Callie wrote:Stupid questions but partially related...
a) Dog with 'fair' hips should or shouldn't be bred (aside from meeting the other criteria we have here) and,
b) if in a litter, there are very dysplastic pups, but some ok (at least no symptoms), is it responsible to breed that pup later on?
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a) It depends.
b) No, probably not.
HD is complicated, and screening for it requires a certain amount of discretion. Both my bitches were rated "Fair", and I had no problem breeding Tully, and will breed Tess with complete comfort. Part of the reason for their rating could have to do with their unique SBT structure, which is supposed to be taken into account, but doesn't always appear to be.
Tully's OFA shot:
Aside from being a much, much better quality X-ray than the OP's dog, if you look, you will notice that the necks of Tully's femurs are considerably shorter than those of the GSD. (noticeable despite the poor quality of the GSDs rads) This is typical for an SBT, and does not cause problems for them, but the vet who did the films for me, while agreeing with me that Tully's hips look sound, pointed those out as something that might lower her rating.
You can see, though, that the femoral heads are tightly seated in the sockets, and have plenty of coverage. This dog is not remotely dysplastic.
Even more important, all her family members who have been X-rayed have also passed, with a "Fair" rating. In terms of avoiding HD, it is safer to use a dog for breeding with a "Fair" rating, whose family has all also been rated "Fair", than to use a dog with an "Excellent" rating who comes from a family which has produced dysplasia. Or even than to use a dog with an "Excellent" rating, but no other family members rated (though there are certainly times when that is the right thing to do). The more family members rated, the more clear the picture of what sort of genes the dog might be carrying.
There are also environmental factors at work in HD, so there is much to take into account when considering breeding.
Yeah those rads SUCK and honestly I think they're what makes his hips look as bad as they do, the positioning and the equipment etc. A vet TECH did the second ones and they are so bad IMO!
