Umbilical hernia

Hi there,

I am considering purchasing a 14 week old male ruby Cavalier. He has an umbilical hernia which the breeder says is nothing to worry about and can be easily repaired when he gets neutered. I am assuming it is a simple puppy hernia and not the more serious one (I will find out). Should I be concerned about this? Most of the websites I have looked at says it is quite common in Cavaliers and nothing to worry about.
I would appreciate comments from anyone who has had this experience.

Thanks so much

Lynn

Your breeder is absolutely correct in what she says.

I used to breed Cavaliers and in my line these hernias were firstly present in my foundation dog, which he then passed on to almost all of the 40 or so pups he sired. None of them ever caused any problems in either dogs or bitches.

While it is easy to remove these hernias during neutering, is there some special reason why you would want to neuter your boy? In my experience of 30 odd years of owning and loving Cavaliers of both sexes I have never found the process necessary or wished to have it done. Right now I have 2 entire males aged 9 and 10 yrs old, neither of which have ever had the slightest problem with their reproductive systems. The 10 year old was a very keen stud in his younger days, but LJ has never served a bitch, as he is epileptic.

With bitches it is a very different story as health risks with entire bitches, whether bred from or not, is extremely possible, sometimes with fatal results. Pyometra is a very real and a dire emergency condition, frequently occurring in entire bitches of any age and which should never be ignored. Because of previous experience of this disease I had my now 8 years old bitch spayed between the first and second seasons when she was 1 year old. She has health issues but none related to what we are discussing.

Please don't worry about the hernia. If your boy is from health tested parents and seems all that a Cavalier should be then bring him home, stop worrying unnecessarily and enjoy the long and happy life together which you have every chance of sharing.

Thank you so much for your reply, it is very helpful. The breeder I am dealing with has it in her contract that he will need to be neutered by 6-8 months old. I find that a lot of the other reputable breeders are recommending waiting for a much longer time (up to 3 years) to have the procedure done. I notice you are from the UK (I am in Canada) The veterinarians here are still very strongly in favor of neutering by 6-7 months and provide a very good argument. It is hard to know who to listen to. I am very relieved to hear the hernia thing is not a big deal. Cavaliers are very hard to come by here and this little boy is a Ruby and if I buy him it will be sight unseen and he will be flown to me. I would prefer a Blenheim or Tri color but I could be waiting forever

FOSSILFERN said:

Thank you so much for your reply, it is very helpful. The breeder I am dealing with has it in her contract that he will need to be neutered by 6-8 months old. I find that a lot of the other reputable breeders are recommending waiting for a much longer time (up to 3 years) to have the procedure done. I notice you are from the UK (I am in Canada) The veterinarians here are still very strongly in favor of neutering by 6-7 months and provide a very good argument. It is hard to know who to listen to. I am very relieved to hear the hernia thing is not a big deal. Cavaliers are very hard to come by here and this little boy is a Ruby and if I buy him it will be sight unseen and he will be flown to me. I would prefer a Blenheim or Tri color but I could be waiting forever

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After reading the above personally I wouldn't even consider this little boy in my wildest dreams.

1. Why is the breeder insisting on neutering at all? He would become your dog and surely it would be your decision whether to have that done or not?

2. What else is wrong with puppy that you can't see him first?

3. Why does the breeder want to fly him out to you?

Sorry luv but no way for me or many other people for that matter.

Have you thought of looking for a breeder in the USA? Depending on what part of Canada you live in I'm sure you would have the opportunity to fly out yourself to see the puppy yourself and meet up with a responsible breeder.

P.S. I nearly forgot: You don't mention anything about any health certificates for tests carried out on either of the pup's parents. At least one, but preferably both parents should be aged 3 yrs or older and have had at the very least a cardiologist's certificate saying they are clear of mvd; not tested by the local vet but by a Board Certified Cardiologist. MRI scans for the possibility of Syringomyelia is advisable too. I say advisable because I don't know whether there are scanners or Certified Neurologists providing the service in whatever part of Canada you live in. Syringomyelia is a horrible inherited disease, with at present the full range of causes uncertain. One of my boys had it and I can honestly say I wouldn't wish to see another dog with it for as long as I live, so scanning is important.

There is yet another essential health test for one or other of the pup's parents too, easily arranged in most parts of the world these days, either through the Animal Health Trust in the UK or whatever agency has the laboratory facilities in Canada or the USA. There are 2 conditions which are tested for, firstly Curly Coat/Dry Eye; I won't describe this, but it isn't nice and the other is Episodic Falling Syndrome, which causes affected dogs to collapse while out walking for no apparent reason. You don't want to risk either. In this country the breeder sends off a fee of about £50 and is sent a set of forms to fill in plus swab sticks to take cells from the mouth of the dog, which are then carefully placed in the tube provided, put into the special envelope and posted off to the laboratory. There are 3 categories: 1. Is clear, which means the animal can be bred to another clear one, without risk, or with a carrier, which has a minimal risk of passing the defects. 2. Is carriers. One can be bred to a clear but never to another carrier. and of course the third is affected, which has unfortunately happened to my little bitch, because the swab test came along about 18 months too late for her parents to be tested. She will need constant medication for the rest of her life to keep the condition under control and she is one of the lucky ones.

I am sorry this is a bit of a hotch potch of information. Please go through it carefully and think about all that I have said. Probably someone else on this List may turn up to confirm what I have said and I am sure they will also tell you to avoid this particular puppy and his breeder.

It is better to try elsewhere for a pup with the chance of a healthy and long life than to take any risks. If the breeder is able to satisfactorily answer the points I have raised and to provide original copies of the health testing documents for at least one of the parents, you might still want to go ahead with the purchase rather than wait a long time elsewhere, but I have a feeling you are going to find that a very difficult decision to make.

Thank you so much for your input. You can't know how much I appreciate it.
It seems a lot of breeders here don't want to risk Cavaliers being bred in 'back yards' so to speak so a lot of them will only sell to you if you promise to have them altered and proof of alteration is required or the contract becomes null and void and subject to fines. A lot of a the breeders are now saying not to do it before a year as 6 months is too young. The Vets however, say differently.
The puppy is 1500 miles away so I have only seen pictures. I have no Cavalier breeders close to me. I understand it is a common practice to fly puppies to their new homes where required. For me, it means saving $1000.00 or so.
The mother has been screened for hip dysplacia, congenital cardiac disease, OFA eye clearance & EFS.
The father has been screened for inherited eye disease, congenital cardiac disease, patellar luxation & EFS. The pups have all been hearing tested via the Baer Test.
Both the mother and father are from Champion stock from breeders that are active in the Canadian Kennel Club and the National Cavalier Club.
Given this new information, do you still feel the same way?