I won't be getting into deserts, but I do think I see things differently.
You can still breed males and advance genetically farther with males. I just see it as having your odds cut in half for something you might want to produce. Breed a male desert to an enchi, you have a 1/8 chance of a tiger male. Just makes those high end combos that much harder to produce. Hit on a female... dead end, sorry, pet only animal. Due to the issue I just have that much more respect for the desert combos being produced.
If you look at these animals as an investment, yes it is a horrible project. Purely from a hobby perspective, there is much to be done with these guys. It's not like we are producing complete failure of an animal, you just can't breed females.