This voluntary REBEL SPIRIT Code of Ethics (based on the model of US-Minibull-CoE) sets the guidelines for our breed and the owners of REBEL SPIRIT Miniature Bullterriers that will help insure the welfare and future of our puppies. By breeding from a quality, healthy stock we aim to breed dogs closer to the breed standard and therefore better show dogs; but equally important, we aim such careful breeding to improve overalll RS-breed health and preserve the unique breed personality and character which make the Miniature Bullterrier and French Bulldog a delightful pet and companion.

THEREFORE, WE ...

1. Provide all dogs in their care, with the highest possible standards of nutrition, shelter, cleanliness, veterinary care, exercise, training, socialization, and individual attention so that all the dogs may become well-adjusted companions.

2. Follow good business practices and ethics in sales and breeding contracts and honor all agreements. Every buyer of a puppy or breeder who uses a studdog of our kennel is offered mandatory a written agreement.

3. Ensure that all representation and informations of individual dogs and the breed in general are factual and not misleading.

4. Know that only in cooperation with other breeders and friends of the breed we are able to fulfill our aims of an overall healthy and close to standard breed.

5. Respect every honest breeder and friend of the breed and also avoid and if necessary unveil people who gossip and lie about honest breeders, friends of the breed or individual dogs.

6. Work together wir local and regional (Miniature) Bullterrier and French Bulldog-rescue organizations to ensure that dogs in need get help.

AND FURTHER, WE ...

1. Thoroughly understand the published FCI official standard for the breed to be able to recognize correct breed type, breed temperament and sound structure. This is essential in order to select breeding dogs with the objectives of increasing overall quality, while decreasing the incidence of health and temperament problems with a genetic component.

2. Avoid our dogs to participate in matings which are not in the best interest of the breed.

3. Research pedigrees of the dogs to be bred and require documented health testing of these dogs. Disclose to the owners of the stud and of the bitch any known health or temperament problems in these dogs or in litters they have produced.

4. Screen breeding stock for hereditary health problems using the mandatory PLL-DNA-testing / eye-check and Audiometrie-BAER-test (Minibull) also like voluntary recommended heart-test, kidney-test, contained in the MANDATORY and VOLUNTARY HEALTH TESTING which is attached and an integral part of this Code of Ethics.

5. Refuse to breed a dog known to be affected with a serious inherited defect or temperament problem.

6. Maintain records of dogs, matings and litters in accordance with official FCI and VDH-DCBT-registry requirements. In addition, keep careful health record of each puppy in each litter. Notify the owner of the litter's sire of any health problems that appear among the puppies. The owner of the sire should also keep records of each litter and notify breeders who have used the dog if serious health problems start to show up in his pups. Breeders or owners of dogs which develop documented inheritable disease should make every reasonable effort to notify owners of related dogs so that breeders will have more complete information when planning future matings and so that potentially vulnerable dogs may have their health more closely monitored.

7. Encourage puppy buyers to have health screening done even if the dog will never be bred to catch potential problems early and to take measures to lessen the severity of such problems. REBEL SPIRIT needs to keep in touch with puppy buyers to monitor puppy progress and to keep a health record of each puppy. Every REBEL SPIRIT puppy gets a microchip and is registered with this permanent identification.

8. Not breeding any Miniature Bullterrier or French Bulldog-bitch until 15 months old or older. Allow maximal two ceasarian-births with a bitch and try to avoid future ceasarian-births through carefully selecting dogs and bitches.

9. Refrain from breeding a litter until such time as REBEL SPIRIT can properly rear all puppies until they are placed in good homes. Accept the return of REBEL SPIRIT-puppies, if necessary during their entire lifetimes. Although every breeder has the greatest share of responsibility for puppies bred, if REBEL SPIRIT is the owner of the puppies' sire we also in dog's offspring are willing to help in the rescue and placement of these needy dogs.

10. Sell Miniature Bullterriers or French Bulldos only to real friends of the breed, not to pet dealers, catalog companies or other commercial sources of distribution. Nor shall our REBEL SPIRIT-dogs ever be offered in drawings, raffles, auctions or for laboratory experiments.

11. Determine the suitability of any individual buyer to meet both the common and unique needs of the Miniature Bullterrier or French Bulldog-puppy. The puppies are not transferred puppies before eight weeks (Minibull) and ten weeks (French Bulldog) of age. REBEL SPIRIT provides the new owner with the following: a. Original DCBT-four generation pedigree. b. Feeding schedule for the first few weeks. c. Immunization schedule and veterinary health check report. d. Written information concerning care, feeding, training, socialization and accident prevention. e. A recommended reading list with titles on how to raise and train a puppy plus French Bulldog and Miniature Bullterrier breed books. Also REBEL SPIRIT is available for consultations and guidance throughout the dog's life. f. Contract specifying that the dog cannot be sold to a third party but must be returned to the breeder if owner cannot keep the animal. g. Recommend neutering of non-breeding animals at or before six months of age.

MANDATORY and VOLUNTARY HEALTH SCREENING by REBEL SPIRIT

We screen our breed-dogs and encourage our stud dog owners to screen all of their breeding stock for hereditary problems using the following recommended tests:

a. The BAER test to determine if hearing is normal in both ears or if the animal is deaf in one ear or in both ears. This test may be given to dogs after six weeks of age. Results of this test are valid for the dog's lifetime.

b. Eye exam by a DOK-certified veterinary ophthalmologist to check for persistent pupillary membrane, glaucoma, signs of primary lens luxation, and whatever other tests are required for CERF certification. Breeding stock should be checked for lens luxation every six months. Gonioscopy, a one-time test, is recommended at one year or older.

c. Heart exam by a board certified veterinary cardiologist. The exam should include a cardiac ultrasound (echocardiogram) with color Doppler so that left ventricular outflow tract velocity may be accurately and numerically designated. A test done at two years of age or older probably need not be repeated for breeding clearance unless suspected heart disease develops. The presently accepted parameters for cardiac health of breeding candidates are LVOT rates of less than 2.2 m/sec with no multiple minor or any major structural defects present.

d. Kidney health tested by urinalysis yielding a protein:creatinine ratio of 0.5 or less. A protein:creatinine ratio of 0.3 or less is preferred. A ratio of above 0.3 is cause for retesting and the possible inclusion of a more definitive Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN) test to establish kidney health. The urinalysis test is most valuable in dogs over eighteen months of age. It should be repeated annually for all Miniature Bull Terriers, not merely breeding stock.

e. We also check our dogs for normal patella, thyroid function, and skin problems.

f. DCBT behaviour-capability-testing (ZTP-Zuchttauglichkeitsprüfung)

As other health screening tests become available REBEL SPIRIT will also take use of them. The tests written here are available now and are used on all breeding stock if applicable to the race of Miniature Bullterrier.