In a message dated 12/10/2006 7:06:05 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, misshereford@xxxxxxxxxxxxx writes: I received the following email and am curious as to whether the majority of you are now adding this test to your screening process prior to breeding? Here is the email I received - "I am in the process of searching for the "perfect" German Shepherd for my family. My search has brought me to your web site. A major concern for me and my family is that any prospective puppy (and parents) have been Flash tested negative for Degenerative Myelopathy http://neuro.vetmed.ufl.edu/dm_flash_test_web/index.htm Are your dogs tested for this condition? It is such a devastating condition that I do not understand why more breeders are not addressing the issue. Please let me know if you test for DM. - signed Gil Rosen" Mine are not. I did my homework and went to the site and gave this some very serious consideration when I first learned of the test. (I have two dogs in the 4th and 5th generation of a particular pedigree that started to loose their rear, one bitch at 13, one bitch at 15...now DM...other issues...or just old age??? I have no idea....or do we just do a happy dance and celebrate that they were healthy and enjoyed a fantastic life to that point???) Anyway, I was interested and took a closer look..... I suggest everyone do the same:) When reading the description the test, based on the presence of an allele, you'll note the phrases "we suspect", "may predispose", "suggesting". Reading further, some dogs who have the same/similar issues (Corgis and Ridgebacks) don't even have this particular allele. What cinched my decision to wait for better testing is that if you keep reading ONLY 25% OF THE DOGS DIAGNOSED WITH DM HAVE THIS PARTICULAR MARKER. So, what good is the test, I wondered? Put another way you can look at dogs who actually have DM and 75% will test negative???? I think it's super that research is being done, but for me, we're way too early in the process with this particular test to attach any sort of validity to the results. When puppy people ask about specific issues, it's usually because they've been down that particular road. While I'm sensitive to what they've been through, all I can do is my best to avoid certain (known)issues within pedigrees. These folks are concerned with DM, and that is their right, but unfortunately 100 other things can happen. That doesn't mean I take a "s**t happens" attitude, far from it! I do all I can and pray hard that any puppy that leaves here dies peacefully in its sleep at 14. Right now though, this particular test for DM isn't there yet. BTW, I think it's a little over the top that these people wanted the parents AND puppy tested. How soon would you test the baby puppy that they could take it home at 8 weeks and good Lord, what else do they want it tested for <G>? Kathy member GSDCA, DVGSDC three generations of Dual Titled TC'd Champions live here! visit _Pine Hill German Shepherd Dogs_ (http://www.geocities.com/pinehillgsds/) ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2006. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - URL temporarily deleted due to AOL issues ============================================================================