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Although many think that purebred dogs are less healthy than the mixed breed, this is not necessarily the truth. Many experienced breeders practice what is known as linebreeding ( the mating of relatives) in order to establish certain type, temperament and characteristics into a family of dogs that are desirable and sought after. With that in mind, this close linebreeding can also establish things that are definitely NOT sought after, such as poor conformation, poor temperaments and health related issues due to the doubling up of recessive genes, or the introduction of autosomal dominant type genes that require only one parent to carry the gene for health issues that can and do display themselves in not only collies but many other breeds, including mixed breeds.
The intent of this section is to share an understanding of certain health issues in the collie, and state that there are very dedicated, respectable outstanding breeders who take the health of their breed as seriously as they do it's outward beauty and temperament. We hope to dispel a few myths that do float around, however this is not intended to be a comprehensive, detailed overview of key health issues in the collie. No reputable breeder who truly has the collie at heart would set out to intentionally breed life threatening genetic illnesses into their dogs. With that in mind, we at Davenloch choose to be as informed as we can be on these issues, so as to breed the heathiest most beautiful collies we possibly can, that act like a collie should, loyal, loving, trusting and intelligent.
The responsibility of any respectable breeder is to ensure that when they engage in selective breeding practices, that they be MORE THAN diligent towards investigating bloodlines, pedigrees and individual dogs utilized in a current breeding program or may wish to introduce into a breeding program.
The collie of today, is a breed that when compared to many other breeds is relatively free of some very serious health issues. Having said that, this can be no reason to take a complacent approach towards the health of the breed, and to not acknowledging that there are issues that do exist within the collie that require very diligent and stringent measures. Eradicating such health issues and/or reducing the likelihood of such issues expressing themselves in the collie of today, while not loosing the outstanding advancement of the collie as the magnificent wonderfully tempered animal we look at today, should in our opinion be the goal of a reputable breeder. Choosing to throw out the baby with the bath water could in effect set the collie back. This is an issue that is debated extensively amongst many breeders of not only collies but most other breeds.
By far the most common and talked about issue in the collie today is what is known as Collie Eye Anomaly (CEA) . This genetic issue expresses itself in a myriad of ways ranging from a simple lack of pigment in the back or fundi of the eye, to retinal detachment and blindness, and other varying forms in between. It is estimated that approximatley 90 percent or more of collies in the current gene pool, either exhibit some form of CEA and if not, at least carry the genes responsible for CEA. To any potential owner of a collie, this might seem to be an insurmountable obstacle, and cause some to shy away from such a lovely breed of dog.
A reputable collie breeder will perform formal eye exams on all their puppies and breeding stock. Selection for future breeding stock is made on the individual dogs who, as one selection point, hopefully are free of the genetic predisposition of this issue, and if that is not possible, mildly affected individuals are utilized in breeding only under experienced and supervised conditions. Of course it would be the ultimate ideal and goal to not utilize any animal that is affected with CEA in any way, whether that be as a carrier only or having the outward physical proof of CEA's presence. An ultimate goal as well as the ideal, of course, but at what other cost, the eradication of a majority of the collie gene pool, with all the incredible positives that they also come with? One would hope not, as this would essentially set the collie back to where the breed was at the beginning of the 20th century. CEA in the form of basic Choroidal Hypoplasia does not in any way affect the sight of the dog and does not worsen with the age of the dog. This fact should be communicated to those who have an interest in the collie but may be weary due to this much talked about issue. Of course it would be ideal to use only non-affected dogs, but we do not believe that the cost to the collie in the end justifies taking such measures. With the goal of eventual eradication of this issue in mind, we forge on and strive to do the absolute best for the collie with what we now have to work with. The use of dogs that may exhibit more severe forms of CEA in a breeding program is a topic of much debate amongst collie fanciers. In the end, it is the choice of the individual breeder, and any potential puppy buyer should investigate this with any breeder that they approach respecting a puppy. At Davenloch, under strictly supervised conditions, we NEVER utilize dogs in our breeding program with anything more than basic Choroidal Hypoplasia in its mildest form, and we have introduced normal eyed breeding stock into our program as we move towards eventual eradication of CEA while maintaining the beautiful faces, expressions, health, temperament, balance & soundness that Davenloch Collies are known for.
There are forms of CEA that could in fact affect the sight of the dog such as large colobomas (pits at or near the optic nerve head). A proper thorough formal eye exam will indicate just what may be going on and should be a requirement for all dogs used in breeding and as a demonstration to a potential new collie owner that such due diligence has taken place.
Other eye issues exist in the the form of cataracts and what is known as Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA). These issues are NOT related to the more common form of eye defect known as CEA, but are another form of eye defect that has expressed itself in certain lines of collies. PRA is a severe defect that leads to complete blindness and is proven to be a recessive gene meaning that if a dog develops PRA, both parents contributed their half to cause the expression of the defect. At present is believed to be far less common than CEA. CEA itself is also a recessive gene issue, but the expression of the degrees of defect for CEA takes on a much broader form than do the stand alone eye defects that are not related to CEA. Davenloch Collies provides a written health guarantee for both cataracts and PRA.
DRUG SENSITIVITY IN COLLIES
For information related to multi drug sensitivity in collies, please click on the links below to obtain more information.
In the event that testing for the mutant gene responsible for this drug sensitivity has not been performed, we advise to assume that your collie does have the mutant gene, and to ADVISE YOUR VETERINARIAN TO NOT PRESCRIBE OR ADMINISTER ANY DRUG THAT COULD CAUSE A SEVERE LIFE THREATENING REACTION IN YOUR COLLIE! A list of such drugs is available in the links above but please be aware that these may not be complete lists, so all the more a detailed discussion with your veterinarian is vital! A collie will in no way exhibit that this mutant gene exists except for when such drugs are administered. With this issue other than from the direct administering of the drugs, a collie would for all intents and purposes look and act perfectly normal.
Further to this drug sensitivity issue, there is now debate amongst dog fanciers that even with MDR1 gene testing available, these tests may not be conclusive as to whether or not your dog will have a reaction to certain drugs, even if they test as Normal/Normal. All the more Davenloch advises to assume your dog would react to certain drugs regardless of Normal/Normal MDR1 test results, and to avoid such drugs for the health and wellbeing of your collie. We are in no way insinuating that MDR1 tests are not valid. We are merely stating that there is debate amongst dog fanciers as to the source or sources for adverse drug reactions, and in light if this, it is better to be safe than sorry.
DERMATOMYOSITIS (DM)
For information related to this serious health issue in the collie, please see the link below.
This is not a complete list of all health issues related to the collie, as you can well imagine, just as in humans, how long a list could be. We in no way profess to be veterinarians, and the information and links provided on our website are provided as one form of access to the vast array of information on the subject through the web, as well as our personal opinions. We can't assume any responsibility as to the validity or accuracy of the content of the sites linked to our website, but believe that creating awareness and thought around these important issues is vital to the future of the collie. We have touched on a few key health issues, that appear today to be at the forefront of research, detection and treatment for the betterment of the breed and we hope that you have found this informative. For more detailed information, please visit the Collie Health Foundation Website. The link is provided below.
