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No one can predict when or even if a dysplastic dog will start showing clinical signs of lameness due to pain. There are multiple environmental factors such as caloric intake, level of exercise, and weather that can affect the severity of clinical signs and phenotypic expression (radiographic changes). There is no rhyme or reason to the severity of radiographic changes correlated…
I make this statement at the expense of being tarred and feathered but increasingly, the best dog youll ever breed may be the hardest dog you will ever finish. It will be the odd man out and look different from the majority of dogs represented in the ring. Why? Some judges, insecure in a breed…
I would bide my time and not rush out and buy the first dog that came along. I would learn from the people who are winning consistently, and go to them for the best bitch you can get from the best stock. Does not have to be the pick of the litter because the breeding…
Hereditary Cataract in Staffordshire Bull Terriers has been recognised as an inherited condition since the late 1970s. Affected dogs develop cataracts in both eyes at an early age. The condition is not congenital, so the lenses are normal at birth but cataracts appear at a few weeks to months in age, progressing to total cataract…
Your article on bite was very good; however, in spite of the AKC’s breed description as to bite and the acceptability of a “level” bite, you indicate that the “level” bite is undesirable. It may be undesirable in England but in the US, it is acceptable. This leaves judges and others who are not familiar…
Kidneys are made up of tiny structures (glomerulus and tubule) called nephrones. These nephrones filter and cleanse the blood and remove waste products from the body. The kidneys help control sodium, potassium, chloride, bicarbonate, PH, Phosphate and magnesium. Eventually over time these nephrones break down and literally wear out, which is a natural part of…
Expecting a sofa dog to run 600 yards at full speed is foolish and can also be dangerous. Your dog will be inspected by members of the field committee before it is permitted to run to ensure it is in good health and you will be asked to gait your dog to inspect for lameness….
Breed Type. You should know it when you see it. Richard Beauchamp put it this way Breed type is such an elusive thing It is something that cant be taught but it can be learned. Even when type is present to the fullest, one person may see it and the person next to him may…
When people refer to the top line they mean the vertebrae of the spinal column from the base of the neck to the beginning of the tail. When judges critiques mention that a particular dog has a level top line, they dont, or at least shouldnt mean a perfectly level one as this would be…
Imagine a class of fifteen dogs entering the ring. Twelve are similar. Three are different. Those who do not fit in are excused in the cut. The other twelve are again judged. Puzzled, observers question why outstanding individuals walked. Does being different translate as being incorrect to the standard? Why does a judge choose from…
…data on all dogs examined by A.C.V.O. Diplomates. This data is used to form the CERF data base which is useful in researching trends in eye disease and breed susceptibility. Not only is this data useful to clinicians and students of ophthalmology, but to interested breed clubs and individual breeders and owners of specific breeds…