I wasn't going to get involved in this but after reading this, I have to.
I am as concerned about heart disease in Cavaliers as much as any Cavalier
breeder. I test my cavaliers for hearts, hips, & eye and my labradors for
hips, elbows, & eyes and I don't breed affected dogs of either breed.
However, you can pick up a mixed breed at the dog pound, save a life, and
have a great pet but it won't be a Cavalier. This breed has a lot of heart
disease. We must continue to try to eradicate it but in doing so, we can't
risk eradicating breed type and temperament by selecting only for clear hearts.
When I sell puppies, I sell to informed buyers. I inform them of the
problems in the breed they are buying. I let them know I've done what I can
to prevent disease but that there is a risk involved. They choose to have a
cavalier anyhow and most, from sound parents, live a reasonable life span.
An interesting note - my 13 year old bitch who was heart clear every time
she was bred, developed a murmur at 8. At 13 she has quite a high grade
murmur and an enlarged heart. She has NO CARDIAC symptoms whatsoever and
has never been on medication. What will do her in is her spinal
degeneration causing weakness in her legs. We expect it to progress to
incontinence and total inability to get around and there is every
likelihood she will not die of heart disease.
Since a large percentage of Cavaliers have late onset MVD meaning we have
bred them by the time we find out, perhaps something to add to the equation
when we breed is to try to concentrate on building our lines from long
lived stock but it is a mistake to make hearts the sole criteria for
breeding any more than it would be to breed for heads, coats, tail sets,
etc. without consideration to the entire dog.
Julie Sturman
At 02:28 PM 12/5/01 -0500, you wrote:
><<<<Hearts are only one small part of the equation when breeding - to be
><<<<considered yes but not more so than everything else
>
>And perhaps you'd like to explain that to pet owners who watch
>their dogs *suffer* and die from early onset MVD.
>
>
>Winnie
>Columbus, NC
>[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
>Dogs are made of love and fur.
>
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