[blockquote]To me breding for only performance is just as bad as breeding for only conformation....No Actually I feel it's worse. Many of the tough & gretty breeds can & do work well for a few years with bad hips, elbows. Thier pain threash holds are higher, maybe muscle mass to bone ratio is higher in the hip girddle. But into years 4-6 thier youth is no longer to over compinsate for thier dyplacia issues. [/blockquote] The reason you feel this way is because of how you defined performance. To me, a dog that performs well into its old age is a better performer than a dog that only performed for a few years...and therefore the older performer should be continued to be bred to strengthen the gene pool by increasing the frequency of their contribution. Also, a young performer that performs exceptionally well in spite of some "issue" perhaps ONLY does so simply because of some other area (drive) being extra strong to making up for the weakness...When we breed the best performing animals to the best performing animals, in time all weaknesses will be removed while at the same time all strengths will be passed on. This occurs as a process of selection over time. The strengths of the young performer will be passed on as will be the weaknesses. However, by properly selecting on the basis of performance a selective breeder will capture offspring that obtain the strengths of that dog and yet don't have the weakness. This occurs due to the principle of independent assortment. Say the old performer is an excellent reliable consistent good and sound performer. Say the "young" dog is a dog that is OFF THE CHARTS in drive, but has a "bad leg." First, lets be honest about what an x-ray looks at. It only looks at a joint and true soundness requires more than just a good joint. What about cardiovascular heath, nervous system development/coordination, drives, muscular strength, immune system, endocrine system, liver function (important in endurance events), kidney function, tendon strength, etc...As there are many lame dogs that have "good hips" according to x-rays...yet the dog won't work. (Additional note: To me, lameness should be measured by work oriented selective pressures that push the dog hard and observing the dog's recovery time.) The goal is in time, selective breeding brings OUT all the strengths and removes all the weaknesses as populations continually improve and continually raise the bar to remove the "next" exposed weakness. ANd some day capture the soundness of the old dog, but to capture the incredible drive, stamina, endocrine system, nervous system...or whatever strengths each dog has to offer. To bring the best with the best, removing (culling, spaying, neutering) the less-than-best along the way. This is the only way to obtain the best in the end...the real best...political or not. And it was this "cold hard fact" of how dogs were bred in the past. Dog's were not historically bred on an affirmation, well fair type program where people justified those that didn't carry their weight...yet it was the historical breeders that not only produced the best performing dogs in the world but ALSO the MOST SOUND DOGS in the world.