Labrador puppy, dam's elbow score is 1

[NorthCountryMam]

Hi, further to my thread last night I've been scouring Champdogs and found a litter of labrador puppies listed about 60 miles away from me. Is it a huge concern if the dam's elbow score is 1 if the sire's is 0?
I've been looking on many different sites and getting conflicting answers. Some say only elbow scores of 0 should be used for breeding whereas others are saying that a 1 is ok to keep the gene pool large?
87% of labs have a score of 0 so is that not a large enough pool?

[NorthCountryMam]

Just a little bump to see if anyone can advise?

[threemilesupthreemilesdown]

The Kennel Club's estimated breeding value tool may be helpful here - www.thekennelclub.org.uk/services/public/mateselect/ebv/Default.aspx

IMHO, in a numerically small breed where you might be throwing the baby out with the bathwater by excluding the bitch from breeding based just on this, despite many other positive attributes... maybe. In labradors? They are so popular that there will always be another well bred litter just around the corner.

[mysticteam]

a score of one is fine .it's when scores of fifty are there u got be worried.... welcome to the crazy world of dogs I've three two rough collies age 13 and 8...and jrt age 6

[Booboostwo]

For such a popular breed where genetic diversity is not an obvious concern I would question why they had chosen to breed from a bitch with a score of 1.

Elbow dysplasia covers a lot of potential problems with the articulation. I've had one dog who managed on restricted exercise and the occasional dose of anti-inflammatories, all the way to 14yo, but then again I have a young dog who is very severely affected. He's had so many GAs to try to treat the dysplasia that he now has chronic pancreatitis which is in turn causing tachycardia - a nightmare and he's only 3yo.

[Booboostwo]

mysticteam what do you mean a score of fifty? As far as I understand it the scoring only goes up to 3.

[AgnusandMagnus]

I'd pass. There are so many well bred labs around.

[adaline]

I would be wondering why they'd chosen a Dam with a score of 1 when there are so many labradors out there with scores of 0.

Labradors are such a popular breed that you shouldn't struggle to find breeders where both parents have 0 scores. Hip and elbow dysplasia can both be painful and expensive to treat and can really affect a dogs quality of life. Of course, any dog can potentially develop both conditions but I would do my best to get a dog from parents with excellent (eg 0) scores.

I have a breed prone to dysplasia and one of the most important things to me was to find a breeder who hip and elbow scored. Our boys parents both have scores of 0 and they've never had any reports of pups having any kind of joint problems (apart from arthritis in old age).

Good luck with your search!