CVI or Wobblers Syndrome in Dogs

[Jacque]

Is there a safe way to determine if an animal suffers from CVI. Or is prone to CVI. Is there a DNA or gene that determines if an animal is affected. Does this run in families or is it an isolated case?

[Prin]

Wobbler's is genetic and there might be a test for the marker but I'm not sure... Some breeds, like dobermans are more prone...

Check out this site: http://www.healthgene.com/canine/
It's a place that does DNA testing for dogs.

[mastifflover]

Wobblers is much more prevalent in large and giant breeds and very debilitating and expensive and a very long period to treat and come back from. I would contact the University of Guelph if you need to do these tests or they are a great source of information on these types of diseases.A friends Mastiff had Wobblers and almost a year later is finally himself, luckily. You will find some good info in the mastiff health section at yahoo.com

[Jacque]

Thanks for the info guys. I'll check them both out.

Jacque

[Prin]

Really, mastifflover? It's treatable? When my dobie had it, we didn't have any options... :sad:

[MaryAndDobes]

Originally Posted by Prin

Really, mastifflover? It's treatable? When my dobie had it, we didn't have any options... :sad:

There are some options like gold bead implants. Do a search on Dr. Durke or gold bead implants along with CVI. I think they are doing the implants at OVC now. Nevertheless, OVC did have a CVI / Wobbler's study going on - Dr. DaCosta was the contact. Not sure if it is continuing still. Five of my Dobermans were enrolled and were, I think, the first "normal" dogs to have MRIs of their spines and necks.

[Prin]

Ok, so it's fairly recent. My dobie died in 1998...

[MaryAndDobes]

Originally Posted by Prin

Ok, so it's fairly recent. My dobie died in 1998...

My first Doberman, who was born in 1981, had CVI / Wobbler's. Even back then, there was at least one option. They could have done surgery to fuse his neck. It was an option, but I didn't go with it. Fusing the neck at the area where the weakness is makes that area stronger but in turn makes other areas weaker, and of course, it would limit range of motion in the neck. Some are comfortable with that choice. I was not. But it was an option.

I'm not sure how new the gold bead implants and neck wraps are - I've known of them for several years, and known people who were very pleased with the procedure as it gave their Dobermans several more years of comfort and a relatively normal life.

[Jacque]

Hmmm. MRI for dogs. Now that would give me knowledge of what my Dobes were in relation to CVI. Whether they were, should I say, clear or doubtful before any clinical signs appeared. This would certainly help in the Breeding direction as some of our Dobes are not affected until they are eight or nine years of age and have already been bred. Too late to take them out of the breeding program. They have already been used. I guess what I was looking for was a way of telling an animal's susceptibility or not prior to breeding. That way at least, you are not using suspect animals and perhaps reproducing CVI in more animals.

[Prin]

My dobie only showed symptoms when he was 12. He just barely stopped picking up his feet. Like as he was walking, the tips of his toes would scrape the ground. He died at 13.. I have to say though, of all the things to get, this one wasn't the worst. I mean, he was losing feeling, but he wasn't in pain.:love:

[mastifflover]

Yes they can treat it now. I am trying to find a really good article I read a while ago. This is one that talks a bit about a dog who had it and the surgery. From what I understand it is a risky surgery as to success rates and recovery is long and can be painful at the beginning. I will keep searching for it because it was really informative when I find it I will post it for all to read. I will put the link in as well.
http://mastiffonline.com/modules.php...article&sid=24

[Prin]

But a 12 year old dobie would not be an ideal candidate for a painful surgery with a long recovery time, I guess... I mean when we got him, dobies were still only expected to live to 8 or 9 at the most... (I'm just trying to figure out why we weren't given any options... )

[MaryAndDobes]

Originally Posted by Jacque

Hmmm. MRI for dogs. Now that would give me knowledge of what my Dobes were in relation to CVI. Whether they were, should I say, clear or doubtful before any clinical signs appeared. This would certainly help in the Breeding direction

Actually, no. I don't think it was going to end up helping. As I said, I think my five were the first "normal" five that they MRI'd, and on MRI the "normal" dogs looked extremely similar to the affected dogs. That really surprised the neurologist, and we spent some time talking about the fact that probably all five of my "normal" dogs were not likely to go on to develop CVI. I mean, it *could* happen, but the possibility of it happening to hit all five seems kind of remote.

My personal opinion is that what they would probably find from the study is that MRI is not a good diagnostic tool after all. However, I don't know if anything has been published from this particular study yet.

In short, the MRIs didn't really tell me anything. They were done 3 years ago now. All five are still "normal".

[Jacque]

I thought we were on to something there, the MRI. Sounds like the old x-ray or perhaps there is some dye traced thru the neck. Not exactly safe in humans. I don't know about dogs and no doubt, very expensive. But still. I am ever hopeful of someone knowing more about the testing facilities. Wobblers in Dobes is not going to go away totally unless we have something to go by for our breeding programs. Perhaps DNA in the future will tell us another story.

[Prin]

The dye isn't safe in humans? I had the dye injected into me for a head ct... I got to see my brain. There's a high incidence of allergies to the dye, but they're ready for that. Otherwise, I haven't heard anything terrible about it.