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Originally Posted by briana smith  Somebody on the maltese board asked that same question, read this, it'll answer your question: Spoiled Maltese - the largest maltese dog forum and website
My favorite quote is: Health and structure are closely related. A well-bred dog with excellent structure (according to our breed standard) should not have luxating patellae or hip problems. They should not have bowed front legs which can cause problems. They should not have large bug eyes which aggravate tear staining. They should not have an overly domed head such as would be common in a hydrocephalic dog. You can't breed without looking at structure and end up with healthy dogs.
I don't really know about the yorkie health here, but on that forum, 90% of the maltese that have health problems are not from reputable breeders. That's a fact. |
I think that's an interesting point, and I can see that applying to yorkies for things like LP. On the other hand, coloring is part of the standard, which I don't think has anything to do with health (other than extreme cases, like albinos). In other breeds, it's been clear that breed standards have become exaggerated and actually hurt the health of the dogs. It's also fact that extremely unhealthy dogs have won best in show at major events. I think bulldogs are a classic example of this.
I'm not saying that showing is wrong, just that it is not related to dog health at all. You can have a dog that's healthy, show quality, one but not the other, both, or neither.
It really bothers me that with all the advances we've made, the average dog's life span has not increased at all over the past few decades. I know there are a lot of theories about this - I've seen vaccination and nutrition cited - but I really wish that breed standards were about
health, not looks.