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Significant New Research............Head shape can be a risk factor

Margaret C

Well-known member
New research has identified two significant risk factors associated with painful neurological diseases in the skull shape of the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel (CKCS). The findings could help in tackling these conditions in toy dog breeds and could be used in breeding guidelines:


http://www.bristol.ac.uk/news/2014/august/toy-dog-breeds-neurological-diseases.html


There is a short video at the bottom of this page that every cavalier breeder and puppy buyer should see.
 
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This is really interesting work; thanks for posting it as I've been meaning to do so!

I hope the study starts a good discussion on breeding and also, judging as surely, if judges push for the riskier head shape it will be harder to get breeders to make better breeding choices.
 
This is really interesting work; thanks for posting it as I've been meaning to do so!

I hope the study starts a good discussion on breeding and also, judging as surely, if judges push for the riskier head shape it will be harder to get breeders to make better breeding choices.

If there has been any discussion among breeders then it has not been in public. I suspect that, as so often happens, even the breeders that allowed their cavaliers to be measured will now try and ignore the unwelcome conclusions of this painstaking study.

Will Judges select for the less extreme, baby-faced heads when that is what they are breeding themselves? It will be interesting to see if any of them have the integrity to re-read the standard, reassess their breeding programmes and start putting the health of the breed first.
 
If there has been any discussion among breeders then it has not been in public. I suspect that, as so often happens, even the breeders that allowed their cavaliers to be measured will now try and ignore the unwelcome conclusions of this painstaking study.

Will Judges select for the less extreme, baby-faced heads when that is what they are breeding themselves? It will be interesting to see if any of them have the integrity to re-read the standard, reassess their breeding programmes and start putting the health of the breed first.

From what I've heard from breeders, here are some comments: Wonderful news but how do you implement it? ... Sounds like all we have to do is adhere to the breed standard ... Skeptical about the conclusions of the study ... Wait-and-see attitude ... Angry about the focus solely on cavaliers ... This thing will blow over and we can get back to doing our thing ...
 
This thing will blow over and we can get back to doing our thing ...

No, knowledge like this does not go away, so those continuing to "do their own thing" will increasingly become identified as heartless and cruel breeders that do not care about the potential for suffering they are deliberately breeding into their puppies.
 
"doing our thing" = making money off the unsuspecting pet puppy buyer and worrying more about their trophy case than the potentially pain filled lives of the breed they pretend to love

I sure hope this study makes a difference. So many seemingly wanted such a study.

The recurring problem is that many breeders and clubs publicly proclaim they are waiting to do x until study y is done. Once study y is done, and the conclusions yet again echo the majority done so far on health in cavaliers and flatter faced breeds, and indicate certain ways of breeding significantly increase the risk of pain and health issues, the majority push the goalposts off further, proclaiming that now study y is interesting but not the 'right' study and they will have to wait for study z, a., b, c, d... take your pick. One favourite as well is that nothing can be done until there's a large clinical study.

For a decade plus I've watched the majority of breeders and clubs endlessly push off any real action, no matter the mounting evidence and pile of studies. :swear: I'm so glad for those who are more thoughtful and caring about the breed, the puppies they produce, and the families that give homes to the majority of the puppies they breed.
 
This is the summary provided for breeders and pet owners. Other breeds are being investigated so the focus is not only on cavaliers, but no other breed has been found to have such high rates of CM, and therefore be so predisposed to SM as the cavalier.

Lay summary

Syringomyelia (SM) is a painful condition, more common
in toy breeds, including the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
(CKCS), than other breeds. In these toy breeds, SM is
usually secondary to a specific malformation of the skull
(called Chiari-like Malformation, CM for short).
There has been debate as to whether head shape is related
to CM/SM, especially as some humans have similar
characteristic facial and skull shapes, and what this may
be. Identifying a head shape in dogs that is associated
with these diseases would allow for selection away from
these conditions and could be used to further breeding
guidelines.
Dogs were measured in several countries using a standardised
“bony landmark” measuring system and photo
analysis by trained researchers.
This paper describes two significant risk factors associated
with CM/SM in the skull shape of the CKCS: extent
of brachycephaly (the broadness of the cranium (top of
skull) relative to its length) and distribution of doming
of the cranium.
The study showed that having a decreased cephalic
index (less brachycephaly) was significantly protective.
Further to this, more cranium at the back of the head
(caudally) relative to the amount at the front of the head
(rostrally) was significantly protective against disease development.
This was shown at three and five years of
age, and also when comparing a sample of “SM clear”
individuals over five years to those affected under three
years.
This study suggests that brachycephaly, with resulting
rostrocaudal doming, is associated with CM/SM. These
results could provide a way for selection against the risk
head shape in the CKCS, and thus enable a reduction in
CM/SM incidence. Studying other breeds in which CM
free individuals are more frequent may validate this risk
phenotype for CM too.
 
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