CavalierCampaign.com
Campaign to improve the health of Pedigree Dogs
My Campaign - Updates and outcomes (page 2)
Code of Ethics and Code of Best Practice Continued
At the Liaison Meeting of all the Cavalier Clubs in May 2009, the regional clubs agreed to include the SM breeding guidelines, MVD breeding protocol, and screening for Eye Disease, to be added to their codes of ethics. The national club incorporated the SM breeding guidelines into their Code of Best Practice at the 2010 AGM.
Note that the Kennel Club/breed clubs' Code of Ethics (brought in at the end of 2009) which applies to all breeds, states: (Breeders) will agree not to breed from a dog or bitch which could in any way be harmful to the dog or breed. The Cavalier Club's Code of Best Practice states: No dog (or bitch) which has a known physical defect that could be
detrimental to the health and well being of the offspring or the breed in general should be used for breeding.
Unfortunately there is no proposal by the Kennel Club or breed clubs to enforce these codes. They are not requirements, merely recommendations. In the past the MVD breeding protocol has been largely ignored by breeders and it remains to be seen whether the majority of breed club members will follow the new codes with a greater commitment.
Estimated Breeding Values (EBV) research and data collection
Drs Sarah Blott and Tom Lewis from the Animal Health Trust have given seminars to most of the Cavalier clubs in the UK to outline the EBV research and explain how the mate selection program will work.
Sarah and Tom have appealed for more health data from breeders and owners, explaining that the more data that is supplied, the more accurate the breeding values will be. Data collection and research is ongoing but by the end of 2010 there is still insufficient data to produce robust EBVs. At the Cavalier Health Day in October 2010, Sarah explained that they would need 12 months of data from the official BVA/KC CMSM scheme before EBVs could be published.
Mate Select
The first phase will be launched at Crufts 2011 and will provide the coefficient of inbreeding (COI) for any KC registered dog and breed average COI for all breeds. This is a welcome initiative by the KC which hopefully will encourgae breeders to think about the level of inbreeding of any hypothetical mating. The infrastructure for EBVs will be in place by the end of 2011. Whether EBVs for Cavaliers will be available soon after that depends on the quantity of accurate data for CM/SM (via the BVA/KC official scheme) and MVD.
Cavalier Club Puppy Register
The breeders' application form to place puppies on the Puppy Register contains an optional section for the Health Details of the sire and dam.
What a missed opportunity on the part of the Cavalier Club which could so easily have made the Health Details a requirement for the Puppy Register.
In spite of the serious nature of the Cavalier breed's health problems the national club is still reluctant to take a firm lead in addressing them.
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