I always do my best to produce puppies that are healthy and of good temperament, with outstanding working ability, so I carry out several health tests before I consider breeding. I start with the BVA eye test, then submit x-rays to the BVA for hip and elbow scoring, and lastly carry out DNA testing for all seven of the conditions recommended by the Kennel Club.
I know my own bloodlines inside out, and take great care when choosing a stud dog, checking that he has good health test results, and researching his background thoroughly to ensure that there is nothing undesirable there.
My young dog Kintra (Fletchingly Langamull) is now 14 months old and proving very talented, so I am in the process of completing her health tests. She passed her eye test, so I then had her hips and elbows x-rayed and sent to the BVA for scoring, expecting a long wait to receive the results, but a fortnight later I had a rather nice surprise when the vet that carried out the x-rays phoned me with the good news that Kintra has 0 elbows and 0:0 hips. I am over the moon to have bred a dog with perfect hip scores, although of course, good hips are only one part of the breeding equation, so I will now carry out DNA testing.
