MyTrixie143

I am a bit confused. Can someone explain this to me?? Don't you want your doberman not to be a carrier?? Then why do I see so many puppies or Dams and Sires who are vWD carriers??
If I understand it correctly, vWD carriers may show no symptoms of the disease but their offspring may. If this is the case, why would you breed a sire and dam knowing that they are vWD carriers??

Or is it that it is harder to find a doberman that is not a carrier?
And if you do breed two dobes together that are carriers, don't you have a high chance of the pups having symptoms of it?? And how early can you tell if your puppy has it?? Is there a way of testing to see if your puppy has it?

I just want to make sure that my puppy is healthy as possible as I want them to live a healthy and long life. I mean I could live with the fact of my puppy being a carrier but I am not sure how I would feel if his parents were both carriers because wouldn't that mean that the puppies have a high chance of getting vWD??

Thank you to anyone who can help explain it to me, I am trying to learn as much as I can!!

gazoo02

Yes, Carrier to Carrier can result in affected puppies, but vWD affected does not always mean the puppy will be clinically affected. It all boils down to what the breeder is comfortable with. If the dam is a carrier and the stud is a carrier, but everything else lines up perfectly (ie complete health testing, pedigree, temperament), than it is a risk that some breeders are willing to take. I don’t mean to dismiss the importance of vWD, but it is one aspect of the decision in choosing a stud male.

You can DNA test your puppy for vWD through vetgen at any age.

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Tori

alwayshadpets

VWD clear was very important to me. I had a bitch die of an autoimmune disease. (not VWD)
It made me very shy of getting a pup, if it was not VWD clear.
I just did not want to have that to worry about.

LTH

Yes it would be great if you could stick to breeding just clear to clear. Doing this limits your gene pool. Most breeders feel comfortable breeding clear to carriers because you would not get any affected pups only clears & cariers.

velmadobe

First let me say that no good breeder wants to produce VWD affected dogs, however, in the big scheme of things, vwd is a much smaller issue than Cardio., or other killers. The gene pool in Dobermans is already very small and to suddenly only breed for clear vwd Dobermans is unrealistic and would result in a host of other more severe problems. Most breeders are trying to produce clears and carriers, and phase out affecteds all together...........eventually.

That said, MOST vwd affected Dobermans will live a full normal life with no bleeding issues. Being genetically affected is NOT the same as being clinically affected, and most vwd affected Dobermans are NOT clincally affected. VWD in some other breeds IS a death sentence - not so in Dobermans.

A Doberman that is a carrier does not have an issue - VWD is a simple recessive gene, and being a carrier only means that they carry the trait, they personally can NOT suffer from it. In simple math, two carriers bred together will produce 25% clear, 50% carrier, 25% affected - of course in the real world it could be any combination or percentage.

The offspring of the above scenaro should all be tested to find out what their vwd status is - my Velma is from a breeding just like that. She is a carrier per Vetgen.

My Louise was from a carrier to clear breeding - she is clear. I could breed her to clear, carrier, OR affected, and never produce an affected puppy. There are some dogs out there that are affected and who have so much to contibute to the breed - we can't afford to cut them out of the gene pool at this point in time.

VWD seems to be something that the commercial greeders and back yard breeders have keyed in on, and they have fostered this fear of vwd in people. They advertise their dogs as vwd "clear" - and often that is the ONLY health testing that they have even bothered with. I see it again and again in their websites.

I hope this helps.

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Dillon's Barclay Amy CD RN WAC CGC TDInc "Velma"
CH Cha-Rish A Moment Like This RN WAC CGC "Louise"
Fitzmar's Command A Minute "Harvard" (10 pts/both majors)
http://fitzmardobermans.freeservers.com/

alwayshadpets

Breeding two clear dogs is optimal.
Breeding two affected dogs will result in an entire litter of affected dogs. Two carriers will result in 25% clear, 25% affected and 50% carriers.
A clear to an affected will result in 100% carriers.
An affected to a carrier will result in 75% affected and 25% carriers.
Clear to carrier will result in 75% clear and 25% carriers.

Found the above info.
It seems to me no breeding should be done if any affected are produced.

sorthund

I wish we could just breed clear-clear, but it would be impossible, and would probably bring on many other problems in the dogs down the line. The breeders I spoke to (all reputable) while researching for a puppy had NEVER had a dog die from vWD, and they're long time breeders. They feel it is being made into a much bigger issue than it is. They try to breed for better heart health for instance instead, and worry less about the vWD.

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"FAILING TO PREPARE IS LIKE PREPARING TO FAIL"
Anonymous

sorthund

You are so well spoken. Thank you!

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"FAILING TO PREPARE IS LIKE PREPARING TO FAIL"
Anonymous

lanabana

Ok, here is my question, something I have never understood in everything I have read about vWD. How do you know if your dog is genetically affected or clinically affected?

jatango

PLEASE don't quote me here, but I think you can test vWF (von Willebrand's factor) present in a blood sample. Too low and you're clinically affected. I heard this long ago, so wait for someone else to chime in.

Here is an explanation I rather like:
http://www.vetgen.com/canine-ref-vwd.html