we have been to look at a litter of GSP puppies with a friend who is wanting to purchase one ,and i noticed the mother is cross eyed, the mother has a clear eye test cert ,should we be concerned does anyone know what causes this and if it is hereditory

An eye test is a test of the eye's "mechanical" ability to "See". A test to determine that there is nothing hampering vision such as cataracts, PRA and the like. What it will not tell is whether the eye focuses in the right place. Obviously a dog cannot read an eye chart and even if it could it would be unable to tell us what it sees! :) So a situation where in humans would be corrected with glasses is outside the capabilities of a canine test. As to a dog being cross eyed, this is not part of the schedule for eye testing therefore COULD NOT be a fail. It is in fact rare enough that I, as an organiser of eye tests, have never seen a case!! As to hereditary, I don't know but I will ask at our next testing in a couple of weeks time. My guess is, possibly, possibly not! (I know that's not a good answer but. . . . . .

Regards, John

eye testing of the kind you are discussing is not an issue in my breed, however "cross eyed" occurs quite often....doesnt affect their eyesight...just adds to their character in my opinion! :)

This is very interesting about dogs, as in the 'cat world' a cat with crossed eyes could not be shown, the judges actually check for this during judging and if there is doubt the cat is unplaced.  Certain Cat Breeds have it mentioned in the breed standard.