[ SHOWGSD-L ] Re: Epilepsy ~ FULL Communication?
- From: "Carolyn Martello" <marhaven@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "'Gds Show'" <showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, <kmgraphic2@xxxxxxx>, <PAGAIRS@xxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 19 May 2013 20:28:29 -0700
Great Posts below mine...I just want to add....
Many years ago we bred to a gorgeous AM/Can Champion male that was already
a Select. When we called the studs owner to let her know we had 8 beautiful
puppies..she informed us that her stud had just been diagnosed with epilepsy
that same week at 3 1/2 years.
We were all stunned. We took our litter to our repro Vet at 9 weeks for an
exam
and asked if there was ANY kind of testing we could do to find out if any
would
develop Epilepsy...and of course there was none. He examined the litter
and
they were all beautiful and thriving and healthy. Our Vet gave us lots of
literature and talked to us about what he knew..and advised us to go ahead
and find homes for them and of course give "full disclosure". They were
all placed in spay & neuter pet homes and we let the owners know of the risk
and asked them to stay in contact with us. That entire litter lived a long
healthy life and not one ever had one seizure.
One thing we did learn is that 'classic' Epilepsy does not show up until 3-5
years of age....and seems to affect males more than bitches..and there is no
way to know that a puppy will be affected.
I know the owner of that stud suffered a lot before she finally lost him to
non-stop seizures. As breeders we agonized and worried for years over our
concern for that litter AND their owners. As breeder/ owners, we ALL lose
a little piece of ourselves when something like this happens, and I know of
NO breeder that would not do ANYTHING to avoid any & every health issue.
Breeders try very hard to know EVERYTHING...but until a problem like this
shows up....they cannot know...
ALL the breeders I spend time talking to are very open and honest about
everything...they talk to each other and give 'full disclosure' when asked
or when it may affect anyone, and they don't need me or anyone else to do
it for them. They are not required to go on the evening News.....<G>
Carolyn marhaven@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.marhaven.com
On Behalf Of PAGAIRS@aol.comSent: Sunday, May 19, 2013 5:17 AM
We have had seizure dogs in certain breedings. The type of seizures that
developed
did not start in the dogs till they were between 3-4 yrs old. Never had a
puppy with seizures. The first was a back to back we did. We bred our
bitch back to back with the same sire and produced beautiful puppies.We
bred her again 1 yr later different sire different bloodlines. When the
1st back to back litters were approx. 3 yrs of age
we started getting calls of dogs with seizures. There were 2 dogs with
seizures in each of
the back to back litters. The third breeding we did with a different sire
produced no seizures and there were 10 in that litter.
I guess what I'm trying to say is sometimes seizures dont show up till
about 3 and the damage is already done. Our bitch did not have a seizure
condition and as far as I know either did the sire. Actually we had this
same scenario happen once again a few years later with
a different stud dog and different dam. Both bitches were our breeding
and there were no seizures in either of the litters they came from.
Gary
From: On Behalf Of Kmgraphic2@xxxxxxx
Subject: What we try to do
interesting post, morgan. yes, it is imperative that we all do our best
at eradicating the problems that plague our dogs; i doubt that anyone would
disagree with that. however, if you were a seasoned breeder/exhibitor you
would understand that, while no perfect dog has yet to be born, most
breeders DO study their lines and what is behind them. we are aware of
backmassing in our pedigrees because we have bred 6 or more generations
from a
foundation bitch, each generation, hopefully, better and healthier than the
last.
we can neither erase the past nor predict the future. instead, we use
knowledge, experience and advanced means of testing for genetic problems to
produce the best dogs we can. sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
it is one thing to be a breeder and another to talk about breeders.
granted, we have many people involved in GSDs today who call themselves
breeders
but are not. anyone can put 2 animals together and create offspring; not
everyone can do so with a foundation of knowledge. it is easy to talk the
talk. it's not so easy to walk the walk and to assume that "testing",
(and a spreadsheet of results), is the answer to all our problems is naive
at
best.diane
Diane Silver-Strasser
Silstra German Shepherds
_
=====================================================
Morgan Lewis wrote: Subj: [ SHOWGSD-L ] What we try to do
Evan is correct. "There is no perfect dog" BUT there is a better way of
breeding. That would include a pedigree data base which includes OFA, OVC
Pen
Hip, Thyroid, Cardiac and TLI. It would include DOB and DOD, cause of
death. health problems (confirmed by VET). Co efficients in pedigree. The
problem is failure to know what the rest of the litter is like. If I have a
Champion that I am breeding, his genetics are not just what the Sire and
Dam
contribute to the dog, but whatever the genetic makup is of those dogs
littermate and the generations before. In many cases these diseases have
been
masked (great breeding) til the devil pops up) We will never remove these
health problems, but we can minimize them, through honesty and knowledge.
Unfortunately we have a problem with both, and it is not just in this
breed. I am
willing to bet that given a pedigree, most of the old timers could tell
you the physical strengths and weaknesses of a proposed
litter, and temperament; but could they or would they tell you of health
concerns?? We all know of certain lines carrying Mega, DM, IBD and EPI etc.
I think we honestly try to avoid in-line breeding on those lines; but some
does occur. Now we are seeing huge numbers of GSD affected by various
Cancers. We KNOW that the GSD is predisposed to Immune problems, We know
that
over vaccination is a major contributor to immune problems.
I never worry about hearing of a GSD dying @ 12-14 from ANY disease, hell
we are all going to die from something) but when I see young dogs dying or
getting life long illnesses, I become very concerned .
We as breeders need to communicate with our PET BUYERS, informing them of
the necessity of testing, especially OFA, thyroid and TLI; hell charge up
front the cost of the test and refund when they are done. This is for their
protection and the continuation of breeding healthy GSD.
Whether you are a breeder of SHOW DOGS, WORKING DOGS or just plain PETS;
the MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR is HEALTH - or else there are NO DOGS
Morgan Lewis, RPh.Member GSDCA President Last Hope of Georgia 501c3"So Much
to Do, So Little Time"
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