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In This Issue:
- News & Highlights
Advances in the IPFD
Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs (HGTD)
-
Make a Donation
- Stay Informed!
DogWellNet Digest: Issue #39 - 3 June 2021
- hgtd
- netherlands
- breed relevance rating
- wsava
- the kennel club
- pug
- grihp
- dog health workshop
- norwegian kennel club
- canadian kennel club
- agria
- genetic testing
- black russian terrier
- norway
- statistics
- Please join us in congratulating IPFD Board Member Bill Lambert, who will be joining The Kennel Club's Executive team as Health, Welfare and Breeder Services Executive. Bill has been at The Kennel Club since 2004, and this new appointment will help provide important skills and knowledge at a senior level to ensure that health and welfare remains a strategic priority for the organisation.
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IPFD CEO Dr. Brenda Bonnett has written an article on The Norwegian Society for Protection of Animals' (NSPA) lawsuit against selected breeders, clubs, and the Norwegian Kennel Club for not following the country's animal welfare law: Norwegian Lawsuit on Dog Breeds and Breeding - The "First" But Not the Last?.
- In Get a GRIHP! on Black Russian Terriers, we showcase the great work to advance heath, well-being, and welfare in this wonderful breed. We reference and link to developments, reports, and research from the UK, USA, Sweden, Finland, and more. See more in our Breed of the Month feature below.
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In her latest entry, Brenda Bonnett looks back at the 4th International Dog Health Workshop (IDHW), which wrapped up two years ago today, and examines how far have we travelled with respect to the five IDHW themes and their corresponding outcomes and recommendations for action.
- In her post, Artificial Insemination in Dogs - Recent Information and Misinformation, Brenda looks at legislation regarding canine artificial insemination in the Netherlands.
- In IPFD's New Research blog, Brenda offers an analysis of a new research report, Summary of Kennel Club Breed Records: Pug 2020, produced by Cassandra Smith. The report utilises publicly available data offered by The Kennel Club to describe health and breeding-related statistics and information.
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IPFD Collaborating Partner, The World Small Animal Veterinary
Association (WSAVA), has recently published the latest edition of Dog Breeds: What You Need to Know, a regular feature in their online news section (and in the WSAVA Bulletin) that highlights IPFD resources on a particular breed with a focus on breed-specific diseases.
- Brenda Bonnett will be presenting at the Canadian Kennel Club's (virtual) Annual General Meeting on 5 June. Brenda will be discussing how international issues can have an impact on the Canadian dog community. Watch for video of the presentation following the AGM!
- Congratulations to IPFD Contributing Partner Agria Pet Insurance, recently named the UK's Most Trusted Pet Insurance Provider in a Fairer Finance independent survey!
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See this month's Spotlight feature below for the latest HGTD news!
News & Highlights
IPFD News
Articles
Blogs
Breeds Resources
★ This Month We Feature Black Russian Terriers ★
Brief Description:
The Black Russian Terrier, also known as the Chornyi Terrier is a breed of dog created in the USSR in the Red Star Kennel during the late 1940s and the early 1950s for use as military/working dogs. BRTs are calm, confident, self-assured, highly intelligent dogs that with proper training and socialization are loyal, reliable, robust working companions. This large and powerful dog is not in all likelihood an ideal fit for the first-time dog owner.
Get a GRIHP! on Black Russian Terriers: This article is part of a series to highlight the Big Picture of health, welfare and breeding and to help develop Globally Relevant Integrated Health Profiles (GRIHPs) for many breeds.
Learn more about Black Russian Terriers in our Pedigree Breeds database.
IPFD Partners in Action
In the latest edition:
Meet the Black Russian Terrier – Update Your Knowledge!
You can also view previous editions of Dog Breeds: What You Need to Know in
our archive article here on DogWellNet.com.
Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs (HGTD)
What's New in HGTD
Ask Aimee
Our HGTD Project Manager, Aimee Llewellyn-Zaidi, provides answers to your questions on canine genetic testing in Ask Aimee.
If you’d like to submit a question to Aimee, please email her at aimee.llewellyn-zaidi@ipfdogs.com.
HGTD & Genetic Testing Blog
The HGTD & Genetic Testing blog provides regular updates on our rapidly expanding genetic testing resources. It currently features regular input from Brenda Bonnett and Aimee Llewellyn-Zaidi, but be sure to look out for future posts from special guests.
Get Involved in HGTD!
We welcome additional participant GTPs, more collaborators from any stakeholders concerned with dog health and welfare, the advice of experts, the participation of breed clubs and other consumer groups. We stand ready to provide more information to ongoing discussions.
Please feel free to contact us as we work together for healthy dogs and to support those who breed and own them: IPFD CEO, Dr. Brenda Bonnett and/or HGTD Project Manager, Aimee Llewellyn-Zaidi.
Advances in the IPFD
Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs (HGTD)
This month saw the 
completion of the first Breed Relevance Rating (BRR) estimations for the more than 2,500 breed-specific tests listed for the HGTD. This work is the culmination of hundreds of hours reviewing in excess of 1,000 scientific publications and reaching out to researchers and breed specialists around the world.
Breed Relevance Ratings began as a response to concerns and confusion around breed-specific testing. BRRs use a simple “traffic light” system to indicate the current understanding of the validity of a given test available to a specific breed (or breed cross), based on available research. While test recommendations for individual dogs and breeding plans will depend on a number of factors, the BRR clearly indicate tests where breed-specific research is available.
When used in conjunction with the phene/trait testing information, dog health specialists and breeders gain a fuller picture of the information they need to prioritize breed-specific tests, using transparent information from robust sources. The BRRs are not, in themselves, an indication that a test should be required in a breed-health strategy; such a decision must be based on even bigger picture information on the commonness, severity, and other factors of the condition for the breed. Even valid tests (e.g. with a green rating) may be for conditions that are rare or less important than other problems in a breed. However, a test with a lower rating (yellow, orange or red) would most likely not be included in recommendations for breed-wide testing.
There is still more work to be done. Our next steps are to continue to seek information on genetic tests being offered that we currently do not have breed-specific research information, data, or expert opinion on. If you are a researcher, or are able to contribute to this project, please contact aimee.llewellyn-zaidi@ipfdogs.com
Beyond genetic testing, IPFD continues to work on resources to clarify the use and role of all screening and health evaluations recommended internationally from Health Strategy Providers like kennel and breed clubs (i.e., more information to help dog health specialists and breeders with building breeding strategies that make a real difference to canine health and welfare).
See such information in our Get a GRIHP! Articles – including this month’s on Black Russian Terriers.
Make a Donation
IPFD is truly a "people driven" service organization. We allocate the bulk of our financial resources to maintain a small but dedicated team of consultants to manage our modest resources and facilitate the activities of our stakeholders, with the aim of achieving our collective goals.
You can specify how your donation is used (support IPFD and its programs and activities OR support the Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs). All donations are handled securely via PayPal.
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