RodRussell
Well-known member
I know that many think that purebred breeding in the UK leaves a lot to be desired, but I think that Pedigree Dogs Exposed should have focused on USA purebreds. Taking the cavalier breed alone, when you compare what the UK cavalier club has been doing about MVD and CM/SM to what the USA's two national clubs are not doing -- or frankly, are lying about -- there really is no comparison.
Examples: The UK club actually has a "Cardiology Advisor", Simon Swift. Its website actually links to Dr. Rusbridge's website. Look at the UK club's home page alone; today I found FIFTEEN articles or links to health-related discussions on the club's home page! The UK club's website actually publishes both the MVD and the SM breeding protocols.
Over here, neither of the two national CKCS clubs publish either of the two real breeding protocols. For MVD, both clubs have contrived bogus, heavily watered-down breeding protocols, which researchers already have found have not worked.
The ACKCSC states: "Currently, the recommended practice is to wait until a Cavalier is two years old or older before the first breeding and to know the parents and ancestral cardiac status. Cavaliers with early onset presentations of MVD (before four years of age) should not be bred and breeders need to work with the guidance of their cardiologists."
The CKCSC,USA states: "The CKCSC,USA recommends that prior to breeding any Cavalier, the dog should have a heart clearance from an auscultation by a board certified veterinary cardiologist that is consistent with prevailing cardiology protocols; however, the CKCSC,USA recommends a minimum of a cardiology clearance at age 2.5 years by a board certified cardiologist."
So, essentially, the two USA clubs are recommending that their breeders continue breeding for early-onset MVD.
As for SM, neither USA club has acknowledged the existence of any breeding protocol. So, essentially, the two USA clubs also are recommending that their breeders continue breeding for SM.
The ACKCSC website's "health" pages gives more space to discussing how genetically sick mongrels are, compared to purebreds, or how so many other breeds also contract MVD and SM, that you would think the club hired a Madison Avenue marketing firm to write its genetic health content. Instead of accurately discussing CM/SM in the breed, it's SM article appears to have been written about SM in humans.
Examples: The UK club actually has a "Cardiology Advisor", Simon Swift. Its website actually links to Dr. Rusbridge's website. Look at the UK club's home page alone; today I found FIFTEEN articles or links to health-related discussions on the club's home page! The UK club's website actually publishes both the MVD and the SM breeding protocols.
Over here, neither of the two national CKCS clubs publish either of the two real breeding protocols. For MVD, both clubs have contrived bogus, heavily watered-down breeding protocols, which researchers already have found have not worked.
The ACKCSC states: "Currently, the recommended practice is to wait until a Cavalier is two years old or older before the first breeding and to know the parents and ancestral cardiac status. Cavaliers with early onset presentations of MVD (before four years of age) should not be bred and breeders need to work with the guidance of their cardiologists."
The CKCSC,USA states: "The CKCSC,USA recommends that prior to breeding any Cavalier, the dog should have a heart clearance from an auscultation by a board certified veterinary cardiologist that is consistent with prevailing cardiology protocols; however, the CKCSC,USA recommends a minimum of a cardiology clearance at age 2.5 years by a board certified cardiologist."
So, essentially, the two USA clubs are recommending that their breeders continue breeding for early-onset MVD.
As for SM, neither USA club has acknowledged the existence of any breeding protocol. So, essentially, the two USA clubs also are recommending that their breeders continue breeding for SM.
The ACKCSC website's "health" pages gives more space to discussing how genetically sick mongrels are, compared to purebreds, or how so many other breeds also contract MVD and SM, that you would think the club hired a Madison Avenue marketing firm to write its genetic health content. Instead of accurately discussing CM/SM in the breed, it's SM article appears to have been written about SM in humans.