I was reading the post about Haemophilia in GSD's and was wondering how many people would consider buying from a line that had produced dogs with a certain genetic fault (be it HC, PRA etc). Would you avoid that line completely (in the event that DNA tests weren't avaible to test for a particular condition) or would you look at the probability that the dog may not inherit said fault?

In my breed we have a problem with HC. At least 1/3rd of the dogs that have been bred in this country go back to a dog that was diagnosed late in life and so had been used quite a bit. We have sought advise from the specialist vets and have been told to keep checking our dogs and bitches. It's getting very hard to find a suitable mate for any stock. Even going back to Germany doesn't help as they don't eye test their dogs. Any matings done is a gamble, but if the dogs are clear at the time of mating, and they haven't passed anything onto any offspring in the past we have to keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best. :D ;)

Many thanks :) In a breed with a small gene pool you could actually do more harm than good if you chose to eliminate the lines that had produced said fault, or if the fault was prevalent within the breed. I was merely curious as I am looking at getting another dog in two years time and a couple of dogs I like come from lines that have produced hereditary faults, however there is no DNA test available to see if these dogs are clear or carriers (obviously they would not be bred from if they were affected). I thought that most people would probably choose to avoid lines that had produced a certain fault if possible but wanted to get others views on this.

Not taboo, just very difficult to answer.  It really depends on what traits is carried within the lines and what the progeny has been like from previous litters using the lines in question, etc, etc.  And finding a good reputable breeder who is honest about his lines.

It's a difficult one and in a lot of cases, you take your chances.  I don't know if there is a bloodline in the GSD that doesn't have genetic faults of some description if breeders were totally honest.  And I have lost count of the number of vets and vet specialists that have said to me if you want a healthy GSD, get a GSD x but then it wouldn't be a GSD.

I love the breed but they do carry more than their fair share of genetic problems unfortunately.   And despite good breeder's best intentions, they can be difficult to eradicate. 

But I have heard on the grapevine that PRA can now be DNA tested? 

Thank you for your insight. I used PRA as a random example (as this is actually a condition our breed is not pre-disposed to) but in hindsight it was probably a bad example to use due to the fact that, as you say, a DNA test is available for this particular condition :)

PRA is carried in some GSD lines, both German and English.  I don't think it's common though.    

Ah sorry - I don't own GSD's :) It was just the discussion on Haemophilia that got me thinking :)

Sorry, my mistake, for some reason I thought you were thinking of getting a GSD, :-D that'll teach me to read posts properly. :-D  It's a good topic and I would be interested to hear other peoples views too.