[quote=4myneo]So Lee, are you saying you only breed old dogs that have proved working abilities thru the years?[/quote] Like Boomslang stated, that isn't the case. We have bred some young dogs a time or so that have performed exceptionally well. But our older dogs that continue to work well are more likely going to be bred more often and therefore make a greater contribution to future generations than would a dog we only bred once or maybe twice. One example is an EM bitch we bred twice so far. She is coming up on her 9th year and still sound, active, and vibrant...and for this reason I may just breed her again. I use her in our program because she is a strong girl and a well performing dog. I bred her once last year because at 8 she was still very able and acted young. Now at approaching 9 years, she has shown no more signs of aging still and I may just breed her again yet...because she acts like a young healthy dog and can still work. In fact, she likes to work. I kept an entire litter out of her once and I may just do this again with another stud. Here is the funny part of this though. Some will complain about breeding a quality performing dog too young when they will do the same thing only having it "confirmed" by a lab test, and then the same people will often complain about someone else breeding a dog that is old...even though the older dog may act younger and be more active than their young lab tested dog. My thoughts on this are, no one should breed a bitch that can't perform for any reason...and this includes a dog that acts old. I guess some people with Mastiffs that are dying at 4-6 years old simply can't understand. Another thing is people THINK they can replace performance testing (which shouldn't be done) with these quick lab tests and such because today...in a world of microwave ovens, lazy tv life, diet in a pill, and the internet...who would take the time to really work a dog so it can be active, healthy, tested, and live a long happy quality life. After all...people hardly excercise themselves anymore between their meals at McDonalds. When was the last time had 14 home cooked meals in one week (just 2 a day for one week)? I grew up in a home where people worked and the lady of the house cooked for the family and we sat at the table even breakfast and dinner...and the only meal on the go was maybe lunch. I miss those days. When quality work was evident in the final product. Today, almost no one really works dogs anymore...so I don't really expect people to understand this. Today, politics as always is the case drives what is popular even if what is popular is totally wrong. AND with so many of the other things that are politically correct, you simply can't lab test the ability to work or the ability to perform. There is only one way to know that.