Health Clinics
Sponsored by the International Silken Windhound Society
The following health testing will be offered:
- Cardiac
- Thyroid
- CERF (eyes)
- SNAP Tests
If you are interested in signing up any of the tests above, please email lledavis@mac.com with the appointment time you prefer.
CERF
Veterinarian: Dr. Nunnery
Cost:
$35.00
The Canine Eye Registration Foundation (CERF) is an organization that was founded by a group of concerned, purebred owner/breeders who recognized that the quality of their dog's lives were being affected by heritable eye disease. CERF was then established in conjunction with cooperating, board certified, veterinary ophthalmologists, as a means to accomplish the goal of elimination of heritable eye disease in all purebred and recently hybrid dogs by forming a centralized, national registry.
Below is a sample Canine Eye Registration Foundation (CERF) form. A CERF eye exam can only be done by an associate of the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologist (ACVO), they can not be done by your regular Veterinarian or by shining a light in to the puppy or dog’s eyes. An ACVO Veterinarian specialized in canine eye health and care.
When an ACVO Veterinarian is conducting a CERF exam they are looking for all indications of cataracts, PRA, CEA and many other disorders or diseases. They use special tools to look as far back in the eye as the optic nerve.
Below is a Close-up of main CERF exam form. This area is where any abnormalities would be noted by the ACVO Veterinarian.
OFA Cardiac Exam
Veterinarian: Dr. King
Cardio Auscultation: $35
Echocardiogram: $225
Exam Requirements
The auscultation is conducted in a quiet room in which the dog is usually restrained while standing. Though it is important during this test that the dog be calm, using sedatives is not recommended unless absolutely necessary, according to the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals. Because some heart defects are difficult to detect, a vet must have absolute silence during this exam.
Procedure
The vet will first find the dog's heart valves by moving the stethoscope slowly across the heart area in an effort to find the major heart functions, including the aorta, pulmonary artery, and the left craniodorsal cardiac base. A veterinarian will often cover a dog's mouth and nose to prevent it from breathing for a brief time while listening to the heart. If an animal is over-excited, the vet may wait until it is calm.
Types of Conditions
Auscultation can detect several different heart diseases, including aortic stenosis and subaortis stenosis (narrowing of the major blood vessel), MVD, tricuspid valve dysplasia (caused by a leaky valve) and cardiomyopathy (weakening of the heart muscle).
Thyroid Test
Veterinarian: Dr. Jean Dodds
Thyroid Profile 5: $72/test
Thyroid Disease
W. Jean Dodds. DVM
The information provided here outlines an approach that has been used successfully by the author to reduce the prevalence of clinically expressed thyroid disease within susceptible families or breeds.
EARLY THYROID DISEASE (THYROIDITIS) COMPENSATORY AND CLINICAL HYPOTHYROIDISM
Most of the confusion about the diagnosis and treatment of thyroid disease in purebred or mixed breed dogs today stems from the expectation that affected animals must show clinical signs of inadequate thyroid hormonal production (i.e. hypothyroidism) in order to have the disease. The term hypothyroidism has been loosely applied to describe all stages of this disease process whereas strictly speaking it should be reserved for the end-stages when the animal's thyroid gland is no longer capable of producing sufficient hormone(s) to sustain clinical health. At this point, the dog can express any number of the non-specific multisystem signs of thyroid dysfunction. But lets start at the beginning.
The most common cause of canine thyroid disease is autoimmune thyroiditis (estimated 90% of cases). Thyroiditis is an immune-mediated process that develops in genetically susceptible individuals and is characterized by the presence of antithyroid antibodies in the blood or tissues. Thyroiditis is believed to start in most cases around puberty, and gradually progress through mid-life and old age to become clinically expressed hypothyroidism once thyroid glandular reserve has been depleted. During this process, the animal or person becomes more susceptible to immune-mediated or other diseases affecting various target tissues and organs. The prerequisite genetic basis for susceptibility to this disorder has been in established in humans, dogs and several other species.
The above explanation helps us to appreciate existing confusion and controversy within the veterinary profession regarding whether or not testing or treatment is indicated for dogs that fail to show typical signs of hypothyroidism. In fact, we have only recently begun to recognize the subtle signs of early thyroid dysfunction in dogs as prevalence of the autoimmune form of the condition has increased within and among dog breeds. Today, some 50 breeds are genetically predisposed to develop thyroid disease.
GENETIC SCREENING FOR THYROID DISEASE
Thyroid panels and antibody tests can also be used for genetic screening of apparently healthy animals to evaluate their fitness for breeding. A bitch with antithyroid antibodies in her blood may pass these along to her puppies in her colostral milk. Also, any dog having circulating antithyroid antibodies can eventually develop clinical symptoms of thyroid or other autoimmune diseases. Therefore, thyroid screening can be very important for potential breeding stock.
Thyroid testing for genetic screening purposes is less likely to be meaningful before puberty. Screening is initiated, therefore, once healthy dogs and bitches have reached sexual maturity (between 10-14 months in males and during the first anestrus period for females following their maiden heat.) Anestrus is a time when the female sexual cycle is quiescent, thereby removing any influence of sex hormones on baseline thyroid function. This period generally begins 12 weeks from the onset of the previous heat and lasts one month or longer. The interpretation of results from baseline thyroid profiles in intact females is more reliable when they are tested in anestrus. Testing for health screening is performed at 12-16 weeks from the onset of the previous heat. In fact genetic screening of intact females for other parameters like von Willebrand's disease or wellness health and reproductive checkups should also be scheduled in anestrus females. Once the initial thyroid profile is obtained, dogs and bitches should be rechecked on an annual basis to assess their own health. Annual results permit comparisons that should reveal early evidence of developing thyroid disease or dysfunction. This also allows for early treatment where indicated to abort the development or advancement of clinical signs associated with hypothyroidism.
Healthy young dogs (less than 15-18 months of age) should have thyroid baseline levels for all parameters in the upper 1/2 to 1/3 of the adult normal ranges. In fact, for optimum thyroid function in screening breeding stock, levels should be at least at the midpoint of the laboratory normal ranges, because lower levels may well be indicative of the early stages of thyroiditis among relatives of dog families known to have thyroid disease.
Snap 4DX w/reflec Lyme C6
Veterinarian: Dr. Jean Dodds
Snap 4DX w/reflec Lyme C6: $37.80/test
You can test for 4 parasitic diseases with the Snap 4Dx Test Kit. Using a small sample of whole blood, serum or plasma, it detects heartworm and 3 tick-borne diseases: Lyme disease, ehrilichiosis and anaplamosis in dogs.
For this test you should use Dr. Dodd's form listed above under Thyroid Testing. The SNAP test is not listed on the form but the instructions are: If desired test is NOT in the form, please write the request clearly on the back or on a separate paper, but clearly distinct from the diagnosis and other historical notes (to avoid tests being missed).