DNA testing for Denerative Myelopathy is here!

[glencorgi]

Wanted to move this and give it a thread of its own as a reminder of the earlier posting I did on it.

Debbie

Originally Posted by iamvirg

DNA testing for Denerative Myelopathy is here! Corgis are the only small breed that can get it. My dog, Yogi, has the symptoms, loss of rear leg use, and thanks to CorgiAid, now has a cart. Yogi had MRIs which showed his leg use was not due to spinal injuries. I just sent out the swab test and awaiting results.

It is the responsibility of breeders to wean this out of the breed. If you plan on purchasing a puppy, please know that breeders will not know if the parents have the gene as the test just came out. It is the duty of breeders to test all their dogs, both male and female parent to test for it. The test needs to come back, "clear." The parents need to be neutered/spayed if the test comes back positive ("affected"). We need to insist that breeders be responsible now so that we, the owners and our loving corgis don't go through this in the future. It is heartbreaking. Below are the websites for testing both using blood and swab.

You can order the test at this website:
https://secure.offa.org/cart.html.

Pembrokes with a probable DM diagnosis or 10 and older can get a
free test. The website with that info is:
Degenerative Myelopathy - Ongoing Research.
The free test is more involved -- requires blood sample drawn by vet instead of swab (cheek?) which can be done at home and the blood must be sent
overnight in an insulated container with cool packs.

[glencorgi]

The test needs to come back, "clear." The parents need to be neutered/spayed if the test comes back positive ("affected").

According to all the information I've read put out by the researchers, they are advising it is too early to make this call. "Affected" does not necessarily mean that a dog will indeed come down with DM. Much more information is needed and a whole lot more samples from a the Pembroke population at large is needed. It is a momentous beginning though in getting rid of this devastating disease.

Debbie

[iamvirg]

Yogi's test came back "Affected, At Risk." It does not take a professional to know Yogi has the disease. He has all the signs and had both MRIs and a Mylogram. Please keep watch on the debilitating disease. Yogi is only 9 years old and from what I am told, he will have between 2 and 4 years of life. I love this little guy with all my heart and this is tearing me apart. Check out this site to see one of my corgis.

floridatoday.com | Brevard Local News | FLORIDA TODAY

[glencorgi]

Originally Posted by iamvirg

Yogi's test came back "Affected, At Risk." It does not take a professional to know Yogi has the disease. He has all the signs and had both MRIs and a Mylogram.

But there are also "Affected, At Risk" results coming back with the dogs manifesting no signs of DM, some much older than Yogi. So many questions are left to be answered. What is the trigger? Why one corgi and not another?

On a related note, one of my former fosters was helped over the Rainbow Bridge this week. Earlier this year she had been diagnosed with DM. I got to visit with her a couple of weeks ago and my last memories of her are of her having a good day, sealing about her yard and popping her head up from behind a hosta. She was a character until the very end.

Hopefully the ongoing research will bring the answers so that there will be a day that DM will not be something to ever take another corgi or break another owner's heart.

Debbie

[spikesfamily]

Thanks for the DNA testing link. Spike will be 12 tomorrow and we believe he has DM based on an MRI at Tufts ruling out everything else. Although he still has pretty good control we took him to be measured for a wheel chair today at Eddy's Wheels. The woman there mentioned the DNA testing for Corgis. She said she is really surprised at the lack of vet knowledge regarding the Corgi research. It seems like we are following a chain of advice and each provides another link. Tufts gave us the option of prescribing medication being researched by the University of FL and suggested one visit with a physical therapist for exercises, the PT suggested getting him fitted at Eddy's Wheels early on before he got too bad and also a good source for booties that don't wear out for the knuckling, and Eddy's suggested researching the free DNA testing. We too are devastasted to see Spike lose his agility but are thankful for the advice we have received so far. Thanks for the information and I look forward to using this new found site.

Jackie

[glencorgi]

Jackie,

I highly recommend you join the Wheel Corgi list, if you aren't already a member. Great support, advice and members are very on top of the latest breaks in the research.
wheelcorgis : Corgis on Wheels

Debbie