DM and breeding. - Page 8

I did read back on my post and nowhere did I mention anyone on this forum name , DM is a very sensitive subject for me as have lost something that was very special to me, some say it was just a dog ,No he was a best friend and a very loyal companion And seeing something you care about go through something that could been prevented at birth , this isn’t cancer that can happen to anyone at anytime , This is something that a pup is handed to at birth is out of their control and in control of breeders , I know breeders that let you test the pups at the expense of the buyer, But that tells me they don’t really know because they have never tested the sire nor the Dame , so if they pup comes back positive and the buyer doesn’t want it then your out the money for the test , the breeder moves on and sells it to someone else , but who really loses here ? The pups , because they didn’t have choice , Do I still think some are still just in it for the money ? Yea I do , nothing anyone can say will change that And that’s my right , But there Good and Bad Breeders I just think over the past Decade DM has spread like wild fires because it just seems no one is paying attention or they just don’t care which is really really Sad

If puppy buyers would not buy from a breeder who did not test their dogs and show proof they would not have heartbreak later.

WesternRider that’s the whole point here , But it’s not the puppy’s fault for being brought onto this earth with something they are going to suffer later on in life , Yes some don’t show signs and die from something else before then, But the ones that do it’s not right

Movin64, if buyers would not buy from breeders who do not test then breeders would have no profit from sales, they would either start testing or quit breeding

It really is in the hands of the buyers to control this, now just to get the information to them. So many have no idea what DM is or what it does.

WR You are so right, and they don't know about DM because so many buyers purchase on impulse, because they think something looks good or because they are attracted to some sport or other activity and are told the breed is their best bet; what they do NOT do is think seriously about whether it really is a breed which suits them, their lifestyle, their experience level etc, and they do not research anything about the breed and what its pros, cons and health issues can be. And then they compound that by not doing due diligence on the worth of breeders. Then they wonder why they get problems with what they buy.

It isn't that all this information is not fairly easily available; they just do not bother with it. I read somewhere recently that research has shown that on average humans need to be presented with information 8 times before they remember seeing it.

Hundmutter and WR you guys have hit the bullseye , lots take it defensively when you tell them to quit breeding and to breed out this horrible decease , And you are right lots don’t even have a clue, I know I didn’t , 8 yrs after having my Boy and he developed DM I looked up and contacted the breeder , He claimed he didn’t know what DM was or he was just playing Stupid , He said his dogs have never had nothing like that , Well they must have , Because my boy had both the Genes and was at risk, that only a carrier and carrier could produce , Did all kinds of tests , and even a professional therapist that deals and have dealt for DM in dogs , And at first thought it was a disc decease then later on said it was definitely DM So Just Carriers and saving breed , these dogs should be removed from the breeding for future safety and to breed out DM in this Breed or any other breed

not trying to defend your breeder, but until I came on this site, about 12 years ago, I had never heard of DM.

and I agree, some breeders are not good people. I know very well known breeders who fixed tails, implanted teeth, ran ringers in for OFA, (before DNA), fixed elbows.

and no matter the issue, a lot of breeders will deny responsibility or that it came from their dogs.

there is nothing some people won't do.

Rik

Agrees 100%

i also didn't know about such disease.
i did know about hip dysplasia but never saw german shepherd with HD - before immigration.
quick check about DM did bring this description:

"A dog with degenerative myelopathy often stands with its legs close together and may not correct an unusual foot position due to a lack of conscious proprioception".

i noticed and hate it very much and found it weird that so many present days GSDs in their relaxed, not stacked stance, keep their back legs very close, nearly crossed. never seen that in GSDs before.
wondering if that has something to do with DM?

It might in fact be true that some people will own stock that is carrying DM but never seem to have experienced the actual disease, so don't be too hard on those who say they have not seen it.

Leaving aside we now have (some ?) of the genetic info, it has always been impossible to diagnose DM in living dogs, you need to do a necropsy; many of the original symptoms mirror those of other possible conditions; it is mostly 'late onset' so people who do not keep older dogs beyond breeding / working age will maybe not have seen it in their kennels; only if you are lucky enough to have dogs with longevity also in their lines and you escape cancers etc that unfortunately take so many of our breed before age 8 or 9 will you have seen the phenomena of 'DM of old age' where so many of our real pensioners 'go off ' their back ends as they get really old, with no solid indications there was any problem in the years before that.

You do not have to have seen DM manifest itself to know enough about the breed to have heard of it / realise it exists. I have been lucky in that none of 'mine' have developed full blown DM (and yet most were long-lived and several lost a lot of rear stability towards their death); but I certainly met other people who had dogs who were cases, saw people use wheels, saw owners in great distress about their dogs' condition, throughout most of my life.