BHCSC Code of Ethics

Each member of the Basset Hound Club of Southern California will consider the welfare of the breed above all else when engaged in any activities involving the breeding or exhibiting of basset hounds, and will refrain from any activities which would be prejudicial to the best interest of the breed or of this club.

The following procedures are recommended by the Basset Hound Club of Southern California, Inc.

·        Each member who contemplates breeding a basset hound litter, or who allows the use of his stud dog to the same end, shall direct his efforts toward producing basset hounds of exceptional quality and shall exhibit the best of these as frequently as possible.

·        No member shall engage in false or misleading advertising or other misrepresentation of his dogs; nor shall he malign his competitors by making false or misleading statements or implications of a derogatory nature regarding his competitor’s dogs, breeding practices, or person.

·        No dog showing serious inherited defects of type or structure shall be offered at stud; and owners of stud dogs shall not accept for breeding any bitch the reproduction of which is likely to be detrimental to the breed.

·        No bitch shall be bred more often than two out of three heat seasons; then only if she is in robust health; and never at the time of her first season, unless this occurs after 12 months of age.

·        If a dog or bitch has produced any offspring with serious inherited defects, such as blindness, deafness, lameness, orchidism or impairment of the vital functions, and produces like results with a different mating partner, the owner shall refrain from further use of this animal for breeding, and shall take investigative steps to determine the source of the defective genes in order to avoid both a repetition of the abnormality emerging in other breedings, and the possibility of them spreading through the breed.

·        No member of this club shall engage in the wholesaling of litters of basset hounds to such places as pet dealers, catalogue houses, or other commercial sources of distribution; nor shall he engage in over-breeding of his own bitches for the sake of profit, and with no regard for quality.

·        Prices of puppies, adults, and stud services shall be based on individual quality.  All puppies and adults shall be sold in a clean and healthy condition and shall be old enough to make the necessary adjustment to a new home safely.  No dog or puppy shall be sold without adequate protection against communicable diseases.

·        Puppies of adults which show a serious inherited defect shall be sold without papers to discourage their used for breeding purposes.  This shall be clearly understood by the buyer, and the breeder shall have a signed statement to that effect.  All other puppies or adults shall be registered or eligible for registration with the A.K.C. and the purchaser shall be provided with accurate and valid papers.

·        Each member of this club has an obligation to protect the interest of the breed by conducting himself in a manner designed to reflect credit on himself, his breed, and on the Basset Hound Club of Southern California, Inc.