This is the kind of post I have wanted to put off writing for quite some time, but I feel it is time to share. This information, in one form or another, has already been made public, via private email to all my puppy buyers, mass email to my notification list, and Facebook. The text below is copied from the private email I sent. Echo went to live with one of her brothers in Naples. She is doing great in her new home. Sadly, one of the dogs with an epilepsy diagnosis had to be put down. His owners did everything they reasonably could for him, but in the end, it was best for him to be peacefully put to sleep. This was a heartbreaking situation for his owners and for me, too, because I care about every single one of my puppies. BUT - Duncan went to live with them and help them heal from Tommy's loss. Duncan has settled in very well. They love him and he loves them, so we are all happy. Briefly stated, it has recently come to my attention that several of Dandie Duncan's puppies have had apparently epileptic seizures. The intensity of these seizures has ranged from trembling, drooling, and disorientation, to severe seizures and short-term behavioral changes. Two puppies have had minor seizures (one of which is our Flossie) and two have had severe seizures. Of these dogs, only one is on medication to control the seizures, to the best of my knowledge. Flossie has never had a recurrence of the tremors/ drooling/ discoordination incident as far as I know. At the time of occurrence, my vet and I thought it was possibly an ivermectin overdose, but I have since come to believe it was most likely a minor epileptic seizure.
I am retiring Duncan from all breeding immediately as I cannot risk producing more puppies with epilepsy. There is no genetic test for epilepsy at this time. This means that the only way to detect whether a dog is a possible carrier of epilepsy is to see whether there are reported cases of epilepsy in his pedigree and family, or if he produces puppies with epilepsy. There are two websites (the Border Collie Epilepsy Database) where owners of epileptic Border collies can report their cases and upload pedigree information. This is the first go-to for anyone checking a pedigree for incidents of epilepsy. The problem is that not everyone reports epilepsy to the database, so the information, although better than nothing, is incomplete. The other major problem with epilepsy is that it can "hide" for one or more generations. In other words, dogs may be carriers of this disorder and yet never be affected by it, but because they are carriers, they can produce affected offspring. Because of the fact that a carrier is outwardly healthy, it may not become apparent that this dog carries epilepsy until after affected puppies are produced (as seems to be the case with Duncan.) I have searched the BC Epilepsy Database for all the names in Duncan's and Cleone's pedigrees (since 3 of the four pups are from both of them.) Cleone's search turned up absolutely nothing. Several dog' 'names matched names on Duncan's pedigree, but they were imported dogs and the ABCA and ISDS (two different registries) numbers could not be matched. So there is a slight possibility that it came through this line, since these dogs may have had two different registration numbers, but until the site is functioning back at its full potential, I cannot check this. I am so sorry to have to be the bearer of bad news, as I know that an epilepsy diagnosis on a dog belonging to any one of you would be potentially devastating news. I have retired Duncan from breeding and will not use him or Echo in my breeding program. As I search for a new stud for SandSpur Ranch Border Collies, I will be extremely careful and check pedigrees thoroughly for epilepsy, as well as other disorders. Please understand that it is extremely difficult or even impossible to conclusively determine whether a dog is a non-carrier for epilepsy, especially as some researchers believe this is a polygenic (controlled by multiple genes) disorder. This discovery has been terribly disappointing to me in several ways, especially since I cannot in good conscience breed Echo, whom I retained from a previous litter. This discovery and subsequent research has also led me to a better understanding of Border collie health challenges and good breeding practices. Hopefully a new and even better stud than Duncan will help mold my strain of Border collies into better, healthier dogs. I hope that the cases reported to me by their owners are the only cases of epilepsy in this bloodline, and I am thankful that most or all of Duncan's offspring are spayed/ neutered, or soon to be, so that it will not spread any further from him. I would also encourage any of you who end up with an affected dog to please let me know of any incidents, and also to upload information to the Database. By sharing information openly, we can help to breed out epilepsy in Border collies. Special thanks to Ms. Susan F. and Mr. Dean C. for informing me of their pups' seizures in a timely, open, and understanding manner. I greatly appreciate your understanding, appreciation of my dogs and me, and your concern for both my dogs and my reputation. For further reading about epilepsy in Border collies, visit this article: https://www.ufaw.org.uk/dogs/border-collie-idiopathic-epilepsy I miss Duncan and Echo, but I am happy that they are in good homes, and I look forward to improving my Border collie line in the future.
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AuthorMy name is Alayna Feldman. I have been greatly blessed and am thankful, first and foremost, to the Lord Jesus Christ, Who has saved me. I am also deeply thankful to my parents, who have raised me in a stable, safe, loving home and taught me about what is most important in life. Archives
February 2022
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