ABOUT THE BVA/KC HIP DYSPLASIA SCHEME
The current BVA/KC scoring scheme for hip dysplasia (HD) has been in operation since 1984 and since then over 100,000 X-rays have been assessed. Dysplasia means abnormal development, and the degree of hip dysplasia present is indicated by a score assigned to each hip. The hip score is the sum of the points awarded for each of nine aspects of the X-rays of both hip joints. The minimum hip score is 0 and the maximum is 106 (53 for each hip). The lower the score the less the degree of hip dysplasia present. An average (or mean) score is calculated for all breeds scored under the scheme and advice for breeders is to use only breeding stock with scores well below the breed mean score.
The minimum age for hip scoring is one year, and each dog is only ever scored once under the scheme.
WHICH BREEDS ARE SCREENED UNDER THE SCHEME?
It is generally accepted that hip dysplasia is more common in larger breeds, but any dog of any breed can be scored under the scheme.
HOW DO I GET MY DOG SCORED UNDER THE SCHEME?
Owners should make an appointment with their vet who can take the required X-ray of the dog's hips. The vet then sends the X-ray to the British Veterinary Association where it is examined and "scored" by a panel of experts. (Details of the scoring criteria are available in the form of a leaflet from either The Kennel Club or the BVA.) Once the X-ray has been scored, the result is returned to the vet, who relays it to the owner, and a copy is sent to The Kennel Club for recording on the registration database and publication in the Breed Records Supplement.
There is a time limit of 45 days and a set procedure for appealing against results under the Scheme.
WHAT ARE THE COSTS INVOLVED?
In addition to the charges levied by the vet for anaesthetic and X-raying, the cost of having one dog scored under the Scheme is £23.40. If an owner submits 5 or more dogs at the same time, the cost falls to £18.60 per dog.
WHERE CAN I GET MORE INFORMATION?
Free, detailed leaflets are available from either: Information, The Kennel Club, 1-5 Clarges Street, Piccadilly, London W1J8AB or the Canine Health Schemes Department, BVA, 7 Mansfield Street, London W1G 9NQ.
Further information is also available at: http://www.bva.co.uk/
KC/BSAVA Scientific Committee
THE KENNEL CLUB (KC)/ BRITISH SMALL ANIMAL VETERINARY ASSOCIATION (BSAVA) SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE
The KC/BSAVA Committee can act as a facilitator for and provide advice on the control of inherited diseases in dogs. It does this by communicating with breed clubs and providing informed scientific opinion, as well as advice regarding the collection of data, about inherited or potentially inherited disease within a breed.
The highly qualified and skilled members of the Committee include veterinary surgeons, a geneticist and dog breeders. Also on the Committee are The Kennel Club Canine Genetics Co-ordinator and an epidemiologist, who is in a position to analyse questionnaires or other data that may be of assistance to breed clubs. The KC/BSAVA Committee can give advice on the format of breed health questionnaires in order to elicit maximum information of scientific value.
During 1998, the members of the KC/BSAVA Committee spent
a considerable period of time considering the role of The Kennel Club in
relation to the control of hereditary disease. At the beginning of 1999,
the KC/BSAVA Survey on Health Surveillance Procedures was initiated and
data is currently being collated. Further information and contact details
for the KC/BSAVA Scientific Committee can be obtained by telephoning Miss
D Nicolson at The Kennel Club (0870 6066750 ext 293) or by emailing dnicolson@the-kennel-club.org.uk
KC Health Foundation Fund
The Kennel Club Health Foundation Fund - Funds for Research into DNA Testing
The Kennel Club Health Foundation Fund (KCHFF) is an exciting initiative, created to provide funding for research leading to the development of DNA tests for use in the identification and control of inherited diseases in dogs.
The idea is that Breed Clubs and Councils wishing to investigate a particular condition in their breed should collaborate with a scientific laboratory and submit a research proposal for funding to the Foundation Fund. The proposal should include the scientific justification, the planned research route and the overall sum of money requested. The intent is that the Clubs and Councils will have done some fundraising and that the amount sought will be "top-up" funding. The precise level of funding requested will not be an issue in determining whether funds are allocated. In this way bids received from numerically small clubs, with a limited capacity to raise funds, will be as competitive as those from large clubs that have a correspondingly greater capacity to raise money. There will be regular reports detailing progress of projects funded and frequently updated pages on the Foundation Fund and all associated activities on the KC's web site.
Ultimately the Foundation Fund aims to generate annual sums of around £150,000 and we have schemes in place to steer us towards this ambitious goal.
The Concept Behind The Kennel Club Health Foundation Fund
Over the past few years canine molecular biologists have laid the foundations for a whole new era of informed dog breeding. The recently published map of the canine genome together with its component markers, provides an invaluable resource to start addressing inherited diseases in dogs. There are just short of 500 conditions in the dog that are recognised as being the result of inheritance, or where inheritance is thought to play a role, and the vast majority of these result from recessive mutations in specific genes. The availability of the map greatly facilitates that search for the genes that cause inherited disease. Once disease genes have been identified, relatively simple DNA-based tests can be developed to identify the presence of a mutant gene, disease gene in a DNA sample.
The availability of such tests provides for the first time an unambiguous method of identifying carriers of recessive diseases. Armed with such information, breeders will be able to construct breeding programmes designed to reduce the frequency of a disease gene in a breed and significantly reduce the disease burden imposed by the condition.
The availability of the genome map provides a two stage strategy to identifying disease genes. Stage one involves the identification of the mapped markers that are physically close to the disease gene on the chromosome, so-called linked markers. These are identifiable because they are nearly always co-inherited with the disease gene; the closer the markers are to the gene being sought, the more often they will be co-inherited. Since these markers have already been located to unique chromosomal positions during the generation of the map, their linkage to a disease gene greatly narrows down the field of search for the gene itself to a very small region of just one chromosome. Stage two then requires a very meticulous scan of this newly defined region to identify the gene itself.
The identification of linked markers very often leads to the development of a very useful DNA-based test for the disease gene. As is the case with the recently reported markers that are linked to the gene that causes progressive rod-cone degeneration (prcd), a form of progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) found in Portuguese Water Dogs, Cocker and American Cocker Spaniels, Poodles and Labrador Retrievers. These linkage tests will ultimately evolve into gene based tests once the specific disease gene has been identified.
Estimates vary according to the time and cost of test development. It is not unreasonable to estimate, however, that markers linked to a specific disease gene should take no more than two years to identify and will require DNA samples from a close family group of around 50 individuals, including approximately ten affected dogs. The identification of these linked markers is a huge stepping stone to identifying the gene involved. Predicting precisely how long this might take is more problematic, but is certainly in the same 'ball park' as the time required to identify linked markers. Estimated costs would be £20,000 to £30,000 to develop linked markers, and certainly that much again, and possibly more to identify the gene.
So, the costs of developing new DNA-based tests for disease genes is no longer in the realm of fantasy figures, but is still more money than most but the richest dog clubs can manage to raise. Thus there is a real need to provide funding to support the future research required to develop new tests; enter The Kennel Club Health Foundation Fund. The Foundation Fund is being established to provide research income to help develop new tests for disease genes.
The plan is that Breed Clubs and Councils wishing to investigate a particular condition in their breed should collaborate with a scientific laboratory and together, they submit a research proposal for funding to the Health Foundation Fund. The proposal should give the scientific justification, the planned research route and the overall sum of money being sought will act as top-up funding. The proposals received in any one funding round will then be externally referred and decisions then made on project priorities.
The idea is that selection is based solely on feasibility
of the proposed project and its likely success. The precise top-up funds
should not be an issue, thus giving small clubs that do not have the scope
to raise huge sums of money the same chance of getting their project funded
as a large club. One of the conditions of being awarded funds is that interim
and final reports of the project are provided by the research groups. These
will be published in the form of annual reports so that everyone can monitor
the progress being made.
THE BVA/KC ELBOW DYSPLASIA SCHEME
ABOUT THE BVA/KC ELBOW DYSPLASIA SCHEME
The current BVA/KC scoring scheme for elbow dysplasia (ED)
was launched in 1998.
Dysplasia means abnormal development, and the degree of
elbow dysplasia present is indicated by a grade assigned to each elbow
on a scale of 0 to 3 (0 being the best and 3 being the most severe). Only
the highest grade of the two elbows is taken as the elbow grade for that
dog. The minimum age for elbow grading is one year, and each dog is only
ever graded once under the scheme. Advice to breeders is wherever possible
to use only those dogs with grades of 0 or 1 for breeding.
WHICH BREEDS ARE SCREENED UNDER THE SCHEME?
Any breed may be screened under the scheme, but there are a number of breeds which have been shown to have a higher incidence of elbow dysplasia. These breeds include: Basset Hounds, Bernese Mountain Dogs, English Mastiffs, German Shepherd Dogs, Golden Retrievers, Great Danes, Irish Wolfhounds, Labrador Retrievers, Newfoundlands and Rottweilers.
HOW DO I GET MY DOG GRADED UNDER THE SCHEME?
Owners should make an appointment with their vet who can take the required X-rays of the dog's elbows. The vet then sends the X-rays to the British Veterinary Association where they are examined and "graded" by a panel of experts. Once the X-rays have been graded, the result is returned to the vet, who relates it to the owner, and a copy is sent to The Kennel Club for recording on the registration database and publication in the KC Breed Records Supplement.
There is a time limit of 45 days and a set procedure for appealing against results under the Scheme.
WHAT ARE THE COSTS INVOLVED?
In addition to the charges levied by the vet for anaesthetic and X-raying, the cost of having one dog graded under the scheme is £23.40. If an owner submits 5 or more dogs at the same time, the cost falls to £18.60 per dog.
WHERE CAN I GET MORE INFORMATION?
Free, detailed leaflets are available from either: Information, The Kennel Club, 1-5 Clarges Street, Piccadilly, London W1J8AB or the Canine Health Schemes Department, BVA, 7 Mansfield Street, London W1G 9NQ.
Further information is also available at: http://www.bva.co.uk/