polarexpress
Posted : 8/13/2008 2:38:40 PM
nataliem
I'm not looking for conformation or obedience, just a pet. I'm concerned more about health than anything.
If health is #1 then I would urge you to doublecheck health clearances from ANY breeder. I could not confirm all of the health info on that breeder's site which could just be me, but better to be safe than sorry....
The female has "OFA'd Hips" but it didn't say what they were. So I looked at the OFA site. Her hips are listed as FAIR. The date of the test is Feb 2008---when she was FIFTY months old and had produced litters prior to the test. http://www.offa.org/display.html?appnum=1306338#animal Maybe it is a typo??? There is no clearance info on her parents, I can't find her on the CERF site.
The older male has "OFA hips good" and indeed he is listed as such: http://www.offa.org/display.html?appnum=1105822#animal There is clearance info on his sire, but no information on his dam. The breeder site says he is CERF clear, but I can't find him on the CERF site.
The older male has two offspring: one is excellent for hips and one is fair (Vital Gloria) http://www.offa.org/display.html?appnum=1267354#animal Her dam is not listed on the offa site. She was tested last year.
The breeder is planning to breed these two dogs again---knowing that the dam is FAIR and that this sire has produced one fair and one excellent pup. I do not pretend to have a working understanding of Doberman genetics, maybe this is acceptable....but if I knew a GSP breeder who was doing this I would steer clear.
If health is the most important thing, then check out the CHIC page http://www.caninehealthinfo.org/brdreqs.html?breed=DP
I would also suggest that you ask about the siblings of the parents, aunts and uncles and grandparents, etc. Don't just ask about health clearances, ask about their general health. For the grands, etc---are they alive? If not, how old were they when they died? what did they die of???