Crypto Blog

Syringomyelia Awareness: How to Choose a Healthy Puppy

Go to a breeder who registers her puppies with the Kennel Club and who can supply you with a five generation pedigree for both parents of the litter of puppies. One thing to look for is how many times a dog's name appears in the pedigree. This will give you an idea of the level of inbreeding in the pedigree.

Do not buy a puppy from a puppy farm where standards of welfare will be poor and almost certainly health screening will not have been carried out.

The pedigree information should if possible include an inbreeding score (coefficient of inbreeding, COI) based on a ten generation pedigree. Ideally this should not be higher than 6%. The ages at which ancestors died and their cause of death would be very useful. It will be a guide to your puppy's lifespan and chances of inheriting a genetic disease. Currently most breeders do not have access to the computer software which can make the COI calculation for them. The Kennel Club could provide them with this online service, but currently do not.

Ideally both parents should be seen and their temperaments observed and discussed with their owners.

The age of both sire and dam should be at least two and a half years when mated, and after testing for MVD and SM. Do not buy a puppy from parents who are younger than this.

Syringomyelia: MRI certificates required for both parents. Must be at least two and half years when tested and ideally both parents should be Grade A or equivalent (i.e, Skerritt certificate 'cerebellar herniation' only)

Ideally the certificate should also note that there is no ventricular dilation or central canal dilatation; however, few dogs fit this category. MRI certificates and Grade A for grandparents is highly desirable, especially if done at a later age, say five years.

Note that using A x A parents will not guarantee that all of the puppies will be free of SM, but the risk will be reduced. In addition, using A x A dogs is an ideal situation but because of the paucity of older SM free dogs and to avoid limiting the genetic pool (making other genetic diseases more likely) some breeders mate grade A dogs to asymptomatic older SM dogs. (This system is being revised and it is hoped that there will be an official scheme similar to the hip and elbow dysplasia scheme)

A good place to start is the list of MRI scanned dogs on the Cavalier Club's website. You may also want to look at the current breeding guidelines for Syringomyelia.

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