"EBVs (Estimated Breeding Values) communicate the genetic risk of hip/elbow score for individual dogs in reference to the entire breed. They can be compared to determine which breeding animals have a higher or lower genetic risk, a risk which will be inherited by their offspring/progeny. EBVs are computed using available hip and/or elbow scores for the dog and all its relatives. Pedigree information is used to determine the relationships among all dogs therein. This allows the genetic risk of individuals to be evaluated, stripping away any environmental effects on the scores, which is important since only genes are inherited over generations. Using EBVs to make mating decisions will be more accurate than using the observed hip or elbow score and will lead to faster progress in reducing the prevalence of disease...."

More Information About EBVs

What do you think? :)

Well that will be very useful in my breed, a grand total of 2 dogs elbow scored, on is one of mine and the other by a dog I bred.

We have more than 20% of our total breed hip scored but that is still only 500 - 600 so far.

Can't seriously how it will be of much use other than very numerically strong breeds that are also quite closely bred.

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Whilst hip and elbow scores are important factors to be taken into consideration when making breeding decisions, it should be remembered that they are not the only factors.   Merle factoring, and temperament are but two of the others which also need to be considered.

It's another tool.
However with any imports who've been scored outside the UK it makes a false calculation as it doesn't have those results imputted.

I have the same issue with my imported boys, with my 3 hip and elbow scored boys (all elbows 0 and hips below average) not getting brilliant scores (-18 hips, -6 and -3). And then finding one dog that is unscored which gets and EBV of -26!!

Use with caution!

Nothing is perfect. It is another important tool for breeders to use. We are lucky in Bernese that a large number of dogs are scored and it gives some interesting facts to use. Along with the scores themselves and the ability to use Bernergard (Way way underused in the UK ) plus the ability to look at health test pedigrees and comparisons to siblings etc.. it fills another gap for those of us who do lots of research into  our breeding. Foreign dogs details are available on Bernergard and if you use that correctly siblings, parents, and progeny all have scores available to look at and often are listed in a column so easy to see what relations have scored. Something else we have on overseas dogs pedigrees are ages of death, very important in my short lived breed.
Why knock something because it is not perfect ? Use it and learn.. I know its only a few breeds at the moment but rather than shouting it down while in its infancy embrace it and  try to make it grow to be useful. I use every tool I can access to give me a picture of the litter I am planning. It will not solve the problems of un-scored stock  or backyard/farmed puppies but it should be used by good breeders as part of the process of choosing mating's.
Aileen

Problem is in numerically small breeds that by the time you have the information the dogs re long dead or never have enough offspring.

This is the case with Hip scoring.  Malcolm Willis always said that 10 offspring of a dogs scores were as useful as the dogs own scores, and after 20 scored offspring you could forget his score and go on what eh produces.

problem is that in a breed where a dog is considered well used if it had more than half a dozen litters in his lifetime, you will never get the numbers to make it useful.

We have dogs even champions that don't get used at all, or not until veterans due to lack of suitable mates (not too closely related) and we import at present every other generation, so have to deal with overseas testing data.

So we do look at all available data on dogs in the pedigrees, (Scandinavian data very useful but they do little re eye testing, ditto USA).

What I find as the most interesting thing is the fact that KC has shown no signs whatsoever that that it has sent whoever round Europe this past few years to learn about the decades old & updated as neccesary established fit for purpose tests.

Pasted below is the health part ONLY of the German Lab clubs fit for purpose test so the dogs can giveb a fit for purpose breeding licence.

Some of the German Fit for breeding health tests labs

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Pasted

Zuchtausschließende errors are in particular:
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Absence of one or both testicles in the scrotum
-
Cleft palate
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Entropion, ectropion
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Kinked
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GPRA, post polar cataract, total RD, prcd-PRA affected (clinical)
-
HD-D, HD-E
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ED II, ED III
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Faults in: Overshot or undershot bite, pincer bite, cross-bite,
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more than 4 missing teeth, (the additional absence of P1 and P1 is the bottom right bottom left
tolerating)
-
Fehlfarben
(2) hip dysplasia (HD)
A breeding approval can only be granted if the HD-assessment
- A 1 - 2 (HD 0) "free"
- B 1 - 2 (HD-1) "transitional form" or
- C 1 - 2 (HD-2) "light"

results. Dogs with moderate and severe HD (HD-D and HD-E) are generally of the breeding excluded,
a dog with mild HD (HD-C) may, subject to the provisions of § 7 paragraph 3 the breeding regulations only with an HD-free (HD A1 - A2) dog will be paired. The official Radiograph of the hip joints may after completion of the first year of the concerned dog can be performed
.

Do you not understand it's a case of much larger numbers here.  If all litters/breeding pairs were to be tested like this, how would it be done, and at what additional costs?

There are over 40000 (forty thousand) Labrador pups registered with the kennel club each year, so some 6500 plus litters.

Decent breeders will already do the relevant health testing and more, those who are not bothered will simply sell unregistered puppies as so many already do, as there is a ready market for them.

If you increase the costs for good breeders, who still have to compete with the poor breeders re price so cannot recoup the extra expense as the public are simply not educated enough or prepared to pay much more for the 'real deal'.

It's already hard enough with the average cost of health testing just hips eyes, in my breed being £500, and other breeds require even more tests..

This article deals with some of your questions: http://www.dogworld.co.uk/product.php/110442