Whippet Heart Testing Day With Talk And Lunch

[jok]

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Whippet Heart Testing Day with a Talk and Lunch

 

Saturday 7th February 2009 at Bagnall, Staffordshire

Would you like to get your whippet's heart health thoroughly assessed by a top cardiologist at a very reasonable price?

Unfortunately whippets are fairly high on the list of breeds with heart conditions, and testing their hearts is going to become more common as the kennel club progresses its health programme, and pet buyers, fellow breeders and owners of potential stud dogs start asking about the health of your breeding stock.

Sarah Smith - MA VetMB CertVC MRCVS -veterinary cardiologist

Sarah Smith qualified as a vet from Cambridge University in 1986. After a period in general practice she worked for the PDSA for 5 years in Lewisham and New Cross, and gained the Certificate of Veterinary Cardiology in 1996. She worked for the Scarsdale Veterinary Hospital in Derby for 14 years, setting up and running a busy cardiology unit, becoming a partner for 10 years. She left in 2008 to advance her career in Cardiology, and now runs her own mobile cardiology referral service, Sarah Smith Cardiology. She has participated in many important research projects, including the "Quest " and "Protect" trials and has examined for the Certificate of Veterinary Cardiology for 5 years. She is listed as an approved cardiologist for breed scheme heart testing in dogs and cats, and is particularly interested in congenital heart disease.

The standard cost of a full heart check with Echo and Doppler is normally £450.

Sarah Smith has agreed to test every whippet on the day for just £195.

Each Whippet participant Will have their hearts auscultated and be given a full Echo Doppler scan for the detailed readings required.

A Veterinary Certificate of Heart Testing for pedigree dogs will be provided for every whippet tested. (auscultation + Doppler echocardiography) (VCS/RCVS)

Sarah Smith is one of only a handful of cardiologists who are authorised to issue this certificate. She will also be giving a talk on the day about Canine Heart Health.and Congenital Heart Disease.

Lunch & other Refreshments will be available.

Different breeds of pedigree dogs vary in the performance of their hearts and echocardiograph reference values for an individual breed are essential to assist vets and owners as they make breeding decisions for good health. Results will be collated by Sarah Smith and will be shared with other cardiologists and will be published as an up to date reference for the breed.This is vital as it helps cardiologists to accurately assess whippets in the future, and builds a bank of information of the healthy parameters for the breed.

Places are very limited as a cardiologist can only thoroughly test 15 dogs on one day.

To book a place for your whippet you will be asked to pay a deposit.

Email citycroftwhippets@yahoo.co.uk or telephone 01952 812888, alternatively pm me.

There will be another talk / Whippet activity on the day, that will be structured dependant on the participants.

Any questions, please contact myself, Rach (rls22), Cathie (dragonfly) or Jan (Jayp)

 

[dawn]

Sarah Smith has agreed to test every whippet on the day for just £195.

Does that mean every whippet in attendance or per whippet????

 

[jok]

Per Whippet.

I paid £425 for Ruby and although it was a specialist Cardiologist, it wasn't someone who was able to issue the testing certificates.

 

[Ribblesmere]

Whippet Heart Testing Day with a Talk and Lunch 

Saturday 7th February 2009 at Bagnall, Staffordshire

Would you like to get your whippet's heart health thoroughly assessed by a top cardiologist at a very reasonable price?

Unfortunately whippets are fairly high on the list of breeds with heart conditions, and testing their hearts is going to become more common as the kennel club progresses its health programme, and pet buyers, fellow breeders and owners of potential stud dogs start asking about the health of your breeding stock.

Sarah Smith - MA VetMB CertVC MRCVS -veterinary cardiologist

Sarah Smith qualified as a vet from Cambridge University in 1986. After a period in general practice she worked for the PDSA for 5 years in Lewisham and New Cross, and gained the Certificate of Veterinary Cardiology in 1996. She worked for the Scarsdale Veterinary Hospital in Derby for 14 years, setting up and running a busy cardiology unit, becoming a partner for 10 years. She left in 2008 to advance her career in Cardiology, and now runs her own mobile cardiology referral service, Sarah Smith Cardiology. She has participated in many important research projects, including the "Quest " and "Protect" trials and has examined for the Certificate of Veterinary Cardiology for 5 years. She is listed as an approved cardiologist for breed scheme heart testing in dogs and cats, and is particularly interested in congenital heart disease.

The standard cost of a full heart check with Echo and Doppler is normally £450.

Sarah Smith has agreed to test every whippet on the day for just £195.

Each Whippet participant Will have their hearts auscultated and be given a full Echo Doppler scan for the detailed readings required.

A Veterinary Certificate of Heart Testing for pedigree dogs will be provided for every whippet tested. (auscultation + Doppler echocardiography) (VCS/RCVS)

Sarah Smith is one of only a handful of cardiologists who are authorised to issue this certificate. She will also be giving a talk on the day about Canine Heart Health.and Congenital Heart Disease.

Lunch & other Refreshments will be available.

Different breeds of pedigree dogs vary in the performance of their hearts and echocardiograph reference values for an individual breed are essential to assist vets and owners as they make breeding decisions for good health. Results will be collated by Sarah Smith and will be shared with other cardiologists and will be published as an up to date reference for the breed.This is vital as it helps cardiologists to accurately assess whippets in the future, and builds a bank of information of the healthy parameters for the breed.

Places are very limited as a cardiologist can only thoroughly test 15 dogs on one day.

To book a place for your whippet you will be asked to pay a deposit.

Email citycroftwhippets@yahoo.co.uk or telephone 01952 812888, alternatively pm me.

There will be another talk / Whippet activity on the day, that will be structured dependant on the participants.

Any questions, please contact myself, Rach (rls22), Cathie (dragonfly) or Jan (Jayp)

Hi Rachel, I would like Ruby (Selinko Red Lady) tested as I would like to breed with her in the Future.I would like Ridge done also, but he will have to wait untill next time, money a bit tight after Xmas !! I will ring you for more info but please pencil me in for Ruby.Jean Dickenson (Ribblesmere)

 

[rls22]

That is great. We think it will be a great day, and we plan to have some 'entertainment' planned too :thumbsup:

We will be in touch shortly with further details.

 

[Noise]

would have loved to attend, but money's vey tight with x-mas and all my family having been born at end of december/beginning of january :wacko: and Eskil's probably a bit young yet, what is the best age for the heart test?

anyhow, hope something like this is organised next year as well, fingers crossed

 

[rls22]

Yes Eskil would be a bit young yet. )

Tests are really best done when a dogs is near to 2 years or older. :thumbsup:

We do hope to run more of these clinics in the future, if this one proves to be a success, which we are very hopeful it will.

 

[seaspot_run]

Aescult in the USA by a cardiology clinic is anywhere between 35 dollars and 50 dollars. Aescult with doppler ultrasound/electrocardiogram is anywhere between $200 and 450. At our National in April, there will be a lot of heart testing done.

I would invite those who are attending the American Whippet Club National and would like to see heart testing done to get in touch with me and I will try to find people who will allow you to observe. I will be doing at least one dog and perhaps two and will allow observers. This testing is subsidized by the AWC Health Foundation and also will be part of the overall Whippet Heart study which is ongoing here.

Karen Lee

 

[liza]

Aescult in the USA by a cardiology clinic is anywhere between 35 dollars and 50 dollars. Aescult with doppler ultrasound/electrocardiogram is anywhere between $200 and 450. At our National in April, there will be a lot of heart testing done.
I would invite those who are attending the American Whippet Club National and would like to see heart testing done to get in touch with me and I will try to find people who will allow you to observe. I will be doing at least one dog and perhaps two and will allow observers. This testing is subsidized by the AWC Health Foundation and also will be part of the overall Whippet Heart study which is ongoing here.

Karen Lee

i was told by someone in the know said whippets are not going to be heath checked or heart tested

she only told me as i said i had my katie heart tested

 

[jayp]

Aescult in the USA by a cardiology clinic is anywhere between 35 dollars and 50 dollars. Aescult with doppler ultrasound/electrocardiogram is anywhere between $200 and 450. At our National in April, there will be a lot of heart testing done.
I would invite those who are attending the American Whippet Club National and would like to see heart testing done to get in touch with me and I will try to find people who will allow you to observe. I will be doing at least one dog and perhaps two and will allow observers. This testing is subsidized by the AWC Health Foundation and also will be part of the overall Whippet Heart study which is ongoing here.

Karen Lee

i was told by someone in the know said whippets are not going to be heath checked or heart tested

she only told me as i said i had my katie heart tested

Sorry Kerry, dont understand your post. Are not going to be tested by who ? Anyone can have their whippet tested if they so wish Jan

 

[Hebridean]

I would love to bring one of mine, but am too far away. :unsure: Would be interested if similar was run in North Scotland.

 

[fourpaws]

Aescult in the USA by a cardiology clinic is anywhere between 35 dollars and 50 dollars. Aescult with doppler ultrasound/electrocardiogram is anywhere between $200 and 450. At our National in April, there will be a lot of heart testing done.
I would invite those who are attending the American Whippet Club National and would like to see heart testing done to get in touch with me and I will try to find people who will allow you to observe. I will be doing at least one dog and perhaps two and will allow observers. This testing is subsidized by the AWC Health Foundation and also will be part of the overall Whippet Heart study which is ongoing here.

Karen Lee

Karen remind us please where the National is being held.

 

[meddling]

Yes Eskil would be a bit young yet. ) Tests are really best done when a dogs is near to 2 years or older. :thumbsup:

We do hope to run more of these clinics in the future, if this one proves to be a success, which we are very hopeful it will.

Thats great Thank you :thumbsup:

 

[jok]

I will be posting information provided by Sarah (cardiologist) about ages and testing soon.

Personally, i don't want to breed from a bitch now or in the future that hasn't been tested. Also my personal opinion is that i would like the age for a first litter to be 2-3 years and not older (this debate is for another topic though) We are all entitled to different views on these points.

Yes, Mitral Valve Disease can not become apparent until a dog is older. However, there is far more to heart health than MVD.

Most of you will be aware of the early death of Verdellho Halloween Doll, from Ventricular Ectopy, before she'd reached two years old. She had not shown any symptoms of illness before her condition was diagnosed during testing around 18 months old - this is all info that has been written by her owner on the internet.

We chose to test our bitch at 2 years old, just prior to being mated for her first litter. By doing so, i am able to say that at this present time, she has a healthy heart. However, i wouldn't know this without the test. The cardiologist that did Ruby said repeat in about 3 years or so. I will probably do so before she (if she indeed does have) has a second litter. This will also be very interesting for the purpose of recording readings etc Frankie (who has been used as a stud dog) will be tested at this session, he is 3 years old.

For me, this is far more than just getting my dog tested. It is about collating data and information that at the moment just isn't out there in this country. This will obviously take a lot of time and work, but everything has to start somewhere. Sarah has been involved in research projects etc already and is very positive about this venture.

Yes of course the information will be made available to Breed Clubs and Breed Council, there would be very little point in doing this otherwise.

Making testing more readily available and raising awareness is not scare mongering i hope. We are lucky that Whippets are a very healthy breed in comparison to so many others. There is nothing wrong with wanting to protect this for the future.

 

[seaspot_run]

Aescult in the USA by a cardiology clinic is anywhere between 35 dollars and 50 dollars. Aescult with doppler ultrasound/electrocardiogram is anywhere between $200 and 450. At our National in April, there will be a lot of heart testing done.
I would invite those who are attending the American Whippet Club National and would like to see heart testing done to get in touch with me and I will try to find people who will allow you to observe. I will be doing at least one dog and perhaps two and will allow observers. This testing is subsidized by the AWC Health Foundation and also will be part of the overall Whippet Heart study which is ongoing here.

Karen Lee

Karen remind us please where the National is being held.

The 2009 American Whippet Club National is being held in Atlanta Georgia the first week of April. Here is a link to the website for the entire event:

2009 American Whippet Club National Specialty

According to the schedule, there are four days of cardiac clinics, plus the eye clinic.

There will ABSOLUTELY be health testing for at least heart and eyes offered at our national. There may be BAER-testing--that's been offered in the past; not sure about this year.

Karen Lee

 

[seaspot_run]

We chose to test our bitch at 2 years old, just prior to being mated for her first litter. By doing so, i am able to say that at this present time, she has a healthy heart. However, i wouldn't know this without the test. The cardiologist that did Ruby said repeat in about 3 years or so. I will probably do so before she (if she indeed does have) has a second litter. This will also be very interesting for the purpose of recording readings etc Frankie (who has been used as a stud dog) will be tested at this session, he is 3 years old.
For me, this is far more than just getting my dog tested. It is about collating data and information that at the moment just isn't out there in this country. This will obviously take a lot of time and work, but everything has to start somewhere. Sarah has been involved in research projects etc already and is very positive about this venture.

Yes of course the information will be made available to Breed Clubs and Breed Council, there would be very little point in doing this otherwise.

Making testing more readily available and raising awareness is not scare mongering i hope. We are lucky that Whippets are a very healthy breed in comparison to so many others. There is nothing wrong with wanting to protect this for the future.

This is very true and very important.

We cannot make sense of what we see in our older dogs if we don't have baseline diagnostics and data from the younger ones. It's important that as many people as possible get cardiologist evaluations of their breeding stock even if they think they don't have a problem.

Cheers to you, jok :thumbsup: --you are helping the breed as a whole, even if you never have a dog who has a problem to contribute. A broad spectrum of Whippets must be tested and documented to make sense of the ones who show up with aberrant or abnormal results.

Karen Lee

 

[rls22]

Bumping this back up in case anyone has not had an opportunity to see this

Cathie and Jan will be at MWC on Sunday with details if you are interested :thumbsup:

 

[jok]

Info from Sarah Smith about ages for testing - very interesting

Echocardiography screens for structural and functional heart disease. Congenital disease is present by definition from birth, so early screening addresses this group of diseases (e.g. aortic and pulmonic stenosis, PDA etc.) The acquired diseases such as mitral valve disease and dilated cardiomyopathy, tend to develop later in life but early signs can often be picked up on echo early on. The main disease affecting Whippets is degenerative mitral valve disease. It is true that this is more common after the age of 4, but early signs, such as mitral valve prolapse, can be detected much earlier by echo, even if there are no auscultatory abnormalities. Similarly functional abnormalities can precede the onset of dilated cardiomyopathy. The absence of evidence of acquired disease does not preclude the possibility of it developing later on. So, a screening system for breeding should ideally screen before the dog is used for breeding, and as far as mitral valve disease and DCM are concerned, every 1-2 years after that for as long as the dog is used for breeding. As a matter of interest I recently scanned a 10 month old Cavalier with no clinical signs of heart disease apart from very subtle abnormalities on auscultation and found mitral valve prolapse. I think it likely that he will develop mitral valve disease before he is 2. Admittedly the disease in Cavies is more widespread and faster progressing, but I don't think you can rule out acquired disease at any age.

 

[~Annie~]

Info from Sarah Smith about ages for testing - very interesting
Echocardiography screens for structural and functional heart disease. Congenital disease is present by definition from birth, so early screening addresses this group of diseases (e.g. aortic and pulmonic stenosis, PDA etc.) The acquired diseases such as mitral valve disease and dilated cardiomyopathy, tend to develop later in life but early signs can often be picked up on echo early on. The main disease affecting Whippets is degenerative mitral valve disease. It is true that this is more common after the age of 4, but early signs, such as mitral valve prolapse, can be detected much earlier by echo, even if there are no auscultatory abnormalities. Similarly functional abnormalities can precede the onset of dilated cardiomyopathy. The absence of evidence of acquired disease does not preclude the possibility of it developing later on. So, a screening system for breeding should ideally screen before the dog is used for breeding, and as far as mitral valve disease and DCM are concerned, every 1-2 years after that for as long as the dog is used for breeding. As a matter of interest I recently scanned a 10 month old Cavalier with no clinical signs of heart disease apart from very subtle abnormalities on auscultation and found mitral valve prolapse. I think it likely that he will develop mitral valve disease before he is 2. Admittedly the disease in Cavies is more widespread and faster progressing, but I don't think you can rule out acquired disease at any age.

As you say, very interesting, particularly the recommendation that dogs be checked at least biannually ... as I've said before I think it's enormously important that repeat testing happens where at all possible. Congrats to all involved for getting this organised.

Annie

 

[dawn]

Admittedly the disease in Cavies is more widespread and faster progressing, but I don't think you can rule out acquired disease at any age.

Saw this and wondered what Guinea Pigs had to do with whippets - strange how your brain interprets things.