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Terrier breeders who have had dogs that suffer from primary lens luxation (PLL), a painful, genetic eye disorder that often leads to blindness, shared relief when the gene mutation was discovered last fall by researchers at the University of Missouri, and the Animal Health Trust and the University of Cambridge, both in the United Kingdom. By mid-September a DNA test was available for PLL, allowing breeders to test dogs to determine which ones are carriers, affected and normal.

A new therapy for canine lymphoma that was first used in human medicine offers promise in treating the one in four Boxers affected by the cancer. The therapy, bone marrow transplantation, uses a dog’s own stem cells to stimulate bone marrow function and immune system recovery following radiation to kill cancer cells.

The recent discovery of the causative gene mutation for vestibular deafness in Doberman Pinschers, and the subsequent development of a direct DNA test to identify carriers, is expected to have an impact on reducing the suspected 13 percent of Doberman puppies born with the disorder.

The discovery of the highly contagious H3N8 canine influenza virus (CIV) by researchers at the University of Florida and Cornell University veterinary schools in a community of racing Greyhounds in 2004 represented a rare event in adaptive evolution.1 Experts studying the genetic composition of the virus were amazed to learn that the entire genome of the H3N8 horse influenza virus had transferred to dogs, where it adapted to become a new canine-specific virus.

Chihuahua breeder Frieda Kane found her 5-year-old female, CH Guichon's Tika Toy ("Tika"), shaking out of control. Kane felt her heart beating fast as she ran to the dog. "I had just let the dogs inside, and she was missing. When I found her, I thought she was choking, so I picked her up. Then, all of a sudden, she went limp in my arms. I thought she had died," recalls Kane of Durham, N.C.

Terrier breeders who have had dogs that suffer from primary lens luxation (PLL), a painful, genetic eye disorder that often leads to blindness, shared relief when the gene mutation was discovered last fall by researchers at the University of Missouri, and the Animal Health Trust and the University of Cambridge, both in the United Kingdom. By mid-September a DNA test was available for PLL, allowing breeders to test dogs to determine which ones are carriers, affected and normal.

Though some breeders believe that pes varus has occurred in Dachshunds for about 40 years, others are still learning about the potentially crippling orthopedic disorder known in layman's terms as bowlegged syndrome.

Though some breeders believe that pes varus has occurred in Dachshunds for about 40 years, others are still learning about the potentially crippling orthopedic disorder known in layman's terms as bowlegged syndrome.

Among the Boxer's distinguishing characteristics is a chiseled head in correct proportion to the body. The broad, blunt muzzle, which must be in proper form and balance with the skull, is a distinctive feature that contributes to the Boxer's dignified appearance. The muzzle also gives the Boxer a "pushed-in" or "snub-nosed" face, making the breed brachycephalic and at risk for brachycephalic respiratory syndrome.

When their 9-year-old brindle Boxer “Lyric” (CH LattaLane’s Irish Lyric) showed early-stage degenerative myelopathy (DM) in the spring of 2015, breeders Thomas J. and Carol Latta of Corder, Missouri, already recognized the signs. They had been screening their breeding Boxers for DM since the genetic test became available in 2009.

Not surprisingly, given the prevalence of DM in the breed, every Boxer in their breeding program had tested at risk for DM. However, Lyric was their first, and thus far only, Boxer affected by the disease.