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Renal disease and screening tests in Skye terriers
Louise Lynch May 2010

Kidneys

Most dogs (and humans) are born with two kidneys which lie at the back of the upper abdomen on either side of the spine. They are close to other organs in the abdomen including bowel, liver, spleen and pancreas. The functioning unit of the kidney is called a nephron and each kidney will have hundreds of thousands of these. The basic job of the kidney is to clear the body of waste substances but they also regulate the volume of water in the body and the levels of various chemicals. They are essential for maintaining a healthy “status quo”.

Kidneys have a characteristic appearance on scans (ultrasound/CT/MRI) with an outer cortex, inner medulla and collecting system of tubes which take the urine formed by kidney processes to the bladder.

Renal dysplasia and polycystic kidney disease (PKD)

These are conditions well-known in humans and less well described in dogs including Skye terriers and bull terriers.

Dysplasia means that the kidneys are structurally abnormal. It may affect one or both kidneys partially or totally. Structurally abnormal kidney is non-functional. The condition may be asymptomatic in a young dog.             

Polycystic kidney disease is a progressive disease involving the development of multiple cysts. As the cysts develop they lead to enlargement of the kidneys and this is often associated with pain and compression of normal kidney tissue, which impairs function and can lead eventually to kidney failure. The rate of development of cysts is as yet unknown in Skye terriers, but in humans a diagnosis can usually be made by ultrasound scanning at the age of 20. A very few aren’t evident in humans at 20 and rescanning is done at age 30. In bull terriers ultrasound scanning at 12 months is recommended to identify affected dogs.

Impairment of function starts well after structural changes are evident – often 20 – 30 years later in humans. The kidneys have a huge amount of functional reserve and impairment is not detectable until *more than 75% of kidney tissue is destroyed / lost.

Kidney function declines normally with time and so neither condition may be apparent in a young dog, but may become evident when a critical point is reached* or if the kidneys are stressed by dehydration during an illness. Infection or gastro-intestinal upset are common causes of unmasking a hitherto unknown kidney problem, as is anaesthesia for an unrelated problem. The kidneys in a dehydrated dog normally respond to the situation by conserving salt and water and losing acid. If they can’t do this well enough, the dog will become quickly very unwell.

It is well worth pointing out that there may well be a discrepancy between humans and Skyes in the clinical course and natural history of PKD, BUT the majority of humans with adult PKD get past the age of 50 without reaching endstage renal failure. Many never do, dying of other causes in old age, and not really symptomatic until the advanced stages of the disease.

Both conditions produce structural changes well in advance of functional changes.

Blood and urine tests are useful for monitoring and treating the conditions in affected dogs ie in management and prognosis, but have no value at all in the initial diagnosis. They will be normal in a dog with normal kidney function and give no insight at all into any structural changes.

Both conditions are inherited. The genetic abnormality responsible for renal dysplasia may be widespread in Skyes and only expressed in some of the puppies produced by mating a dog carrying the gene and a bitch carrying the gene. The genetic abnormality responsible for polycystic kidney disease is usually an autosomal dominant gene in humans – any person carrying the gene will have the condition and as genes come in pairs and a baby has a 50% chance of getting the abnormal gene, their offspring will have a 50% chance of both having the gene and the disease.

Renal dysplasia is congenital – present from birth.

Polycystic kidney disease is progressive and may or may not be structurally evident at birth or in puppyhood. In humans, ultrasound scanning at the age of 20 is normally diagnostic with a “late” scan at 30 as a very few people won’t have evident cysts at 20. The natural history of the disease in Skyes isn’t known – we don’t know how rapidly the cysts develop, although some dogs have had positive scans in puppyhood. It seems sensible to leave scanning as late as possible to pick up as many positives as possible in breeding stock prior to breeding. The English Bull Terrier Club recommends 12 months for their breeding stock.

Scanning tests available include ultrasound scanning, MRI and CT. Both MRI and CT give excellent images of kidneys. However, both need an anaesthetised dog and there is a finite risk of mortality even in a healthy dog. Cost is effectively prohibitive for a screening test. Ultrasound scanning is the first-line investigation of choice in humans and similarly for dogs.

Ultrasound involves passing high frequency sound waves through body tissues and measuring the time taken and number of waves reflected back. If all the waves are reflected back, the image on the screen is white eg from bone and if all the waves are absorbed, the image is black eg water. Kidneys have a characteristic structure and are usually easily imaged. Cysts would usually appear with a grey outline and a central darkness.

Medical ultrasound uses frequencies of between 2 and more than 15 MHz. Audible sound is between 20 Hz and 20 kHz. A high frequency transducer (probe) will give excellent resolution ie good pictures with clear anatomy but not penetrate very deep into body tissue and vice versa. An ultrasound operator will use the highest frequency transducer available for tissues at an expected depth for good quality images. Lots of different transducers are available but a common one for dog kidneys would be a 38mm linear probe between 10 and 5 MHz.

The quality of ultrasound very much depends on the skill and experience of the operator. Not all vets (or doctors) are confident in diagnostic ultrasound scanning but would normally be able to recommend a colleague if not. Over the past couple of years ultrasound scanners have become cheaper and more user friendly / smaller / portable.

A good contact is required between skin and transducer to get a good image. Ultrasound doesn’t pass through air. Lots of gel required. Shaving the relevant area of skin is standard practice, although isn’t strictly necessary and could be avoided by negotiation with your vet.

Dogs can be scanned standing or prone (lying on their backs) with their tummy exposed. The position per se is not important as long as a good view of the whole of both kidneys can be obtained. The ultrasound probe is moved around the underlying kidney. Loops of gut will naturally fall forwards if the dog is standing, which might make the imaging easier as bowel gas can be an unwanted artefact.

False positives, false negatives, true positives

Every screening test has false positives (abnormality detected when none exists) and false negatives (normal scan when the dog has the condition). We don’t know what the incidence of this is for Skyes, but we do know that it will occur. We can only take the best evidence that we have at the current time to do the best for our breed.

Any positive / abnormal scan demands rescanning and further investigation and the dog should obviously not breed until a diagnosis has been obtained. As mentioned above, other abdominal viscera lie close to the kidneys and a condition of any of these eg tumour, may appear to originate from the kidneys. Bowel gas can create an artefact. Simple single renal cysts exist and would need monitoring.

A single abnormal ultrasound scan would not be a reason to euthanase a healthy dog.

Even if the dog is diagnosed with PKD or renal dysplasia, it may be completely well for many years or even the rest of its life. The diagnosis on its own is not sufficient reason to euthanase an asymptomatic dog. The diagnosis is important in excluding the dog from breeding, but its future management should be decided between the owner and their vet.

False negatives are more unlikely and could occur if the dog has either only a very small dysplastic area in one kidney or if the multiple cysts of polycystic disease are either too small to detect or have not developed.

The further investigation and monitoring of an affected dog is outside the remit of this article.

The gold standard for the screening of any genetic condition is the identification of affected gene/s and a DNA based screening test. The only way to achieve this is through a comprehensive DNA database and identification and notification of affected dogs. Serious funding can then be applied for to do the science. In the interim we can submit DNA and screen breeding stock. We have to liaise with the international breed clubs. We are already getting samples from affected dogs abroad. We don’t have the answers now, but if we don’t try to the best of our ability using the best evidence available, we never will.

Louise Lynch

BSc(Hons) class I in chemical pathology
MB ChB
DA
FRCA
FFPMRCA

(I am a medical doctor – consultant in chronic and cancer pain management currently – previously a consultant in anaesthesia and intensive care. I work for the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. I use ultrasound as part of my pain management practice in imaging nerves of the brachial plexus and suprascapular nerves to do nerve blocks for human patients. I have experience of renal medicine after many years working on intensive care units and some research experience in dialysis for renal failure. Email = louiselynch@btinternet.com I have two Skye terriers, Oscar and Florence. Oscar had an MRI earlier this year – both kidneys incidentally normal and Florence had an ultrasound last month – standing, not shaved, all ok)

Updated 7/6/2010 

The Skye Terrier is generally a fairly healthy breed, but it is also an endangered breed due to the decline in numbers and continuously shrinking gene pool.  This is a global phenomenon and Skyes around the world can also be seen to be related, one way or the other, if pedigrees are studied.  Any new, or existing, genetic problem might hence potentially have an effect on the whole breed population.  It is therefore of uttermost importance to monitor the health of our wonderful breed with vigilance.
A DNA collection was started 2006 as a tool to guard over the future health of the breed.  DNA should therefore be submitted from all puppies before they leave the breeder’s premises, in accordance with the Skye Terrier Club’s (STC) Code of Ethics (27).  Case histories and test results are being submitted to the Skye Terrier Health Committee and held on a breed data base, with owner- and dog identity treated as confidential information.  A yearly Health Report is also issued, with listing of conditions that have been reported during the year gone by.

The 2010 Health Report, and following actions put into place, seems to have resulted in some controversy and queries.  It has therefore been found important to address some of those issues here.

Further sad deaths from Renal Dysplasia, together with a number of dogs diagnosed with suspected polycystic kidneys, did lead to a decision to suggest that another health screening tool, in the form of ultrasound scanning of breeding stock, would be beneficial in trying to keep the breed as healthy as possible.  This had indeed also been suggested by a number of veterinary practitioners and is also completely in line with breed health strategies suggested to us by geneticists at the Kennel Club and at the Animal Health Trust (AHT).  They emphasize how important it is for breed clubs to try and build up a picture of the whole health situation in their breed and to employ all available health screening tools, e.g. DNA testing, Ultrasound scanning, eye examinations, blood tests etc., for this purpose. They also encourage the breeders to be as open as possible and to recognize that many conditions are more prevalent than people think.  It has to be understood that nobody is to blame for cases of inherited conditions. It also has to be noted that if 1% of the dogs in a population are affected with a condition inherited in a recessive mode, then 18 % of the dogs in that population can be expected to be carriers of the disease causing gene. ‘Bad’ genes are present in all forms of life, but we do now at last have the tools of science to deal with them in a mature way.
Compulsory scanning of breeding stock had therefore not been brought in without taking “expert advice”.  Blood tests can be useful for monitoring and treating conditions in affected dogs, i.e. in management and prognosis, but have no value in initial diagnosis, since roughly 75% of kidney tissue has to be lost, before impairment can be detected. They will be normal in a dog where the kidneys are still functioning normally and give no insight at all into any structural changes.
  
Consideration for the optimum age of scanning had not been neglected, although it must be said, that it really would be impossible to be secure about this when dealing with conditions, where no previous research has been undertaken in the breed.  PKD in Persian cats can be detected from as early as 8 weeks, but the lower age limit agreed for certified scans is 10 months of age; the lower age limit set for Bull terriers is ~12 months (although cases have been detected from as early as 6 weeks); and Renal Dysplasia in Cairn terriers has been detected by ultrasound at an early age and long before the onset of clinical or laboratory evidence of renal failure.  It was decided, for the time being, to limit the requirement for ultrasound scanning of Skye terriers to breeding stock.  No Bitch must be bred from before the age of 12 months (KC regulation) and  STC’s Code of Ethics (17) recommends 24 months.  There is of course no breeding age limit applied to Dogs, but they obviously have to be sexually mature and therefore not puppies any longer.  With ‘breeding stock’ must therefore be understood dogs old enough to be bred from (puppies can only be regarded as potentials).
It has been pointed out that, for cats, there is a list of vets approved for scanning.  PKD is unfortunately a very common condition in some breeds of cats. There is however a very large number of those cats, thereby both practically and economically facilitating research.  The Bull terrier breed, which is in a much more comparable situation to ours, does not have such a list. Their owners/breeders do instead rely on the fact that very many veterinary surgeries now have excellent scanning equipment and skilled staff.  This has been found to be the, to the owners, easiest and most cost effective way to have a primary scan undertaken.  Any abnormal scan is followed up by scanning at a Referrals specialist or one of the Veterinary schools.  This method has proved successful for them and is also the one we have adopted.  It was explained at the AGM that this was the sequence of action to be taken and is indeed the one followed at the present time and which will be continued until it has been disproved or better alternatives have appeared. Strategies can never be static but must always be influenced by new findings.
It has to be understood that the demand for a ‘renal expert’ is somewhat misguided.  Veterinary schools do not have the equivalent of Urological departments in Human medicine.  The vets dealing with kidney related problems in dogs typically belong to the department of Small Animal Internal Medicine (although researchers from other faculties may also be involved, as can easily be substantiated if journal articles are studied).  Facts and results have to be gathered, as advised by the AHT, before a strong link can be formed with an institution or potential researcher. Work on this is however ongoing through communication with representatives from the veterinary profession. It is also, at this stage, not possible to assess any future, potential costs.  Enough clinical data and DNA samples have to be collected before any research can be considered and then funding applied for.
The DNA collection started, as mentioned earlier, as late as 2006, but we are now also receiving samples from Affected dogs, and their relatives, from abroad. Work is being undertaken on further international co-operation and the Skye Terrier Club of Finland has recently decided to launch a DNA scheme, with the samples being added to those held here at the AHT.
A couple of ‘ring-side’ myths also seem to have been circulated and have to be dispelled.  The first of these being that kidney problems are caused by bad feeding/rearing.  There is certainly no scientific evidence of such a thing whatsoever and it can be presumed that millions of cat- and dog breeders around the world would be up in arms at the mere suggestion.  The other such reported myth is that renal cysts could be caused by ‘worms’.  The same sentiment as expressed just earlier does of course apply to this too, but it can be presumed that this theory refers to Hydatid cysts ?  These are indeed nasty cysts, lodging preferably in the liver, but also elsewhere. They are caused by the tapeworm Echinococcus granulosa.  The major problem with that theory is that the cysts are only present in the intermediate host, usually sheep.  The dog (or other canids, e.g. fox) is however the definitive host and doesn’t develop cysts – they develop tapeworms, who shed their ‘eggs’ on the ground and these are then eaten by the intermediate host (the one who develops cysts).

Maud Hawkes
BSc [Hons] Animal Science

SKYE TERRIER HEALTH REPORT APRIL 2010

Year 2009 was a good year from the breeding point of view, with 11 litters of Skye Terriers puppies registered in this country.  It has also been a very busy year for the Health Committee.  It has been hugely encouraging to find an increase in reporting overall, but especially that also the pet owners have 'found' us to search advice and discuss any worries they may have. 

Better reporting obviously means more case histories and it has been found that the elderly Skye typically passes away from the same causes as one would expect in the general dog population , for example cancer.  Causes of sad deaths in the not so old include: Lymphoma (2), Splenic sarcoma/haemangiosarcoma (1), Epilepsy (1), Liver disease (1) and Pyometra.  One dog suffered from a prolapsed disc but was thankfully quite quickly restored to health after treatment.  Cases of kidney disease have also been reported and will be dealt with below.

PUPPY LIMP

Many babies around inevitably also means that there will be some with puppy limp.  It is a condition that always worries the pet owners a great deal.  Quite a lot of time has subsquently been spent on the telephone giving advice on the management of this, especially if there has been a Vet insisting that the puppy desperately needs an operation.  It has therefore been rewarding to get the reports back from owners saying that they now have a limp free puppy without having had it subjected to unnecessary surgery. 

DNA COLLECTION, RENAL DYSPLASIA & KIDNEY DISEASE

74 puppies were born in 2009, but some breeders have acted against the Club's Code of Ethics, so DNA was only submitted from 39 of them.  This is very disappointing and also worrying in view of the following events during the year.

• 2 adult dogs sadly died from Renal Dysplasia (DNA sample has only been submitted from one of them)
• Polycystic kidneys were diagnosed in a number of dogs:  1 adult, plus 7 puppies (the latter from 2 different litters; all related).  A research link has therefore been established with a prestigous veterinary scientist in the field.  Continuous monitoring and examination of clinical and histological features has already started.  Initial diagnosis is made using ultrasound scan, followed by blood tests on affected dogs.  The STC Health Committee must urge all breeders to, as a precautionary measure, have scans done on all their Skye Terriers intended for breeding and not to breed from animals found to be affected. 

A cheque for £150 has been sent to the Animal Health Trust (AHT) as a donation; much of the sum gifted from the distribution of swab kits.  The total number of DNA samples held in store by AHT has now risen to 132.

Generous donations have increased the total size of the Health Research Fund to £1491.28.  Warmest thanks to all those who have given contributions.

We, the owners and breeders, have a limited span when we are here to enjoy living with this extraordinary & wonderful breed.  Our aim should therefore be, if we truly love our breed, to try and secure its healthy future in this country of its origin.

Maud Hawkes, BSc (Hons) Animal Science

The year 2008 was 'interesting', not only for the Skye Terrier breed but, for all breeds of pure bred dogs.  The unforgettable, negative propoganda conducted in the media resulted in huge concerns for the future of all our beloved breeds.  The questionnaire, issued  at the beginning of December by the Kennel Club for their new Breed Health Plans, did cause frantic activity to enable return by the deadline of 30th December.   The Skye Terrier Club was 'one step ahead' in fulfilling the new requirements, since we already had a Health Committee in place and I was nominated as the Health Co-ordinator.  The Skye Terrier was, like all other breeds, attributed with a list of conditions found in published scientific literature.  These then had to be commented on, omissions noted and final conditions listed in order of perceived importance.  The Skye Terrier is of course a generally healthy breed, but disease does nevertheless occur.

There seems to be a quite common belief that a great number of cases have to exist for a condition to give cause for concern.  It is however much more complex than a strictly numerical issue.  An incidence of even relatively few cases, at certain frequency, of any hereditary condition causing severe symptons and reducing life expectancy, cannot be ignored, especialy in a numerically small breed.

The way forward in caring for the future wellbeing of our precious breed is based on the ability to openly face and declare any matter of concern.  Active health monitoring is necessary to prevent the possiblity of a somewhat minor problem maybe turning into a major one.  The only way to find out about the actual health status of a breed is through real-time recording, including records of age at & cause of death.  Such recording is actually now also a KC requirement and I must again, as in earlier Health Reports, stress how important it is that ALL cases of significant illness can be logged.  Vigilance is important, so please keep me informed.  Received information is treated in strictest confidence.

One death from Coronary failure in elderly dog and 2 cases of Epilepsy have been reported during 2008.  The cases of Epilepsy, both in relatively young dogs, are obviously most distressing and hard for both the dogs and their owners to cope with.  I sincerely hope that both patients will improve with time and treatment!

A cheque for £50 has been sent to the Animal Health Trust (AHT) re swab donations.  No new cases of Renal Dysplasia (RD) have been reported.  This is of course good news but must not be taken as proof that the condition has gone away.  Hereditary conditions do unfortunately not vanish from the gene pool 'just like that'.  It has e.g. been argued that the Hepatitis has completely disappeared now, but scientific evidence sadly disproves that.  It is therefore disappointing to find that only 12 of the 27 registered puppies have contributed their DNA to the collection at the AHT.  This is not disappointing from a RD point of view, but generally.  The ideal is that DNA from the whole population eventually will be in storage and thereby available for any research if or when the need occurs.  It would be so much quicker and more feasible to tackle any problem that could be solved by a simple DNA test, if we had the genetic mateial readily available.  We have already got a good start with a total of 84 samples stored so, please, keep submitting samples!

Fund raising and donations have yet again added money to the Health Fund and it has now grown to the quite impressive sum of £1051.  Many thanks to all who have given their generous contributions!

Maud Hawkes BSc (Hons) AS

Please do not hesitate to contact me via email msascience@onetel.com or on tel:- 01623 812856 if you want to discuss or report any health matters in confidence.

All information is always, treated in strictest confidence!
It would also help our statistics, if owners were willing to let us know the age and cause of death, when they have sadly lost one of their beloved Skye's.Many thanks for everybody helping to care for the Future of Our Breed by sending information.                

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SKYE TERRIER HEALTH AND RENAL DYSPLASIA DNA REPORT
April 2008. The DNA–collection has been gathering strength and is progressing very well since the last report.  There are now samples from 73 dogs in storage at the Animal Health Trust (AHT).  Most breeders have co-operated by submitting swabs from the puppies they have reared during the last twelve months.  Many Thanks to all the contributors and please keep up the good work !  Another cheque for £100 re swab-donations was therefore sent by me to the AHT last autumn. And by the way, always get proof of postage and try and inform me immediately, when you have posted off samples, so I can check that they have arrived safely at AHT. Some samples appear to have been lost in transit, but it didn’t come to light before it was far too late to approach the Royal Mail about it.Please don’t forget that it is also extremely important to inform me and the AHT if any significant health changes occur to any of the puppies in their future life.
All data and received information is treated in strictest confidence as per the general rule in dealing with such information ! No cases of Renal Dysplasia have been reported to me, which presumably means that there are still no samples from affected dogs. The whole idea with the DNA work is to find a usable test, so that the birth of genetically predisposed dogs can be avoided already at the time of mating.  It has to be understood that it is not a specific culprit/dog to blame one is looking for, but a disease causing gene-mutation which exists in the gene-pool of the breed.  I was myself made aware of the condition already in a puppy born in the 1970s and other cases have been brought to my attention over the following decades.  Those who attended the breed Seminar on the Isle of Skye may recall that both Kirsi Sainonen and I agreed that we are dealing with a gene-mutation that seems to be distributed within the breed at a fairly low, but significant, levelI did, in the last Health Report, stress that the function of having the Health Committee is not just about the kidney disease but also about dealing with the whole health situation in the breed. I have had one single case reported during the year…  I did receive the full case history, veterinary report and pedigree of a 9 year old Skye, who sadly (and so prematurely in ‘terrier terms’) died from Haemangiosarcoma.  This is an especially nasty form of cancer which typically affects the spleen and I have myself been unfortunate to have two of my Skyes dying from it in the past. My two were certainly not closely related and there was, thankfully, a very long time between those extremely sad losses.

The Skye Terrier is overall a fairly healthy and robust breed, so please let it remain that way by openly addressing and dealing with any problems that occur. Our breed is so unlike any other breed I know of and it is certainly for me the ‘Heavenly Breed’.  But it is unfortunately also a breed with a very small global population and a seriously depleted gene-pool. Any health problem that is not kept under control can have very serious consequences.  We must all work together in a proactive, non-selfish way, if we want this breed to be around to give the same delight to future generations as it has done to us. It is therefore very reassuring that so many people must feel very strongly about the health of our wonderful breed, because fund raising and donations have contributed the impressive sum of £848.50 to the Health Fund since it was opened in July 2007 ! Maud Hawkes BSc(Hons)ASPlease do not hesitate to contact me via email   HYPERLINK "mailto:msascience@onetel.com"   msascience@onetel.com  or on Tel: 01623 812856 if you want to discuss or report any health matters in confidentiality.

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SKYE TERRIER HEATLH REPORT & RENAL DYSPLASIA DNA REPORT
May 2006 – February 2007The DNA-collection initiative was decided upon towards the end of April 2006 and co-operation with the Animal Health Trust (AHT) started immediately thereafter.  The first blood sample had been received by the AHT by the 10th of May and this was swiftly followed by buccal swabs from a litter of puppies.  The interest and uptake thereafter has been very encouraging, although more active participation is needed, if we are going to succeed to achieve the numbers required for research to begin.The number of DNA samples held in store for us is now a total of 36.  Three of these are blood samples and the rest are in the form of buccal swabs.  A further 21 swab kits have been despatched in 2007 but are not yet in storage.  There are as yet no samples from affected animals, but quite a few close relatives have contributed theirs.

One animal has recently sadly died from suspected Skye Terrier Renal Dysplasia.  No autopsy or histology was done and this case can therefore only be regarded as suspect, although strongly so. There was unfortunately no tissue or blood available for DNA testing.  Blood sample has however been secured from the Dam. Several dogs have over the last few years been so tragically lost prematurely due to the kidney disease. No DNA is however left behind for science to work with. Would it not therefore now be for the better, if all breeders did swab their puppies before they left to go to new homes ?  This seems, to me at least, to be the obvious solution to prevent that potentially vital DNA is lost for future genetic research.

Mike Taylor did send me a mailing from the KC’s Charitable Trust inviting breed clubs to apply for research funding.  This is somewhat premature in our case, since we are still lacking in samples.  I did also have this confirmed by both Dr Sampson and Dr Mellersh.  The future procedure, when enough samples have been collected, will be an application for funding to the KC directly from the AHT.  BUT, and this is important, the Kennel Club will expect that the breed club shows its support by contributing some funding itself.  It would therefore be advisable to already now start some fundraising.  I don’t think that, the £120 donated to the AHT so far, from swab-donations & private donations, will be regarded as quite enough somehow …

No other health problems have been reported during 2006, but it should be remembered, that the Health Committee is not just about kidney disease.  Any disease, be it of the liver, heart, pancreas etc. or forms of cancer or congenital conditions, should ideally be reported too.  That kind of continued monitoring of the general incidence of disease has been ongoing long-term in very many breeds.  This is the only way to find out if any problem becomes prevalent in a breed, since questionnaires are pretty useless.  It is therefore important that such reporting becomes effective in our precious and wonderful breed too.

Maud Hawkes BSc(Hons)A.S.
Skye Terriers are in general a very healthy breed and most live long and healthy lives One disease does appear to have appeared lately, not just in Skye Terriers but breeds in general.The Skye Terrier Club would like to collate information regarding this, if you feel you could help, please read on and complete the following questionnaire.SKYE TERRIER - RENAL DYSPLASIA (RD)With the ultimate aim of eliminating RD from the Skye Terrier Breed, it would be helpful to first establish the condition's prevalence, both past and present, within the breed. To this end, completion of the questionnaire would assist greatly and be most welcomed.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS A FACT-FINDING MISSION ONLY.
AS SUCH, THIS INITIATIVE IS NOT BEING CONDUCTED WITH ANY INTENTION OF INFERRING BLAME ON BREED LINES THAT HAVE HAD AN AFFECTED DOG(S). THE CONDITION APPEARS TO BE THROUGHOUT THE BREED AND IN DOGS IN GENERAL.

The completed questionnaire should be sent to
Mrs Corrine Garland-Collins (address provided below).

If you are willing to supply copies of pedigree(s), at least 5 generations, and autopsy report(s), these should be sent to Mike Taylor (address given below).

If you are willing to supply a DNA sample, from either an affected or an unaffected dog, please contact Maud Hawkes for further information regarding how to go about this (contact details are outlined below).Please click here for the questionnaire.

Contact Details:

Mrs Corrine Garland-Collins
The Mill at Mangerton
Newcastleton
Roxburghshire
TD9 OTF
Tel: 01387-375036

Mr Mike Taylor
Westlea
Kyleakin
Isle of Skye
IV41 8PH
Tel: 01599-534391

Ms Maud Hawkes
Holmlea
Moorhaigh Lane
Pleasley
Mansefield
Notts.
NG19 7QF
Tel: 01623-812856

Additional copies of the questionnaire may be obtained from
Corrine Garland-Collins.