[theporkieyorkie]

I would think it would depend on the health guarantee that comes with your pups. I think I've seen a few breeders who said they couldn't guarantee the hips/knees.

Did your breeder get the parents hips and knees checked?!?

I do believe(and I am not a breeder) that you can get your breeding pair hip/knee certified...meaning that the parents have been checked out and an orthopedic specialist has certified that they don't have any problems. This doesn't guarantee that your puppy isn't going to have the problem, but it surely lessens the likelyhood that they are going to have a problem.

If your breeder hasn't had their dogs tested, I can see why they'd say no hips/knee guarantees. LP is one of the more common problems in the breed and if someone is breeding dogs with those problems, chances are, some of the puppies will have the same problems...after all, they are inheriting the parents genes. LP surgery is also very expensive...probably not something a breeder would want to have to pay for on a regular basis.

BTW~I believe, in most cases, you can tell at a fairly young age, if a dog has hip or knee problems.