Stafford16 Posted September 27, 2012 Share Posted September 27, 2012 Hi,first post here so hello to everyone, my name is Bob and I have an 11 month old stafford bitch, we have just arrived home after her second surgery for Distichiasis. I would like to know wether this dieseas can be tested for in the parents of the dog, I know it is hereditry but am unsure about the testing for it. Thank you for any help. cheers Bob & Mishka. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra777 Posted September 27, 2012 Share Posted September 27, 2012 Yes it can be tested for however 2 clinically unaffected dogs can produce clinically affected pups. There is no DNA test. Sorry to hear about your girl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stafford16 Posted September 27, 2012 Author Share Posted September 27, 2012 Thank you for the reply, I understand it a bit better now. cheers Bob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skully Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 Hi Stafford16 - how was this diagnosed? i'm having trouble with my 16 month old girls eyes at the moment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra777 Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 Hi Skully - any vet ought to be able to see the extra eyelashes in a normal examination. If your girl is having trouble with her eyes you'd have to assume the vet has looked for this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellz Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 Hi Skully - any vet ought to be able to see the extra eyelashes in a normal examination. If your girl is having trouble with her eyes you'd have to assume the vet has looked for this? Just wanted to mention that this may be the case with some eyelashes in some breeds but it isn't the case in all breeds. I have just had a dog eye tested clear by an opthalmologist. He has a few very small, very fine lashes which the specialist was happy to pass. BUT, the same dog's eyelashes were NOT picked up by a generally practising vet under examination conditions. So it really can depend. Skully, I'd seriously consider an opthalmologist visit for specialist help. You don't mess with eyes, things can go too badly too quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skully Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 the last couple of weeks her eyes have been getting very gunky and the eyes are a little red. i assumed it was just springtime and a reaction to all the extra pollen etc in the air. will take her to the vet for a look and see if they can refer me to an opthomologist in the area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stafford16 Posted September 28, 2012 Author Share Posted September 28, 2012 Hi Scully, I took my pup to vet at about 16 weeks as she had discharge from eyes that was rather gunky and green and it wouldnt clear up. The vet put some drops in her eyes and looked through special glasses, he found the extra lashes this way, I was then refered to a specialist who visits tas every 3 months he gave me the bad news and i was told she needed an op. She had the op that week but 3 months later they returned and i had to wait 2 months for some more lashes to come through, putting in lacri lube 2 or 3 times a day to stop scratching the eye. Your vet should be able to see them if they are there but then you need a specialist to operate as they all have to be cut out 1 at a time. I must say that this is a very nasty problem and it has upset me greatly, not to mention the cost involved, and the fact that my mishka will need more ops in the future. I wish you all the best scully for you and your dog and hope that it will be something simple to clear up. best wishes and cheers, Bob & Mishka. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra777 Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 Hi Skully - any vet ought to be able to see the extra eyelashes in a normal examination. If your girl is having trouble with her eyes you'd have to assume the vet has looked for this? Just wanted to mention that this may be the case with some eyelashes in some breeds but it isn't the case in all breeds. I have just had a dog eye tested clear by an opthalmologist. He has a few very small, very fine lashes which the specialist was happy to pass. BUT, the same dog's eyelashes were NOT picked up by a generally practising vet under examination conditions. So it really can depend. Skully, I'd seriously consider an opthalmologist visit for specialist help. You don't mess with eyes, things can go too badly too quickly. The fine hairs are not unknown in Staffords, however they will rarely cause an issue (not saying they should be there, just saying they'll rarely cause an actual problem). Bit shocked a specialist is willing to pass a dog with ANY extra eyelashes - this is appalling IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellz Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 (edited) Bit shocked a specialist is willing to pass a dog with ANY extra eyelashes - this is appalling IMO. Depends upon the breed, the type of hair and where they are located. There are far worse problems than tiny microscopic eyelashes in some breeds believe me. And editing to add....did you realise that you had just contradicted yourself?? Edited September 28, 2012 by ellz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra777 Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 Bit shocked a specialist is willing to pass a dog with ANY extra eyelashes - this is appalling IMO. Depends upon the breed, the type of hair and where they are located. There are far worse problems than tiny microscopic eyelashes in some breeds believe me. And editing to add....did you realise that you had just contradicted yourself?? If by "contradicted" you mean I said they don't usually do any harm and then was appalled that a specialist would issue a CLEAR eye certificate to a dog with this problem - then yes, I did say both things. Just because something doesn't do any harm doesn't mean it should be certified as not being present at all. Dogs with fine non-harmful lashes can produce pups with coarse very damaging lashes so IMO it is appalling that a specialist is prepared to certify that the dog is CLEAR of the clinical signs of a group of genes when it patently isn't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rainy Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 Have to agree with sandra any dog with extra lashes should not have a clear eye certificate, all it takes is one lash to be slightly corse and they can loose an eye. Diesel nearly lost his eye to ONE lash cutting into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*kirty* Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 The certificates aren't 'clear' - all issues are noted but the breeder can do what they want with the info. The specialist can recommend a dog not be bred, but that's it. Extra eyelashes and even entropion does not 'fail' a dog unfortunately. However one would hope that since distichia are a problem with staffords, that breeders would seriously think about breeding an affected dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellz Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 The certificates aren't 'clear' - all issues are noted but the breeder can do what they want with the info. The specialist can recommend a dog not be bred, but that's it. Extra eyelashes and even entropion does not 'fail' a dog unfortunately. However one would hope that since distichia are a problem with staffords, that breeders would seriously think about breeding an affected dog. There are things in this breed which are marked as "breeder discretion" (even more serious things like Retinal Dysplasia and Retinal Folds - NOT Progressive Retinal Atrophy which is a different thing altogether, and even a couple of types of cataract). Incidentally, the dog in question isn't a Stafford but from a breed where distichiasis isn't known to cause major issues. The opthalmologist also said it wasn't "distichiasis" in his opinion a few fine, randome and irregularly placed lashes DO NOT equal "true Distichiasis". Either way, my dog is "clear" for all known INHERITED disorders by examination. Until DNA is available for all eye disorders in this breed, that is the best a breeder can hope for. And in this case, I specifically asked if the dog was clear for breeding and he said yes. He is a very well known and well respected specialist and I trust him implicitly. If I had any doubts whatsoever, I wouldn't have gone there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*kirty* Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 Sorry ellz, my post wasn't aimed at you. Just explaining how the eye certificates work for the previous poster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra777 Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 The certificates aren't 'clear' - all issues are noted but the breeder can do what they want with the info. The specialist can recommend a dog not be bred, but that's it. Extra eyelashes and even entropion does not 'fail' a dog unfortunately. However one would hope that since distichia are a problem with staffords, that breeders would seriously think about breeding an affected dog. Ellz stated the specialist was happy to pass the dog on the extra misplaced eyelashes - to me this means the certificate would not mention the problem meaning the dog would be recorded as unaffected by the problem. If the specialist was going to note the problem that's one thing, but passing it means something completely different in my book - if this is technically not so then my apologies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellz Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 (edited) The certificates aren't 'clear' - all issues are noted but the breeder can do what they want with the info. The specialist can recommend a dog not be bred, but that's it. Extra eyelashes and even entropion does not 'fail' a dog unfortunately. However one would hope that since distichia are a problem with staffords, that breeders would seriously think about breeding an affected dog. Ellz stated the specialist was happy to pass the dog on the extra misplaced eyelashes - to me this means the certificate would not mention the problem meaning the dog would be recorded as unaffected by the problem. If the specialist was going to note the problem that's one thing, but passing it means something completely different in my book - if this is technically not so then my apologies. Actually Sandra, it IS noted on the certificate. Apology accepted. Editing to add: If any of you are familiar with the AVA-ANKC Australian Canine Eye Scheme Eye Examination Certificates you will know what I am referring to. In the middle section (Examination of Eye and Adnexa) there are three sections. Instrumentation used on the left, diagrams of the eyes in the centre and Descriptive Comments on the right. In the descriptive comments on the right it has been noted "a few extra lashes". Edited September 29, 2012 by ellz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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