Gold-Sierra Team Enya

‘Roxy’

Photo: Bianca Houweling

I can be very short about Roxy: to my great sadness, she’s unfit for breeding. No matter how I think about it or how I would like to see it differently, it doesn’t matter, I simply cannot breed her. As you can see at her health results page, she has many good results, but there’s one problem I can’t ignore: she has a bad back. I think she has a bad back. 

In the meantime I have taken her to an osteopath who has examined her extensively. She said that if she wouldn’t have seen the x-rays and she would compare Roxy with Marley, she would have believed Roxy’s back was better than Marley’s. The vet who has performed her medical screening, didn’t write on her papers that she’s unfit for breeding. As a breeder, you should make your own decision. Remember that when you’re looking for a puppy and the breeders says the parents are ‘fully screened’. Vets won’t burn their fingers on this and will never state that a dog is suitable for breeding or not.

Roxy isn’t troubled in any way and she might just have puppies with perfect spines, because Marley has a very good and healthy spine, but there would only have to be one single puppy who would be troubled with lifelong back problems and i would feel guilty for the rest of my life. Or just imagine that a pregnancy would be the cause of serious back problems for my little sweetheart. It’s not something you should think easy of. Such a shame, because besides her lovely face, she has the most wonderful temperament you could imagine and I would die for a puppy from her and Marley, but my mind is made up; I won’t do it. 

Roxy will be spayed soon, because I don’t want to limit the risk of her getting a uterus infection or mammary cancer. She’s a littel over two years old now, so she has the right age for it. I will not rehome her, there’s absolutely no reason for that and I have to admit I’m simply to weak hearted for that.  

Roxy

Her other health results, although not very relevant anymore of course, can be found below:

• Heart examination with Doppler: no abnormalities found, normal heart
• Hip dysplasia: HD A
• Elbow dysplasia: clear
• Patellar luxation clear 0/0

• DNA tests:
• Degenerative Myelopathiy: clear

• MyDogDNA profile:
• HC-HSF4 Hereditary Cataract: clear
• CMR1 Caninie Multifocal Retinopathy: clear
• HUU Hyperuricosuria: clear
• MH Maligne Hyperthermia: clear
• Cord1-PRA: carrier

• Results health protocol:
• Tail: short, tendency to grow into skin
• Nostrils: normal
• Murmur: none
• Throat anatomy: 
• Elongated soft palate: slightly
• Thick soft palate: no
• Enlarged tonsils: no
• Diameter trachea: 10 mm
• Larynx: normal
• Hemivertebrae: several
• Spondylosis: no
• Calcification invertebral discs: no