Let's talk about something that a lot of people who rescue dogs accidentally tune out Breeding. If you didn't go to a breeder, if you adopted from a shelter or found your dog through a rescue, or even just took them in off the street, it can feel like conversations about genetics or breeding don't apply to you. You might even think, well, I didn't choose the parents, so what's the point? But here's the deal. Every single dog comes from a litter and whether that litter was the result of an intentional pairing or an accidental one, breeding happened and it is still shaping your dog's brain and body today. You don't have to know the whole family tree for breeding to matter. So let me give you a couple of things to think about. First, if you're adopting a puppy or a young dog from a rescue or shelter, ask questions about the mom. Often she's on site or in foster care and you might even be able to meet her. Ask what her temperament is like. Is she fearful, friendly, overwhelmed in the shelter? Does she bark at people or sounds? Does she approach new things or new situations with curiosity or hang back and freeze? Because here's the truth puppies get more than just looks from their mom. They get a big chunk of their temperament from her too, both through genetics and through those first few weeks together, and if she was fearful or stressed during that time, it may shape how the puppy responds to the world as well. Same goes for the littermates. Ask the rescue how the puppies are doing. Are they reactive? Are they calm? Is one struggling more than the others? This will help you better understand how your puppy may react to the world. You don't need to be a genetics expert, but asking those questions can give you a much better sense of what to expect and what you might need to support your puppy long term.

And second, what if you already have the dog and you don't know anything about the parents, and that's pretty common. A lot of people adopt adult dogs with zero background info, no birth date, no known litter, no clue where they came from. If that's your situation and you're seeing ongoing behavior challenges like fear of strangers or sensitivity to sound, separation, anxiety or even reactivity, and you've been working on it but you aren't seeing any improvement, then it might be time to loop in a professional why? Because not all behavior is learned. That may just be the way your dog's brain works Nature versus nurture and a behavioralist or experienced trainer should be able to help you tell the difference and offer guidance on how to address it going forward, maybe a training plan for learned behaviors and a management plan for those behaviors that seem to be wired into your dog's brain.

So even if you have a rescue or shelter dog, don't tune out just because the word breeder gets thrown around. Genetics matter. Your rescue dog may not have come from a kennel or pedigree line, but they still came from somewhere. Breeding matters, genetics matter, and if we ignore that fact, if we just assume everything that our rescue dog is doing is a learned behavior that they can unlearn, we might just be setting them up for failure.