Hi, I’m looking for some advice on behalf of my parents (in their 60s) who have not had a dog before (and neither have I). After several months considering their situation and various breeds they have settled on a Chocolate Labrador Retriever puppy. There’s a possibility Dad may want to train him/her as an assistance dog in the future. Dad is very active and there are other family members who will take the dog out for exercise and play. My folks have a cat. They are attracted to the gentle temperament of labs. They are in contact with two breeders and each has supplied pedigree info, hip/elbow scores etc. We would love to get some advice on which set of parents is likely to have produced the more physically and genetically ‘robust’ puppies. Option 1: Sire is 2 years old. Hips 3/3; elbows 0/0; eyes clear. He has the same ‘great-grandfather’ on his mother’s and his father’s side. Dame is 4 years old. Hips 4/4; elbows 0/0; eyes clear. She has the same ‘great-grandfather’ and the same ‘great-grandmother’ on both the mother’s and father’s side. Option 2: Sire is 4 years old. Hips 2/4; elbows 0/2. Carrier (one copy of variant detected) : exercise induced collapse. He has the same ‘great-grandfather’ on his mother’s and father’s side. Dame is 3 years old. Hips 2/2; elbows 0/0. Her parents have no ancestors in common in the past three generations. I’ve read that dogs with elbow scores of Grade 2 or 3 ideally should not be bred, so would this be the main deciding factor and a reason to go with Option 1 over Option 2? Are balanced hip and elbow scores preferable to unbalanced scores even if unbalanced scores are lower? Do the parents’ hip and elbow scores ‘compound’ so that their puppies are likely to have higher scores than their parents, or would the puppies be the same as one or other of the parents? I understand that environment is also a factor and I may be putting undue emphasis on these questions. Finally, are we focused on the most important factors for the puppies likely health or is there something else we should be looking at? The puppies from both sets of parents appear to be responsibly cared for and well loved. We’re grateful for any input. Thanks heaps in advance! Lea
There is absolutely no way in the world that a dog with a 2 elbow should be bred from. Ever. The breeder is massively irresponsible doing this. Please, please do not consider a pup from this breeding.
From the remaining litter please put the pedigree names into the Kennel Club COI page.That will tell you how inbred the pup is. The recommended percentage for labradors is below 6.5% The lower the better. Sadly I knew nothing about this before I chose my dog.
Thanks, 5labs and J.D. We appreciate your advice. And I'm sorry to hear that, J.D. I hope your dog is living, or lived, a comfortable life despite any issues that came about as a result of inbreeding.
For more info on choosing your puppy, you might find some of the guides in this series helpful: https://thehappypuppysite.com/puppy-search-a-step-by-step-guide/. Good luck with your search.
Thanks. Something I will never prove to be related but believed to be genetic. He is doing well(everything crossed) after treatment for Mast Cell cancer at 18 months.
