Breeders: Contributing to canine health through testing

By Dr. Mikel Delgado, PhD

Overview

• Testing helps breeders make informed decisions for their programs
• Testing and registering results shows your dedication to producing healthy dogs and improving the status of your breed
• Registration of test results in a public database increases transparency, supports research, and provides verification of your dog’s health status
• Good Dog is here to support breeders at every step

Why do we test our breeding dogs?

Most heritable diseases we see in our canine companions predate the practice of selective breeding - and are found in both purebred and mixed-breed dogs. BUT some breeds are at higher risk for certain conditions, which can be reduced or even eliminated from breeding programs when testing is implemented.

Testing your dogs also allows you to avoid limiting your breeding pool unnecessarily. Effective breeding is a delicate balance of avoiding breeding pairs that will increase risk of disease, while maintaining genetic diversity among the breeding population.

We can improve health trends in dogs

Testing can help ensure the health of dogs in our programs, and decreases the likelihood of producing puppies with PREVENTABLE and often debilitating conditions. 

You can contribute to canine health knowledge

You might be looking at your breeding dogs, who have produced multiple litters of beautiful puppies, and wonder, why should I test and register my dogs? 

Testing and registration of results isn’t just about the dogs in your program; it’s about the entire population of purebred dogs and what we can do to advance canine health. The only way to do that is to look at the entire population of breeding dogs across multiple generations. 

Registering your results in an open database, such as in the OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals) database, allows breeders and scientists to track health information and conduct research. The data you contribute support research to advance our understanding of breed health trends and canine health overall. 

When you register your dog’s test results, you are part of the cutting edge of canine science, and contributing to something larger than your individual breeding program.

Good Dog: Empowering buyers, supporting breeders

We take breeding practices and canine health very seriously. We exist to help puppy buyers find the perfect program and dog to meet their needs. We also empower buyers to understand breeding practices so they can find a puppy who will be a healthy and happy companion for life. Registered test results allow buyers to make informed decisions, while independently verifying the health of the parents of their puppy.

At Good Dog, we feel health testing is so important that we are doing everything we can to support breeders in the Good Dog Community on their journey from Good to Great or Excellent status.

By testing and registering their dogs, breeders can take pride in producing dogs that have excellent health and conform to club standards. There are multiple resources at Good Dog to help you complete the required testing and apply the results to your breeding program, and if you need help, just ask us!

In our mission to promote canine health, we give Good Breeders up to $100 to spend on screening tests (including x-rays, cardiac or eye exams, patella exams, BAER testing, thyroid testing, Holter monitors and OFA registration) each year. This is separate from and in addition to our discounts on genetic testing and our monthly health promotions.

What tests do MY dogs need?

Each breed has unique issues 

As part of our Good Dog community, you may have noticed that some breeds require several tests, and other breeds only require one or a few. We primarily base our standards and guidelines on:

• CHIC requirements
• OFA and other public databases
• Published scientific research
• Breed club and breeder feedback

We also encourage breeders to get data on as much of the pedigree of their breeding dogs as possible, and consider working with a genetic counselor to help with breeding decisions.

Resource: AKC/CHF Genetic Counseling information

How to get tests

We have added several articles to the Health Resource Center to walk you through the process of screening for the most common health conditions.

Some tests can be done by veterinarians, some require specialists, and some will require independent screening (for example, of x-rays) by veterinary specialists or OFA staff. Genetics tests can often be done from saliva samples taken at home.

Just as important as getting the tests is the final step of registering the results. It’s your contribution to canine science and quality control when breeding.

What are the health tests my dog needs?

There are two main types of screening tests we use to assess the health of breeding dogs:

• Phenotypic - an evaluation of a dog’s physical status at the time of the test
• Genotypic - tests for genes that cause or increase risk of disease

Why might my dog need both phenotypic and genetic tests?

• DNA tests are not available for all conditions that affect purebred dogs (e.g. hip and elbow dysplasia, many eye and cardiac diseases)
• Conditions are not always observable when dogs are of breeding age (late onset)
• Physical appearance is  not always sufficient to determine presence of a condition (for example, a dog may genetically be a carrier or the mutation may exhibit incomplete penetrance)

The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) & Canine Health Information Center (CHIC) 

About the OFA

The OFA is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1966 to better understand canine hip dysplasia and limit its prevalence. Since then, OFA has expanded its scope to several testable genetic conditions, and also funds canine health research. OFA’s mission is to promote the health and welfare of dogs by reducing the incidence of disease.

• The OFA provides health statistics by breed or by condition: www.ofa.org/stats.html
• There are several OFA registries, including for hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, patella, cardiac, dentition, and thyroid disease
• Some registries (e.g., hip and elbows) provide information about the prevalence of affected dogs in the population
• Registries for DNA tests include information about the frequency of affected, carrier, and normal testing dogs
• The OFA website has health surveys for over 70 breeds - you can take the survey or just look at the results: www.ofa.org/surveys/index.html 
• The OFA provides a calendar of upcoming health screening clinics: https://www.ofa.org/health-clinics 
• The OFA website allows you to look up a dog (and their relatives) by name or registration number to verify health testing results: https://www.ofa.org/advanced-search
• Abnormal results are in the public database ONLY if authorized by the owner 

Canine Health Information Center (CHIC) 

The Canine Health Information Center (CHIC) database was created by OFA in partnership with breed clubs. Additionally, the CHIC DNA Repository, co-sponsored by the OFA and the AKC Canine Health Foundation (CHF), stores canine DNA samples for research to improve our understanding of canine health.

• CHIC works with breed clubs to establish recommended tests for all participating breeds
• CHIC certifies individual dogs with all recommended tests and registered results
• Anyone who owns a purebred dog can provide samples to the DNA repository  
• The CHIC database is public and allows anyone to see the recommended tests for each enrolled breed: https://www.ofa.org/browse-by-breed
• CHIC supports research efforts and progress
• CHIC fosters collaboration and communication between breeders/owners and researchers

Resources

About the Canine Health Information Center

Orthopedic Foundation for Animals website