Mid summer madness

The mad dog woman is taking a few days off. To recover from the mayhem and madness. To be nice to Mr B, and to bond with BriniZozi, and not be Mrs Shouty-Mummy. I'm leaving the chaos behind. The man pulling the kitchen apart, the other man slopping the concrete everywhere, the crazy mole-man, and the annoying pump man who never does what he's supposed to do. 

All these men, who are supposed to be improving the quality of my life but have actually made the last week almost unbearable. On top of which, Dad has been ill and his washing machine broke down. Now, Dad hasn't bought a new appliance in over 30 years, so we had to get the repair man in. That didn't work, so ended up having to buy a new washing machine - on top of the unsuccessful repair bill. It's not worth thinking about, when you're dealing with old Dad's logic.

Anyway, I let them all get on with it yesterday, and I disappeared to the Shackleford fete. I was photographer and dogsbody. It was a busy but fun day. I bumped into Dawn from Me, Myself and I, Himself and Badger Boo. Badger Boo should have won his group in the dog show - shame on you Judge! I wasn't wearing my welly boots, but if I had been, they would have been adorned with the gorgeous purple welly toppers (left) made by the multi-talented Dawn aka Stone Pit Crafts. Get yours here.

Zozi came second in her group, handled in the ring by Mr B, much to my amusement. They both seemed to enjoy it. All the fun of the fete photos are in the Shackleford village photo gallery.

Today is the Woking Cats Protection fundraising event, supported by Jill at Christmas Pie Crafts, who does a wonderful job fostering kittens. Local people, please pop along and give generously, or even adopt a kitten.

Too tired to cook last night, we celebrated our 21st wedding anniversary a few days early with a meal at our favourite little pub, The Donkey in Elstead. It was delicious, as usual. Thank you ♥

'See you' next week with 'Tails from the Forest' ☀ but in the meantime, why not read my new post 'Wild West Surrey' at Surrey Life magazine.

PS. On the Boxer heart health story, I have had several responses and lots of new information. I will be compiling this and reporting back next week.

Boxer heart health : round 3

By email
Monday 10th June

'Dear Mr ,

Apologies for the very long email trail attached, by way of the history of my concerns.

I am trying to find the right person or group of people to initiate a serious discussion about the prevalence of aortic stenosis in Boxers.

I am not satisfied with the response of the Boxer Breed Council vet advisor, who admits that he is neither a cardiologist nor a geneticist. I have not had a response from the KC health breed survey. Indeed, the links on the KC website to the breed health survey do not open. I have not had a response from the breeder of my puppy.

In short, everyone seems to be saying 'bad luck'.

This is not acceptable. This is not bad luck. This is bad breeding. 

Clearly, the gene for AS is prevalent in the Boxer gene pool. It may even be more prevalent in the south of England, but there is no data to establish this. The gene for AS does not follow Mendelian inheritance, thus, more information needs to be collected on animals affected with, or who have died from AS, as the existing database is woefully incomplete.

I am not a breeder, nor do I show my Boxers. I am lover of the Boxer breed. Only when breeders are compelled to provide information on the incidence of AS in litters, and when the KC collects comprehensive data from owners of AS-affected Boxers and vets who see affected dogs in practice, will the AS gene be bred out of the breed.

To watch a young dog die of AS is heart-breaking. A Boxer unable to run and jump and box and play is pitiful.

I have not included the cardiology report and pedigree here, due to the number of recipients. Please let me know if this would be of any use to you.

I look forward to your response.'

Boxer heart health 1

Boxer heart health 2

Themba's story

Who gives a damn anyway? Update on Boxer heart health

Right. Well. I did get a response from the Boxer Breed Council. But it's pretty much as I expected. The Kennel Club can't force breeders to get Boxers checked for heart defects like aortic stenosis. Some breeders do. And some breeders lie. Some hope it won't happen to them.

And none of that helps us make a decision about which adorable puppy to buy. So you take your chances and hope for the best.

I've taken the decision to go public with the information I have on the pedigrees of my two Boxers (one deceased from aortic stenosis), in the hope that other people will be able to avoid these breeders and pedigrees when choosing a Boxer puppy in the south of England (Surrey/Sussex/Hampshire). 

My approach is not endorsed by the Kennel Club or the the Boxer Breed Council. I have not had a response from the breeder of my 6mo puppy, Zozi. I did get a response from the breeder of the dog (Themba) now deceased, who offered to take the dog back and destroy him. Themba lived a short but happy life with us.

I would welcome feedback from other Boxer dog owners about their experiences with aortic stenosis, particularly in Boxers with the same pedigree as either of my two. Please help to collect data on the incidence of aortic stenosis in Boxer dogs, because only by collecting this information, can we be sure that aortic stenosis is bred out of the Boxer gene pool.

Tyegarth Tololo (Themba b. s29/06/2007 d. 01/09/2012)

WidleyLodge The Hobbitt (Zozi the puppy b. 21/11/2012

You can read Themba's story here.

Boxer heart health

This is the email I have sent to the Boxer Breed Council today. The day we found out that Zozi has moderate aortic stenosis (AS), a congenital heart pathology, caused by a faulty gene in her pedigree. 

"I have just had my 6mo Boxer puppy diagnosed with moderate aortic stenosis. This is particularly distressing as I lost a 5yo dog last year to the same condition.

I checked her pedigree for AS, but as you know the data from heart checks is of little use. A cardiologist checked both parents, who were clear of murmur.

Obviously, the genetic link for AS is present in her pedigree but until comprehensive data are collected on deaths from AS in pedigree Boxers, we will continue to receive devastating news like this.

What is the Breed Council doing about this? There is a public awareness of Boxer heart health, and it is damaging the breed. The momentum to reduce AS in Boxers seems to have stalled.

I intend to publish my own research and conclusions on my blog in order to start an online forum, and would welcome your comments."

You can read Themba's story here.