alpacas: Re: [AlpacaTalk] BEW

I strongly disagree that BEW is a genetic timebomb... There is a risk
of producing a BEW when you breed a grey alpaca to a white or one
with white spots. That is because in those instances, the white or
white spot gene is contributed by one parent, and the other parent
contributes the grey gene, called merle in dogs.

In dog breeds that have the merle patterning, it is generally very
much looked down upon to breed a merle to a merle, because in dogs,
the lethal white causes all sorts of problems including some awful
things involving internal organs, not just blue eyes and deafness.

In alpacas, you rarely, if ever, get a BEW from a grey/grey breeding.
It is said that when the two merle genes are inherited, it is lethal
and the embryo is non-viable, so the pregnancy slips.

I also maintain that white spots are a direct result of
domestication. I don't know why this happens. Well, I used to have a
general idea but don't recall the science details. :) But my idea
comes from the results of that famous attempt to domesticate foxes, I
think it was in Russia... for a fur farm. What it did was cause the
docile, domesticated foxes to exhibit white spotting similar to dogs,
white feet, white tail tips, bibs sometimes. All of which made the
foxes' fur useless to the fur industry. So it's my belief that the
same thing has occurred with alpacas in their domestication from wild
vicuña stock.

Heather

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