IMMUNODEFICIENCY

One of the inherited problems that can affect your puppy is 'Immunodeficiency'. This disease affects the dog's immune system and can cause problems when that system is challenged by an infection or following a vaccination. There is no specific cure for this inherited disease.

WHAT SORT OF PROBLEMS WILL I SEE?
The infection may take many forms, and may include:

• Pneumonia and Upper Airway Infections
• Gastro-enteritis, Vomiting and Diarrhoea
• Dermatitis, dry or weepy infections, or Parasitic infestations
• Generalised Lymph node enlargement (enlarged glands)
• Arthritis, Recurrent fevers of unknown origin.

This may result in a puppy which has retarded growth, and generalised wasting.
The hallmark of this disease appears to be the recurrent nature of the infection(s) and therefore the puppy or dog will be seen to be forever getting one infection after another.

Research suggests that these dogs have a white blood cell problem which prevents them from successfully coping with infections that from time to time occur in normal dogs.

WHEN WILL THIS DISEASE APPEAR?

The age of onset ranges from 3 - 42 months, with most dogs first exhibiting symptoms from 3 - 10 months of age. It may be very difficult for a Veterinarian to pick up this disease in the early stages as it mimics a simple infection. It is the recurrent nature of these infections which alert the well informed Veterinarian to the possibility of 'Immunodeficiency' .

CAN I TEST MY PUPPY?

Specific blood testing is not currently available in Australia and would be very expensive if it was. A screening procedure is currently being worked on, but at this time there is no specific test. IgG and IgM blood tests are proving useful but not necessarily definitive and appear to give some indication that an individual dog may be affected. The results of these tests may be either elevated or reduced below the normal levels of unaffected individuals. Over the course of nearly 10 years several dogs have been treated with drug combinations and many were able to lead relatively normal lives. This has given new hope to those owners which have affected dogs.

The IgG and IgM screening tests and careful pedigree analysis together with a heightened awareness of this condition amongst breeders and the general public alike have led to a significant reduction in the frequency of this disease.

FUTURE PROJECTIONS

It is hoped that over the next few years responsible breeders will continue with their selective breeding programmes and hopefully such efforts will see the eradication of this disease in Australia.

Dr. J.D. Jedwab BVMS., BSc. Hons (Phys.)

January 2003 Copyright Reserved