[gemy]

Rescue Mama I salute your passion and your obvious love of dogs. But at some point the ownership and responsibility for a dog's health does indeed pass to the owner of a pup you have bred.

Truly I believe a breeder should not be held responsible for non genetic illnesses. Illness that can come as a result of old age. Illnesses that can come as a result of poor care.

People who purchase dogs, or "adopt" from a rescue do need to be prepared financially and emotionally to do their part to secure and maintain the health of their pet over the lifetime of that pet.

A breeder who stands behind their dogs for genetic illness until 5yrs is doing a whole lot more than many reputable breeders do. I personally in the breed I breed will not "guarantee" against hip or elbow dysplasia, however I do guarantee I breed dogs free of that disease, and actually require the pet owners to get hip and elbow evaluations done at 2yrs old. Should a dog of mine prove to be dysplastic at 2yrs old, I will pay for the treatment (if any is needed) up to the purchase cost of the dog. I also require a whole host of other things from my puppy buyers, including when to spay. And I am now considering, if they spay too early I will not warrant or guarantee against hip or elbow dysplasia, if they don't follow what is reasonable in terms of weight gain or exercise for these large breed dogs, I won't guarantee against hip/elbow dysplasia. And all my puppy buyers are educated to the best of my knowledge both verbally and in writing how to care properly for a pet they purchase from me.