A Nice WIDE Rear...

Look at the diagrams below. You have to imagine we are looking at the leg bones from the front of the dog, while seeing the outline of the dog from the rear - a transparent back end if you will.  Which one looks best to you,  number 1 or number 2?

Dog #1 has 4 conformation faults as compared to dog #2.

A.  The femoral head and neck. Coxa Vara is seen in #1, and the normal femoral head and neck in #2. "Coxa Vara" means that the femoral head is attached to the shaft of the femur at an abnormal angle - almost perpendicular to the shaft.  This deformity is frequently seen in patellar luxation, or "slipped stifles".

B.  The femoral shaft is bent outwards.  This achieves the "wide rear" so sought after by many breeders. This deformity is also part of the patellar luxation complex of abnormalities.

C.  The patella is displaced medially - out of the normal femoral groove.  This is the sine qua non of patellar luxation.

D.  The tibia is rotated inwards.  The tibial tubercle, located on the front of the tibia, is displaced medially. The tibial tubercle is the attachment of the patellar tendon to the lower leg. In order to attach to the displaced tubercle, the tendon has to move medially, forcing the patella out of the femoral groove, thus luxating it medially.  Medial luxation accounts for nearly all patellar luxation in Lhasas.

So is the "wide rear" something we ought to value? You've all heard it - "moves too close", "Needs more width behind", "nice broad rear".   But stop and consider for a moment.  Isn't the best support for the rear achieved when the foot is aligned with the hip joint?  Have you ever seen a coyote with a cantilevered rear end such as we love to see on our showdogs?  Try to watch the natural slow gait of one of these wide rears.  You will see a waddle - pitching from side to side - and excessive bouncing.

Try to palpate the patellas of dogs with this conformation.  Pay particular attention to the curvature of the femur, and the position of the tibial tubercle relative to the femur.  I think you will find quite a few patellas that are not where they should be.  These dogs may have no trouble moving while young, but often have increasing disability with age.  Eventually they often learn to walk without moving the knee very much, just swinging from the hips and flexing the hocks.  Sometimes the knee will catch, and the dog will momentarily be unable to flex or extend.  This is a dead givaway for a luxating patella.

So what are we breeding for? In some breeds it is obvious that we are breeding for deformity - the Bulldog head, the Dachshund leg.  However in the case of the Lhasa Apso, we have a hardy, agile little mountain dog. To survive in its land of origin, it could not have unsound construction. Yet the pervasive influence of the show-ring is promoting the introduction of unsound orthopedic deformities for the sake of what we think "looks good". The "nice wide rear" is a perfect example.

Dog #2 is a dog with the often disparaged "narrow rear".  This rear is sound and healthy, and will carry the dog into a vigorous old age without lameness.  Too bad so many breeders don't know a good thing when they see it!