Benvillarosa All That Jazz PTS after horrific seizures - Page 1

Ok this post might offend and shock a few as I intend to be as frank and honest as I possibly can but I’m sure it will have the support of the genuine people within the canine community.
During my years of working owning and showing the GSD breed I have seen dogs that have died in many shocking situations including being shot and blown up. I have seen dogs have seizures before and we have previou
sly had to give a dog peace from the condition. Sadly, we lose our friends through many causes.
On Saturday Julie and I witnessed what I can only describe as the end of what must have been the most horrific experience for an animal to go through. Jazz was coming to the end of a huge seizure event and there was nothing we could do but sit and wait until he settled. About an hour and half later he still was sitting in the back of his kennel, heckles up not knowing who I was or where he was, he was absolutely a terrified dog who didn’t understand. We decided that the only thing for the sake of the poor dog was to try and get him to the vet and give him peace.
The most upsetting thing through all of this is, that poor dog for all intense and purpose died lonely sad and frightened. As much as he had our love and support he didn’t recognize or acknowledge it.
Fortunately before Jazz left us we were able to take blood samples and a swab which have gone off to hopefully help in the research to find a marker our vet is going to give us a letter of conformation of cause of death. We have also with the aid of Chris Hazell been able to learn of alleged connections to seizures within both Benvillarosa all that Jazz and Lornaville Moscow Flyer’s pedigree. These direct links for legal reasons (no supporting letter of conformation of death) cannot be named but as both dogs were ours I can publish the pedigree and confirm they were both Given rest as a result of seizures Chris is in regular contact with the Kennel Club looking for more action to be taken regarding hereditary health ailments with the GSD. I intend to speak to Bill Lambert myself regarding the situation. Something must be done and I believe the Kennel Club should be refusing to register litters that have come from irresponsible breeding situations. We can all bury our head in the sand but seizures are a prolific problem that needs addressing. The condition of Epilepsy by now should have become recognizable through DNA test. 
On Saturday when this happened I was very angry, upset and frustrated so I have waited for my emotions to become controllable before placing all this in the public forum, those who know me will verify I have always advocated that health issues need to be discussed in an open and transparent manner. The health and fitness (mentally and physically) of the GSD should be number one priority for the future of the breed not green cards, over inflated breeders ego’s ,and financial gain. I do not point my comments at any one specific Kennel there are many on all sides with murky pasts. Unfortunately because of legal implications I can only discuss our dogs. There are also many people who have knowledge and first-hand experience of these hereditary ailments being ignored by unscrupulous breeders, perhaps it’s time those people looked at themselves and did the correct thing bring these conditions to the forefront and we as a breed will be better for it.
  If as a breeder your reading this then please, bear in mind. Our dog could have been a family pet, if it were, would you like your son/daughter or grandchild going down stairs in the morning to such a distressing situation, or is it still going to be the usual barrage of excuses. Could have been, change of feed, chemical ingress, injections, brain tumor, nervous system reaction or any of another 1
00 excuses to face reality. In fact your right there is a slight chance a seizure could have been triggered off by many things but most likely it is a result of Epilepsy in your breeding lines. Please supply the information on this terrible ailment to those who can use it. If you have a fitting dog then please consider getting blood samples and cheek swaps for the Animal Health Trust.
If anyone is considering breeding from their dogs and wants information regarding pedigrees then can I suggest you make contact with Chris Hazell. She is a lovely lady and has a wealth of knowledge regarding breed specific health issues and a huge data base of breeding history. 
Finally if you have dogs from the same lines as Jazz or Scout then I hope you have better luck than us with them. I have in the past made some bad choices because I have not given the situation enough thought. Please don’t let the passing of Jazz be a waste. Make good considered choices.

John - as you know, you and I are on different 'sides' of the breed, but I
want to thank you for this valuable posting; you are absolutely right on
this issue.  And I want to say how sorry I am for your loss.  A horrible
thing to happen, for the dog and the owner.  So sad.
Linda Swift. 

Open and transparency is most definately what is needed in this breed as it is in any breed, while there are unscrupulous breeders out there who only want to line their own pockets these dreadful conditions will carry on. While there are people burying their heads in the sand it will carry on. There are some excellent caring breeders who DO research pedigree's and blood lines and will act accordingly and I salute you. More openess is needed in all the canine world so come on guys think about the conseqeunces from what you are about to do with your breeding stock.

Goldie12

  John,
    So very sorry to hear the sad news about Jazz  xxx
     It is so upsetting having to watch your beloved dog suffering from seizures and the damage that they can do afterwards.
  Regardless of coat, colour, etc.Epilepsy does not discriminate, it is such a horrible disease, and so Unpredictable.
   Thank-you for sharing this information and hope that by informing people about Jazz and sharing his Pedigree that it will
 help others make the right choices, and also showing the terrible impact Epilepsy has on the dog and the people who love them.

   John and Margaret

That is so very sad, my heart goes out to you & your poor dog.  I'm sure he knew love & lived a good life in his time with you.

I doubt that Bill Lambert will take much interest in this & sadly the KC will do nothing about it.  I spoke to Mr Lambert one afternoon when I was in tears about the distress of having to see my own poor Willow suffering from her many illnesses - Epilepsy, HD, Anal Furunulosis, severe food allergy, lip fold dermatitis, the list goes on.  Her breeders had knowingly bred from both her sire & dam even though I had informed them of these illnesses.   The KC said nothing could be done, and the cause of epilepsy was difficult to determine.

I sadly lost Willow 2months ago when she dropped dead in the vets waiting room while going for a routine check up.  It turned out she had undiagnosed Cardio- myopathy, yet another hereditary illness, she was only 6yrs old.  A week later I heard of yet another owner of a 3 year old GSD from the same breeder, this one had HD, epilepsy & a heart murmer.  I have since discovered that the breeder no longer has the 20 odd year bitch line that produced these illnesses, I have met many people locally who have had dogs from them that were equally as ill.  But if the KC could have done something, much suffering by these poor animals & their loving owners could have been avoided.

Losing Willow like we did has truly broken my heart, but at least for us it was sudden, painless & with dignity, and luckily at the vets with people who cared for her with me sat right next to her.  She just blinked her eye & was gone forever.  For this poor dog Jazz it was a painful suffering, and through many of the posts on here we know that it is just the tip of the iceberg.  What can be done to stop dogs & owners having to go through this?  A dog should bring joy into your house & heart, and live a long and happy, healthy life.  But this isn't happening with this breed anymore, they just bring sadness & heartache, it just isnt acceptable.

I have owned personally, 3 GSD's over the years, and each has sadly been more ill than the last.  That's why this time I chose a different breed.  I don't see how there can be any hope for the breed as the illness are all there lurking in the background of their ancestors.  The diseases are serious, painful & very expensive to treat.  Yes, all breeds have hereditary illnesses, but GSD's seem to have more of them & they are all such horrible illnesses.  In a breed that is so numerous & popular, how can there be so few breeders you could trust to buy a pup from? 

I hope this is not brushed under the carpet & that another dog has not died in vain.  I hope it is not too late to save this wonderful breed.

John, I am so very sorry to hear this. This sounds so distressing for all of you and it is just so tragic. Your description of him ending his life sad, frightened and alone (at least in his mind, despite you desperately wanting to help him) was harrowing.

I am upset and in a fury at the same time. Having just addressed someone on another post who seems to have so little understanding of the realities of this disease and others and the impact on both dog and owners. I hope she is reading this and hanging her head in shame at the careless way she brushed off epilepsy and health. I could scream. 

I salute you for posting the pedigrees, and bringing it out into the open. Too long has it been hidden, and this has opened up yet other suspect lines on the english side, where people can at least know and try to avoid the lines - now. I see Spartacist of Hendrawen in the back there, leading to Ramacon Swashbuckler, well known for producing epilepsy. So even when they are way back, their heritage can be coming through, but if it is coming through, but is covered up in modern times how can we know it is still prevalent? Thank you for bringing it into the open.

Good luck with Bill Lambert. Linda is in the process of putting something together to the KC regarding epilepsy in the coloured/white lines (and doing the hard ground work), with your experience as well maybe we might start finally getting somewhere.   

I am so very sorry.

I extend my sorrow for your loss.