breeder and purchaser
which is in keeping with the principles of the use of the Canadian Kennel Club
Non- Breeding Agreement, and this Code of Ethics. - The breeder shall not charge the buyer a fee to cancel the CKC Non-Breeding
Agreement, except for reimbursement of the applicable CKC fees.
Registration:
The breeder registers all Norwegian Buhunds born in Canada with the Canadian Kennel Club
and keeps accurate written/ electronic records, as required by the Canadian Kennel Club,
including records of all stud- services, whelpings, identification of all dogs and pedigrees.