Hello, I'm a longtime dog owner, but haven't purchased a Lab before. I'm looking at a litter of yellows whose parents are clever and gentle. The hip score on the mother is 19, though—the breeder explained to me that this is higher than is desirable. Father scored 10. All the other tests—elbows, eyes, etc.—show good health. I did some research and found mixed messages, ranging from a straightforward "avoid pups whose parents test higher than the breed average" to "breeding is complicated and one has to look at the full picture." So, I guess what I'm asking is, should I consider the not-great hip score of 19 to be disqualifying and look elsewhere, or not necessarily? Unfortunately, I live in country where there are only a handful of established breeders, and this is the only litter available at the moment. Many thanks for your experience and expertise.
While this may be the only litter you can find that is currently available, remember that you will have this dog for the next 15 years (or a lot less if it has bad hips). Personally, I would not risk it, but each to their own. If you do want to look into it further, I would look at the hip scores of all of the parents relatives. If there are any other high scores, then this should ring real alarm bells. Also, do you know what this individual hip scores are for the bitch (ie 19/0 would be a hip score of 19, as would 10/9) What country are you in?
I'm in Japan. I don't know what the individual scores are for the bitch, but can find out. Good wisdom—thanks.
