Dog was 5, bitch is 3

So she is still very young them to determine any genetic degenerative conditions. (bad hips)

Yes, in the case of eye conditions such as PRA there is a recessive (carrier) gene. In the case of the two breeds you have crossed, BOTH breeds have been known to suffer this condition. BOTH breeds can therefore be carriers of this condition and can product affected offspring. The fact that you have crossed these breeds together does not eliminate this particular condition from the puppies. If you had crossed one of your dogs (assuming it was a carrier) with a breed which has NO incidence of PRA throughout it's breed history, the puppies could not/would not ever be affected by this condition.

You have no idea if your dogs are carriers if you have not had them Optigen tested. For all you know, both could be carriers...that is why responsible breeders health test rather than just assume that their dogs are healthy based on anecdotal evidence.

true, she may suffer from arthritic conditions towards teh end of her life, but certainly it is true that her hips are not causing any problems now which would suggest (given the research posted in the earlier links) her young environment has not caused problems and she was not born with massive abnormalities. Arthritis is not really something I feel people can, or possibly should, try to breed out, unless it effects them at a young age of course.

Are you for real, or are you just a wind up merchant!!!

I did not know this and am happy to hold my hands up to that. It is true given the nature of the disease it may well have not shown up in the previous history of the dogs, despite there being no record of eye problems.

This said PRA isn't necessarily a debilitating illness, many many dogs that suffer from it lead happy unrestricted long lives.

Comments like this don't do you justice, you need to clarify why you think this way, random insults are not helpful to you, me, or anyone else.

Perhaps they do, but that is totally beside the point. We have the ability to avoid conditions such as PRA through health testing. Why anyone would take a chance on something as important as a dogs eyesight smacks of huge irresponsbility to me.

That is why the 'cross breeds are healthier' argument is ultimately flawed. The only way to measure health is to TEST for health, not to follow some misconception about so-called hybrid vigour.

I think to suggest that just because of the possibility of PRA in a cross that cross breed are prone to just as many illnesses is a bit of a stretch.

The links I posted earlier clearly state pure bred dogs are more likely to suffer from HD than cross breeds as one example, on top of this statistics clearly show pure breds suffer more illnesses.

As I've said before, taken to the extreme this results in pure blood lines like the Bulldog.

The science on this is good and well established, the more diverse a gene pool the healthier the gene pool. It is a simple fact of maths and science.

Actually, the Pet Education one says this:

This disease can occur in medium-sized breeds and rarely in small breeds. It is primarily a disease of purebreds although it can happen in mixed breeds, particularly if it is a cross of two dogs that are prone to developing the disease.

The other link you posted has a no sources, so I'll ignore that one.