MVD - MITRAL VALVE DISEASE	GENETIC DIVERSITY AND HEALTH
SM - SYRINGOMYELIA	OTHER HEALTH CONCERNS
PATELLAR LUXATION	CKCSC HEALTH REGISTRY
EYE PROBLEMS	OFA DATABASE
HIP DYSPLASIA	WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP!
LOW PLATELETS

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP!

Once you have purchased a Cavalier puppy, there is plenty you can do to help improve the breed.  You may have purchased a puppy that is only a pet, but your puppy is still invaluable to a reputable breeder and invaluable to the breed as a whole!

Most traits are polygenic in nature--in other words a combination of several genes is needed for the trait to show up.  The more information a breeder has on each puppy they produce, the better an idea they will have of what the genotype of their dogs is.  And the better job they will then be able to do in making good breeding choices.

If perchance you already purchased a puppy from a not-so-reputable breeder, what you do with that puppy may actually help such a breeder decide to quit breeding or start showing and testing their dogs so they too can do a good job.

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

For the good of the breed, please copy this page, and follow the instructions shown below.  Your dog and Cavaliers all over the world will thank you!

First, if your puppy develops ANY inherited condition such as epilepsy, syringohydromyelia, back problems, early onset deafness, thrombocytopenia, etc., please report it to the breeder.  Send the breeder a copy of the report.  Since these findings will happen anyway, it will not cost you any extra money, save a copy and a stamp.

Second, at each annual vet examination, please have your vet carefully check the patellas of your Cavalier.  Send a written report to the breeder of the findings--both GOOD and BAD.  This helps the breeder to see trends--see if patellar luxation is getting more common, less common, or about the same in their line.  Since checking for patellar luxation should be part of the regular checkup each year, this should not cost you any extra money, save a copy and a stamp to send to the breeder.

Third, attempt to check a breed club in your area or ask your vet when there might be an eye clinic.  It is a good idea to take your 3-5 month old puppy to an ophthalmologist to check for retinal dysplasia or cataracts and then your 5 or 6 your old to check for juvenile cataracts.  Again, send a copy of that report to the breeder of your puppy--GOOD or BAD!  Eye clinics normally cost approximately $20 to $25 for each visit--not too much.

Fourth, from age 3 until your Cavalier develops MVD, please try to attend a board certified cardiologist and have your dog auscultated (listened to) either privately or through an area clinic.  At the very least, please try to have your Cavalier auscultated by a cardiologist after it has reached 5 years of age.  Again, please be sure to send a copy of the report--both GOOD and BAD--to the breeder.  Clinics are usually $20-$30 per dog per year.  A private consultation is usually $50 to $75 per dog per year.  This is the most important thing to check for.  This costs a bit of money but it is money very well spent on a serious problem in the Cavalier today.  

Fifth, sometime after age 2, have your dog's hips x-rayed and evaluated by your vet at the very least or preferably, send the x-ray to OFA for evaluation.  Again, send a copy of the report to the breeder--GOOD or BAD.  This is the most pricey test to do and costs about $100-$150 per dog, but you only have to do it once.  If you have your vet x-ray when you are there for something else, it might only cost an extra $40 or so.  Even a vet's evaluation is better than nothing. 

No breeder is going to force you to do these tests, they are strictly voluntarily.  But if all pet owners were to start testing like this, you would be giving breeders invaluable information and could tremendously help breeders make better breeding decisions.  And you might be able to drive out the breeders who refuse to health check the dogs they are breeding by constantly giving them this information and showing them YOU CARE!

REPUTABLE BREEDERS WILL THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF THEIR HEARTS FOR THIS INFORMATION!!  PLEASE ATTEMPT TO DO THIS TESTING IF YOU CAN POSSIBLY FIND THE TIME OR MONEY! 

BE PART OF THE SOLUTION, NOT PART OF THE PROBLEM!!