per dog) and started mailing them to people willing to participate. In the beginning of this project, I figured there would not be that many people partici- pating, as EP really wasn’t that big of a problem in our breed—right? A few older breeders told me I’d be lucky to find 100 dogs with EP, let alone enough Chinese Cresteds to participate. Well I am happy to say that those people were wrong! To date we have collected over 200 DNA samples from affected dogs and their relatives. These samples have come from around the globe and this project is now truly an International project! We have DNA samples coming from over 17 countries, with the most being from the UK, Sweden and Nor- way. It now seems that the “cat is out of the bag” and because of this project, the impact of this disease on our breed is one that needs to be taken seriously! I have taken it upon myself to mail DNA collect kits to anyone who has been, or is still, willing to participate in this project—at my own expense (over 600 swabs have been mailed)! We are still trying to collect more DNA from affected dogs—but now Paw Prints is only accepting DNA from affected dogs that we can obtain DNA from the parents as well. (I will let Lisa Shaffer explain why later in this article.) What can you do to heLp? In today’s times, we all now have access to the internet and that is chang- ing how information is shared—for the better. If you have a Chinese Crested with any kind of health problem, please be honest and share the information with those who need to know. At the very least, people need to notify the breeder of their dog of any health issues, no matter how big or small they are. Breeders cannot fix problems if they do not know they exist. I cannot tell you how many times owners of dogs con- tacted me to tell me their Crested has/ had EP and the breeder of the dog was never told! I am not here to judge what people do—but I cannot understand why breeders are not the first to be noti- fied when health problems show up. I can only imagine that many owners are afraid of being “blamed” for doing something wrong to the dog to cause the problem. So breeders, I can only ask that you listen, ask questions and then share any information with people who
time the seizure started and what time it ends. During a seizure, make sure to keep other dogs away as many dogs get frightened and will attack the dog having the seizure—especially if there is a pack of dogs together. Make sure your dog can not harm him or herself on any objects if the seizure is intense. Do not attempt to stick anything in the dog’s mouth. Talk to the dog softly to try and get their attention, but do not yell at the dog. Keep the dog warm. Most importantly, get your dog to the vet as soon as possible, especially if the seizure is violent. Most vets will do full blood work to rule out low blood sugar, calcium deficiencies (in pregnant or nursing bitches), check for toxins and liver and kidney function tests. Also, please have any heart problems ruled out as well as a full thyroid test done. Some vets may also want to do x-rays or even a MRI to rule out a brain tumor. Any of these problems can cause a dog to have a seizure. There is no specific test to say your dog has EP or not—diag- noses are done only by ruling out all other possible causes for the seizures. It also helps to know if there are any dogs related that have seizures or EP. If you have any other questions, please con- tact your vet. What has the research shoWn so far? Of course all I can do is share my thoughts and opinions after spending thousands of hours studying pedigrees and making contact with others who have experienced the same problem— and there are many. If you do not care what my opinion is and do not want to read it—please stop reading here. It is my opinion, after spending 2 years researching EP in our breed, that there is most definitely a hereditary link. What that link or mode of inheritance is can only be deciphered by the scientists who are doing the actual DNA part of this project. All I know is that seizures/ EP in our breed seems to have a reces- sive mode of inheritance—on paper! When you can set 10 or more related dogs pedigrees in front of you that all have seizures/EP (most diagnosed by a vet) and you can see who the common dogs are—it is quite easy to follow. Now put 300 or 400 affected dogs’ pedigrees in front of you—and the puzzle gets even easier to see! I know that this is not going to be a popular idea or opinion—
may have dogs that are related so that everyone is aware. Hiding health issues does no one any favors and you, in my opinion, are jeopardizing our breed. Be honest, share problems and do all health testing available for our breed. Also, I understand that seizures or EP has not been proven to be hereditary but it is the duty of each of us to sup- port any research being done for our breed. Please do not use the excuse that because you do not believe this prob- lem is hereditary you will not support it! If you truly love our breed, then it is your duty to support any research that could make a difference for our breed. There are several ways to help sup- port this research project. There is a GoFundMe account that has been set up to accept donations for this project. It’s called Chinese Cresteds—Paws For Our Cause. I am also selling raffle tick- ets to help reach our goal of $15,000. The raffle ticket winner will win $800 cash and the next drawing will be at Chinese Crested Nationals in May. Research doesn’t just happen—it must be funded! Please find it in your heart to either make a donation to the GoFund- Me account or purchase raffle tickets to support this project! Raffle tickets will be sold at the Nationals and drawing will be on Saturday after judging. You may also contact me via Facebook it you want to buy tickets. For anyone interested, there is a group on Facebook called Epilepsy in Chinese Cresteds where you can research pedigrees of dogs who have been shared publicly that are affected by seizures or EP. Please take the time and do your own research. Sadly, I now have almost 400 Chinese Cresteds in my database that have or had suffered from seizures or EP, but not all have been made public. Nonetheless, the informa- tion has been shared with those trying to make a difference for our breed! What tests are recommended to heLp dIagnose epILepsy? This seems to be an important ques- tion. Everyone can ask their vets and everyone will get a different answer, it seems. First and foremost, any time your dog has a seizure of any kind— try to video tape the event. Often, by the time you get the dog to the vet— the seizure has stopped and the dog is back to normal. Make sure to note what
5 01 / 05$) 5 0:4 " 13*- t
Powered by FlippingBook