Pedigree dogs exposed

[Nicky Vangalis]

Please remain decent and respectful of others views. Just wonder what all of you think of pedigree dogs exposed on bbc4 this evening 

[Astrid Landsaat]

Fran, my Irish was tested for this by a specialist. He did the full thyroid panel. His diagnose  was idiopathic epilepsy and later MO.

[Fran Griffin]

This is precisely the diagnosis my Lotte had.  The thyroid issue revealed itself later.  It only shows up after 80% of thyroid destruction has taken place. Up until that point it remains what they term 'sub clinical'.  Jean Dodds told me then that there was a link between epilepsy, MO and hypothyroidism, and it is now quite well documented. Sadly, it all took its toll on Lotte and she went to the bridge. With Nalle it was different, once he was on thyroxin it gave him his life, and given Tallulah her life back. With Lotte there was something horribly auto-immune underlying it all, I think we need to try and get a much bigger picture of what is happening with Setters and all the other auto-immune conditions which are cropping up..

[Fran Griffin]

Thanks Mel. I have heard of more and more Setters with Cushings, and a friend of mine has one who has the condition. Perhaps there ought to be some kind of register where owners (as well as breeders - so that things cannot be covered up by some) can log health problems so that a pattern can be detected?  Cushings, Addisons, AIHA , hypothyroid and thrombocytopenia, to name but a few are all AI diseases therefore I think something needs to be done to track these issues and address them.

[Margaret Sierakowski]

And getting the condition diagnosed and being put on the right level of  thyroxin can transform one's life. Some longstanding health problems, tiredness and the feeling of being slowed up , can disappear . Must be much the same for dogs

[Nicky Vangalis]

As I started this whole thread in the first place I thought I'd put my 6 pence worth in.  Knowing what setter breeders have done already, to eradicate PRA and CLAD within the breed and to minimise occurences of hip dysplasia wherever possible, it would have been better for Jemima to portray some of the positives. 

I did agree that the KC aren't doing enough and there should be some sort of regulatory body that monitors them.  I know they have taken steps, but they don't seem to be enough and quick enough.

As someone else said, to see the CKS suffering again was not necessary, and there was an unnecessary amount of rehashing from the previous PDE.

However it did make me email Ollie's breeder straight away and thank her for being such a caring and considerate breeder.  Having lost my girl to AIHA, upon notifying the breeder of her mother she immediately expressed her sorrow at our loss.  I was then contacted a short while later by our girls Sire saying she would not breed from him if it presented a risk to future pups.

I would love to see shows more like Scrufts where pedigrees are welcome but on their health grounds and on their personalities.  Ollie has a shorter neck than most but apart from that in every other way he is a wonderful dog - and it seems unfair that just because his neck is a bit short he would be shunted out of this 'show world' - why can't I just show him off for the utter bundle of joy that he is?  To me he doesn't have a short neck, he's my boy and I love him dearly.  So long as he's healthy that's all that counts - as I've been through the utter devastation of having a girl that was show quality, only to lose her at 11 months old.  Health comes first in ALL dogs and I hope the KC make this their first priority.

I think the show highlighted that things are changing, but it's got to only ever be for the advantage of the dogs.  Not the breeders, the owners, the shows, the RSCPA, the vets community...

[Teresa]

Saw it last night on youtube!

It's good and makes some valuable points, but I personally found it to be a bit "more of the same". Considering the first program had already been about how bad it all was, I was hoping for a new angle this time! I don't think anyone will ever forget the small Cavalier that appeared the first time, so I think there was no need to replay images from the previous program. She mentions, and very well, if you ask me, that serious breeders that are doing huge efforts to keep breeds healthy are not enough, and are not heard. ... And that was what I was hoping for! That she had gone back to give a voice to these breeders, show how important this is, and how their dog are healthier. Fionna was not enough!

I also though that recording someone calling mutants to pedigree dogs for and hour was a bit too much. I agree, that as they had mentioned back in 2008, some breeds have suffered from serious mutations, but they should not have allowed someone to be calling all dog mutants - a "be the change you want to see in the world" kind of thing should have been  better, in my opinion.

Yes, I agree that the changes already made are not enough, but changes have been made! And humans take a long,long time to cope and accept change, so I hope eventually we'll have all breeders in tune and working towards healthy pups!

I think these kind of programs are important to pressure less careful breeders into taking care of their breed's health, but people should know that there is such thing as a healthy pedigree dog. And most of all, I can't stress this enough, it's time to give responsible breeders atention, and let the world know how their efforts and results!