Responsible breeders utilize health testing to give their puppies the best possible chances of being healthy. They do not breed blindly!
RIGHT ON. In other words...why WOULDN'T you health test? It's just one more thing you can do to ensure the safety of future generations.
One of my dogs, Haluna, was diagnosed with corneal dystrophy about four or five years ago. You couldn't tell by just looking at her.
And this is EXACTLY why "oh we've never SEEN any health problems in our lines before, so we don't need to test for them" is such a crock! Thank you for pointing this out Summitview. I too am flabbergasted by people who use this excuse.
Of course you're not going to see health problems if you're not LOOKING for them. And ESPECIALLY if you're selling your puppies at 5 and a half weeks of age. Sure...maybe your breeding stock LOOKS healthy, but how do you know they aren't both recessive carriers of some odd trait or health problem, one that will pop up in future generations (the generations you've just sold to unsuspecting puppy owners)?
This very scenario has played out time and time again in several breeds in the purebred dog fancy. Breeder "x" who's been in the breed longer than the rest of us have been breathing has bred 2 jillion champions, including BIS and BISS winners. It's a well-known fact they don't health-test half as much as they used to, but their current stud is #1 in breed and all breed, so every one rushes to use him. Besides, breeder "x" has informed everyone that "scary disease" doesn't run in her lines.
So imagine every one's shock when current stud's puppies start dropping dead at 3 years of age. Current stud is still going strong...but now how many of his COUNTLESS son's and daughters are affected? How many will die in the next year or so? How many are carriers? How many of THOSE dogs have been bred as well?
All it takes is ONE influential person to slack off and entire BREEDS can be devestated.
Look at some of the problems in Basenjis and you'll see what I'm talking about. I know some of the Australian Shepherd people are dealing with the same sort of problems as well.
While I recognize that we're talking about hybrids here, the major point is, that health testing is NOT optional for ANYBODY who breeds. No matter HOW healthy the animals appear.