Carolyn was simply expressing the fact that the risks are the same for any breeding therefore, based on Kathy's logic - all litters should be kept to advanced ages. That is the way the big ol breeders did it, with huge properties, sixty or so animals and much experimentation. Breeders do not have that luxury in today's society(well most don't) and economy So, yes the products of "all breedings" are put in the publics hands, which illustrates how much thought must go into ANY BREEDING DECISION a responsible breeder makes. And yes you better stand behind those decisions regardless of strategy. What we learn eventually about stud dogs does not occur until many years past post mortem. When that picture becomes clearer, you make decisions on whether to incorporate or avoid layering into your line.(referencing my "mature vs young stud dog comment"). regards, M ----- Original Message ----- From: SegerWind@xxxxxxx To: marhaven@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx, Pinehillgsds@xxxxxxx, lindenhillgsd@xxxxxxxxxxx, spotted101@xxxxxxxxxxx Cc: showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Wednesday, September 8, 2010 12:06:28 PM Subject: [ SHOWGSD-L ] Re: Inbreeding - A tool to test the health of your line HI Carolyn my question was: 1> What is the issue with out cross breeding based on your previous post? 2. How is that any worse than the close line breeding over the last 20 years that has perhaps created health issues in our breed? Those are my questions:) Thank you Steven Segerwinds Home of Asgards Contezza ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2010. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Each Author is responsible for the content of his/her post. This group and its administrators are not responsible for the comments or opinions expressed in any post. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - http://showgsd.org NATIONAL BLOG - http://gsdnational.blogspot.com/ ============================================================================