Ashton Kent | What Does Health Testing Mean?

What is health testing for dogs?

"Do you health test your dogs?", a common question that not everyone fully understands. What does health testing mean? To some people, this could mean that the breeder gets their dogs checked by a veterinarian, but that simply is not what health testing should mean when you're breeding. Health testing includes both orthopedic and genetic testing. 

Why is health testing important in breeding dogs?

Well, let’s take hip dysplasia for instance, we see a significant difference in the rate of hip dysplasia in dogs whose parents have high ratings, versus low ratings. For instance, if you breed an excellent rated dog to an excellent rated dog, the percentage chance of the offspring being dysplastic is 3.6%, Good to Excellent is 5.8 to 6.1%, Good to Good or Good to Fair is 9.4 to 9.6%. On the other hand Severe to Severe or even Moderate to Severe, goes anywhere from 44.4 to 65.3% dysplastic hips. This shows a significant difference in your chance of getting a dog with hip dysplasia if they are either not tested or do not have a high rating. Hip dysplasia is one of the ones that has genetic components and environmental, so can’t be eliminated, but can be minimized significantly. 

Then we have other diseases that we can eliminate with testing. Ichthyosis is a good example of this. It is found in a carrier status in Golden Retrievers at a rate of about 44%, with 29% being affected. Progressive Retinal Atrophy, Rod-Cone Dysplasia is another one that is found in about 23% of Goldens and 16.5% of Poodles, so with testing, you can avoid this type of blindness in dogs. The list goes on for many of these diseases. Things like multiple types of early onset blindness, loss of hindlimb use later in life resulting in having to be put down, skin conditions resulting in scale like skin, bleeding disorders, cataracts, muscular dystrophy, neurological disorders and so much more are completely avoidable for all the diseases that have been genetically identified. Goldendoodles alone have many different diseases common to the breed that we can fully eliminate ever producing a puppy with these diseases by doing genetic testing. 

Why is testing for the Coefficient of Inbreeding (COI) important for dogs?

Do you know that breeders that do orthopedic and genetic testing typically also do coefficient of inbreeding (COI) testing as well? It is also a genetic test. This is the best way to minimize any disease we can’t test for. Many purebred breeds have average COIs of 9% to 20%, which is very high compared to the average Goldendoodle litter of 5%, many are even lower than that. If you are just throwing any two dogs together without any testing the risk is significantly higher of a genetic issue. 

The reality is that orthopedic and genetic testing although it doesn't always eliminate these issues, it does significantly reduce the risk of many diseases and in many cases, it does eliminate it. If we care about dogs at all we wouldn’t purchase a puppy that didn’t have these things in place.

Financial and moral considerations to health testing breeding dogs

It doesn’t make sense financially because you will spend more long term on a dog that ends up with one of these diseases to treat it (if it can even be treated) or you will spend your money on training from the lack of socializing because if they aren’t going to health test, they probably won’t socialize or go above and beyond for anything else either. Believe me, I have had many, many people come to me with horrible stories after purchasing from people that didn't health test, only to end up spending a fortune on vet bills that were multiple times more than a fully health tested puppy, but even worse the amount of puppies that have not survived these things is even worse.

It doesn’t make sense morally because if you purchase a puppy from someone who isn’t doing things right, thinking that you are rescuing the puppy (even though you gave them money), you are just contributing to more puppies getting abused or neglected. The moral thing is to leave them there because if the person selling them is in it for the money then not being able to get money for them is the only thing that will stop them from breeding.

Health testing matters and makes a huge difference! It is not even a close call on whether it should be a focus when you are looking to get a puppy! The numbers don't lie!

What questions should I ask a breeder?

Here are some of the questions you should be asking before you choose a breeder when it comes to health testing. What health testing is done on the parents of the puppies? Do you do orthopedic and genetic testing? 

Even before you ask these questions you can look up what testing is available for each breed. For example, you can check OFA's site and search by breed. These tests can be found at multiple genetic labs. Let’s use a popular breed, a Goldendoodle as an example, below. Goldendoodles are a cross between a Golden Retriever and a Poodle, so both breed’s tests should be used when doing genetic testing. 

Here are the tests available for Goldendoodles:

Multifactoral Testing: Goldendoodles

Hip Dysplasia, Elbow Dysplasia and Heart disease are more complex and cannot be eliminated from a breeding program, but they can be significantly minimized with testing. 

Hip & Elbow Dysplasia

• A condition where hip or elbow joints become abnormal, leading to pain, arthritis, and difficulty moving. Over time, this can severely impact a dog's mobility and quality of life, often requiring expensive treatments or surgery.

Hips and Elbows are checked by taking x-rays and subsequently evaluated by a specialist and are ultimately graded by that specialist. The bottom line is that even if two top-rated dogs are bred together, there is still a possibility of a dysplastic puppy, but the risk is significantly lower. As a gold standard, a way to provide more assurance is to evaluate an entire pedigree for hips, not just the parents. 

Heart Disease

Heart disease should be screened for early on at 8 weeks old and at minimum annually by a vet. This does not eliminate all aspects of heart disease, but it does eliminate any common irregularities.

Genetic conditions: Goldendoodles

Congenital Methemoglobinemia

• A blood disorder, that can cause lifelong intolerance to exercise. 

Degenerative Myelopathy (DM)

• DM is a progressive neurological disease in Golden Retrievers that affects the spinal cord, leading to weakness and eventual paralysis in the hind legs. Since there is no cure, a dog with DM will gradually lose mobility, making daily activities difficult and significantly impacting their quality of life.

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (Poodle Type, Variants 1 and 2)

• A connective tissue disease where joints are hypermobile, have fragile blood vessels and elastic skin that is torn and bruised easily. They have lots of injuries and more prone to joint dislocation.

Ichthyosis

• This is a genetic skin condition that causes thick, scaly, and flaky skin due to improper shedding of skin cells. While not life-threatening, it can lead to chronic discomfort, itching, and an increased risk of skin infections, requiring lifelong management.

Neonatal Encephalopathy with Seizures (NEWS)

• NEWS is a fatal genetic brain disorder in Poodles that causes severe developmental issues, muscle weakness, and recurrent seizures in puppies. Affected pups typically do not survive past a few weeks, making it a heartbreaking and untreatable condition.

Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis 5 - Golden Retriever Type

• A neurological disorder that presents around 12 to 14 months old causing restlessness and changes in behaviour, leading to loss of coordination, tremors, anxiety, blindness, aggression and seizures.

Osteochondrodysplasia

• A musculoskeletal disease that presents around 3 weeks od age with stunted growth, shortened and bent legs, flattened rib cages and poor structure and bites. 

Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA)

• PRA in Poodles is a genetic eye disease that causes the gradual degeneration of the retina, leading to night blindness and eventual total blindness. Since there is no cure, affected dogs will lose their vision over time, impacting their ability to navigate and enjoy daily life.

Progressive Rod-Cone Degeneration (PRCD)

• PRCD in Poodles is a form of Progressive Retinal Atrophy that causes the gradual deterioration of photoreceptor cells, leading to night blindness and eventual total blindness. Since there is no cure, affected dogs will progressively lose their vision, impacting their independence and quality of life.

Von Willebrand disease I (VWD Type I)

• This is a genetic bleeding disorder that affects blood clotting, leading to excessive bleeding from injuries, surgeries, or even minor cuts. Since there is no cure, affected dogs are at risk of severe blood loss, making medical procedures and everyday accidents potentially life-threatening.

Von Willebrand disease II (VWD Type II)

• Type II is generally more dangerous than Type I due to the abnormal function of the clotting factor. Similarly, it causes excessive bleeding from minor injuries due to a deficiency in von Willebrand factor. Since there is no cure, affected dogs are at risk of severe blood loss from surgeries or injuries, making even routine medical procedures dangerous.

Congenital Myasthenic Syndrome (Golden Retriever Type)

• A neuromuscular disease that affects puppies at 6 to 7 weeks of age with exercise-induced weakness, which causes them to collapse.

Hereditary Cataracts

• A eye disease in dogs that causes vision to be blurry, leading to blindness by 2 to 3 years of age.

Multidrug Resistance 1

• A mutation that causes adverse reactions to certain medications. Can develop neurological symptoms from tremors, anorexia, blindness, coma and possible death. 

Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa (Golden Retreiver Type)

• A skin disease that presents at birth, that is easily damaged, causing blisters, ulcers and scarring. Can be painful and cause infections. 

Exercise-Induced Collapse

• A neuromuscular disorder that presents as exercise intolerance where the dog becomes wobbly, uncoordinated and has a hard time using their hind limbs. 

GM2 Gangliosidosis (Poodle Type)

• A neurological disease that presents around 9 to 12 months of age with vision loss, balance issues, tremors and vomiting. Death generally occurs between 18 and 23 months old.

Muscular Dystrophy (Golden Retriever Type)

• A disease where the puppy does not produce enough protein and muscles are unable to contract and relax properly. This causes growth issues, abnormal gait, muscle weakness and atrophy among other things. 

Osteogenesis Imperfecta (Golden Retriever Type)

• A collagen disorder that presents at 3 to 4 weeks of age with pain, lameness and fractures. Bones are fragile and do not heal properly. Puppies rarely live past 3 months of age.