| Re: Elbow dysplasia and breeding
Okay for some reason it submitted that wrong but I will finish with this.
You take what dogs are left that passed elbows, and subtract those that failed hips, failed heart or cerf, or those who didn't even have any of those done.
Then you try to look at the health clearances of siblings (pass/fail rate), the overall health of the lines (predisposition to cancer, longevity, etc), temperment, and working ability of those left.
You have to subtract those that have a disqualifying faults from possible breeding pairs (not all submissions are done for breeding purposes, some breeders just request that they be done). So you take what is left, a high estimate would be 1, 000 dogs/bitches. You try to genotypically and phenotypically match the two, always taking into account that you are breeding to the "standard". So all of those left may not be compatible with one another. To say that you haven't severely restricted the breeding population is very untrue.
I just think that in everything there is a gray area. Rotties aren't in position yet to eliminate Grade I's without negatively affecting the gene pool. It is isolating the gene population too much.
OFA even states on their website that food, growth rate, exercise, and strenous activity can all affect joints. I just feel that everyone should make the most informed decision possible.
Okay, I am getting off the soap box, that is just something to think about  |