Degenerative Myelopathy - Page 3

well,   I did NOT write "the dog got better when on raw" 

I wrote:    it took 5 years (meaning it slowed the progression)

This is from a person who called me last year and told me his dogs' story because he saw that I prefer to feed RAW - i thought it was a pretty significant story worth mentioning for those with dogs who suffer from DM. 

re Dr. Clemmons:   because of the hostility between him and the other research, I'd like to stay neutral.  Dr. Clemmons test is thru blood testing and the others thru cells from the cheeck of the dogs.   Saliva testing appears to also be more effective in human DNA testing
I have had one person's feedback who's dog was tested by the blood test as well as with the 'saliva cheek cells test'

this dog was confirmed to have DM by their vet.

The blood test said Negative

The saliva 'cell' test was Positive

I'm just passing on the info in hopes for all of us to keep our minds open to the possibilities.  BUT, we have a preventative cure for the unborn, and we should use it.  Its our obligation as breeders to our breed.  The cure is the DM test, its that simple.  I don't see the need for an argument there. 

For those dogs who have DM, my recommendation would be to put them on NEW CHAPTERS ZYFLAMEND PILLS.  This product is widely known and has been widely researched throughout the world.   It RENEWS THE CELLS AT A FASTER PACE THROUGHOUT THE BODY.
I have been on this product myself for 6 years, and it has safed my life, and needless to say,  i have my older dogs on it and any dog in recovery from any type of trauma.   Almost all problems start with inflammation, after all.  (usually stemming from stress)

"this dog was confirmed to have DM by their vet."

So the owner had their vet do a contrast MRI on the dog, or a necropsy after the dog had died, then?  Because at the moment, those are the ONLY methods that can definitively confirm a diagnosis of degenerative myelopathy.  Otherwise, one can only say that their vet *diagnosed* DM symptomatically, but it was not confirmed.

There are conditions that can mimic DM as far as the loss of mobility are concerned, and which can't be differentiated from DM except by these two methods--and the first is extremely invasive, risky and expensive, and the second can't be done while a diagnosis can be any benefit to the dog, and will also be costly as it will require some specialized testing of the spinal cord and nerves.

Kerschberger - I stand corrected, thank you for the clarification of the different tests (yes, saliva testing in humans is better on many things).  But still, testing and including the results on the pedigree is the ethical thing to do.  I wish I had known about NEW CHAPTERS ZYFLAMEND PILLS when Loki had it, now I will look into it for Ronin.  I still believe it is in our interest to better the breed and weed out any genetic diseases we can as well as those unethical breeders that breed for the money rather than the love of the breed.

Tested my female (V, SchH3 KK1) and she came back N /N and bred her to a top stud dog that had not been tested.   So I knew the pups would at worst be carriers.  The stud has recently been tested N/N.  Yahoo... since I have one male pup which I'm crazy about recently returned, I am very pleased about this.

congrats Wanderer, that is always good news.  I have had several breedings where the carrier only passed on the normal gene thankfully.   I tested two males not owned by mewhich I wanted to use.  All  came back Normal too.

VA1 Canada.   Balu vd Kirchheck (rip)  Dm normal  - good thing too as he has about 800+ pups in Canada alone...

VA Zeppo von Arminius      Dm normal

I think William von der Grafenburg is Normal DM too.  But he was not tested.   He is the son of V11 Bob. three out the six pups to my normal Dam came back normal. I figured chances were realistic that if he had been a carrier, at least one of the three would be a carrier too. William is a very good producer.  all pups show quality.   William is in Germany.  

To Mindhund,  the other side of the coin appears to be that Dr. Clemmons was / is testing for the MS version of DM.   a less common of the two DM like diseases.  

I'm told there is the ALS version which the Uni of MO tests for ie: OFA's test  and much more common.  

and the MS version of Dr. Clemmons  (less common)

This may or does explain why some dogs with confirmed/diagnosed ALS version (OFA) come back negative from the bloodtest by Dr. Clemmons.   This difference should be looked into.  The common DM version of ALS (OFA) should be tested for first and then IF a dog with symptoms comes back negative from the OFA ALS test, then the Dr. Clemmons MS test should be done.

Meantime, as breeders, what do we do.  Both research is probably right, but could they please play nice and make ONE test available to cover both forms of DM...! 


I just wrote Dr. Clemmons for him to  hopefully shed light on this, and will also write Dr. Joan Coats.  Im sure they will be annoyed but who cares, for my dogs and their people, i want answers....

 

Thank you all for testing.  Nan

Kerschberger;  where can I find this New Chapters Zyflamend?  Is it readily available??

Please don't let the questions about the 2 types of DM deter you from testing your dogs.

YES  Blitzen I TOTALLY AGREE!!!  dont stop testing !!! I know I won't stop testing ! 

Nans:  its very readily available thru health food stores and online.  I shop it everytime i need it as the prices are always
changing or shipping deals etc. 

amazon.com   iherb.com  vitacost.com  vitamintrader.com            4allvitamins.com

for the dogs look for the zyflamend EASY CAPS - they are small and can be easily given to them in some canned food.
When a female is recovering from whelping i give her 5 in each meal so 3x a day for about 5 days
You can apply the same to any kind of 'trauma' or any kind of pre-surgery preparation. 

I use zyflamend Liquid, but that can not be given to dogs unless you want them to run from you for life ;)
use it UNDER the tongue and wash it down with whatever taste good to you (it tastes like heck bitter). 
No need to have food with this as its herbal.  Use as instructed on the bottle. 2x a day. 

Dr. Coates already replied to my email for clarification.  
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Dear Gina,

Collaborators and I were involved with the discovery of a mutation in the Superoxide dismutase 1 in degenerative myelopathy affected dogs including the German Shepherd Dog breed.  The mutation is significantly associated with degenerative myelopathy.  The mutation is considered a risk factor for the disease.  Mutations in SOD1 also cause some forms of ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease.

Dr. Clemmons claims the disease is akin to MS and worked with another suspected mutation.  However another study found no significant association of that haplotype with degenerative myelopathy.

I hope that this clarifies any issues.

With regards,

Joan R. Coates, DVM, MS, Diplomate ACVIM (Neurology)

Professor of Veterinary Neurology and Neurosurgery

Well I believe that is good news that ALS is not related to DM in dogs.  Yes I believe MS is a similar disease and is neuro/spinal deterioration I do not feel they can be compared as comparable.  Maybe more similar to parkinsons in humans with no successful treatment in site and no donated funding to find out if any treatment COULD be used.  Sucks,  just sucks.  Yep I would also keep testing and I hope the testing starts to involve more and more large breeds.