It was only two weeks before the conference when I received a call from the Rottweiler Health Foundation’s President asking if I would like to attend this conference hosted by The Canine Health Foundation.  What a great opportunity I thought to learn more about the health issue affecting all dogs, and to get a chance to see where our money is really being spent.  So I packed my bags, took a day off and flew to the great state of Missouri! 

Three major contributors to the foundation sponsored the conference.  Ralston Purina is clearly a leader in a financial and administrator role with both the America Kennel Club (AKC) and a pet insurance company called Veterinary Pet Insurance (VIP) offering strong support in their own right.  The staff, hotel, and general organization of the conference rivaled any I’ve attended in corporate America and it was hard to find any fault with the organization.  This is big business and strongly supported by those involved from the parent club to the local pet owner contributor. 

There were booths to get information on different health issues.  Parent clubs had displays offering ideas on how clubs can generate money and interest.  Interest is paramount here.  Before I attended this conference, I really did not understand the complexity of this foundation.  And it’s not just your own breed.  Having bred and shown Rottweilers for 24 years, it was refreshing to see so many breeds represented and working toward common goals.  I think it is important we don’t forget that the loss of a canine companion results in the same grief and pain regardless of the breed it involves.  With so many illnesses, diseases and genetic issues facing our dogs, we need to take time to learn about fellow breeds to have a full understanding of how they effect our own. 

The line-up of speakers was a who’s who of the veterinarian, research and nutrition world.  The agenda was fast paced and the binder we received at check in allowed one to follow along and make notes on the different topics.  A couple of the topics ran a little long and the level of science involved lost a few of us at times.  But the passion and desire to conquer these diseases shown by the presenters made the complexity worth it. 

Because it is not possible to review each of the topics presented, I will give a short overview of those that seemed to be followed most closely by the audience (and me!).

Genetic Mapping of Disease Genes in Dogs
This was one of the scientifically complex talks I was referring to.  Although long and involved, it was clear to everyone that the understanding of the genes that cause the diseases in our dogs will go a long way in curing or even preventing them.  There is a need for DNA samples from two “known” producers in each breed and the testing is on going.  For example, in cancer, because humans and dogs share these life-threatening diseases, the underlying genetic causes are likely to be the same. Main areas of research are in Cancer, Epilepsy and Autoimmune.

Managing Food Hypersensitivity
Food allergy is an adverse reaction to a food or food additive.  It sounded simple enough, but as human studies showed, it is very involved and when dog studies were factored in, it was found that food hypersensitivity contributes to more the 60% of the non-seasonal skin diseases.  The culprit is the food protein used in our dog foods.  Any one of them can be recognized by the body’s immune system as “foreign” and thus an adverse reaction occurs.  Through their research a relationship between the amount of allergic causing protein is proportional to the amount of protein in the food.  This means the hypoallergenic diet must give adequate nutrition without overloading the system with unneeded proteins.  But even hypoallergenic diets are not necessarily non-allergic and so the dog must be carefully monitored for any adverse reactions.  Soy protein is often used after it has gone through processing and is showing great success in these special foods.  It was also stated that soy does not cause bloat as was claimed by some food manufactures in the past.

Canine Health Information Center (CHIC)
This is an exciting new, not for profit program, sponsored by a combined effort of the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) and the CHF.  It will be a database maintained by CHIC to be used for authorized scientific research and interested owners and breeders. As part of the program, both OFA and CERF have agreed to automatically submit certification reports to CHIC.  The availability of the information on individual dogs by name or registration numbers will only be released with the owner’s consent. 

Each parent breed club will set the requirements for their breed and include areas of importance to the health of that breed.  For example, in the Rottweiler, our parent club has chosen the following areas to be recorded by CHIC:

• Hip Dysplasia - OFA certificate, GDC certificate, PennHIP report

• Elbow Dysplasia - OFA certificate, GDC certificate

• Congenital Cardiac - OFA certificate

• Eye Clearance - CERF certificate

This program will set the standard for future information gathering and I urge everyone to check the web site for further explanation and review how we can all be a part of this database.  CHIC's website:  www.caninehealthinfo.org

Companion Animal Recovery (CAR)
The CHF advocates permanent identification for our animals through microchipping. A microchip is a rice-sized device encoded with a unique and unalterable identification number. The "chip" is implanted just under the skin in the scruff of the neck and is read by a scanner. The AKC Companion Animal Recovery will enroll pets identified with a microchip from any manufacturer and has been instrumental in returning over 60,000 pets to their owners.  The concern many of us had with the chip migrating from the injection site and the different readers needed to de-code the chip seems to have been corrected.  The universal reader will now work with the major chip manufacturers in the country and a program to secure readers in every municipal animal shelter is under way.  There are special rates for multiple and litter registration and the number will follow the animal throughout its life.  I plan to contact my own veterinarian clinic and see if we can sponsor a community ID day to get the animals in my township chipped.  Education is the key here since many pet owners are not aware that such programs even exist. You can find more information on the AKC web site:   www.akc.org/love/car

Search and Rescue Dogs
Those of us attending the Sunday morning conference were treated to a moving and informative program.  There was not a dry eye in the house when the photos of our search and rescue dogs working to locate the victims of the terrorist bombing of 9-11 were shown on the screen.  The lead veterinarian for the national team was there to explain the many difficult physical and medical situations these dogs and handlers faced.  We can all be proud of our canine teams as they offered hope, needed strength and companionship to many during this terrible time in our history.

Pet Insurance
This is relatively new area for dog owners.  Research has found an alarming number of animals are put to sleep because the owners are not able to pay for the procedures.  Now we have an option of purchasing different levels of coverage from Veterinary Pet Insurance.  They offer a breeders rate that can be sold as part of a puppy’s contract and have reduced rates for multiple dog households.  They also offer a vaccination and routine care coverage.  Visit their web site for specifics at: www.petinsurance.com

Canine Vaccination
This was an excellent presentation and explained many of the controversies we face when scheduling a vaccine program for our puppies.  The speaker separated vaccines into “core” and “non-core”.  Core contains parvovirus, distemper, adenovirus and rabies and is recommended for all dogs. Once the puppy series is completed, most veterinarians follow an annual schedule.  Non-core are vaccines not necessarily required for all dogs unless they are considered high risk due to unusual exposure.  They include leptospira, coronavirus, giardia, bordetella parainfluenza and Lymes disease. He believes that no vaccinations should be given prior to 6 weeks unless the puppies fail to receive the colostrum.  Using titer checks is the only way to be sure your dog has sufficient immunity.  This is an area of your dog’s health you need to discuss carefully with your own veterinarian.  Ask questions if you are not sure and agree on a schedule that is best for your dog.  The results presented in this talk were funded by the CHF and from the reactions of the crowd, it was money well spent

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I hope this short overview of the conference gives you, the reader, a sense of the work being done with our CHF funds and it helps you to understand the importance of supporting our parent clubs with donations. Please take a little time and read through the websites mentioned in this report and you will be pleasantly surprised at what you will learn about the health and well being of our canine companions.