Health

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Our breeding gives essential importance to this area by trying to produce subjects not affected by the genetic pathologies of the breed.

It is important to say that selecting means to give importance to morphological, character and attitudinal qualities too.

As the race standard states, the lagotto is a rather rustic dog which has not particular problems and which enjoys a good health. But it is not invulnerable.

In this regard, there are some pathologies to which the Lagotto can be subject:

Health
Elbow dysplasia HD

Hip dysplasia consists in a malformation of the hip joint which is developed during the dog growth. The hip is an articulation formed by the upper femur and by the ashtabula; schematically, this articulation, can be compared to a sphere which rotates inside a cup.

In a cub affected by dysplasia, the lack of congruence between the upper femur and the ashtabula cavity and the instability of the upper part of the articulation provokes, because of the dog movement, a gradual wear of the margin of the articulation to which a cartilage degeneration is followed. As time goes on, a gradual and painful and sometimes invalidating chronic arthrosis is developed. In fact, if a sphere moves inside a perfectly adapted cavity which equivalent centers are concentric, the structure will always have an excellent stability. If the sphere and the cavity are not perfectly concentric, an incongruence which makes the structure instable is generated.

What are the causes that produce them?

The hip dysplasia is a pathology caused by several factors as the genetic, environmental and nutritional ones that come into play during its development and, in particular, to determine the gravity. It is necessary to underline the importance of the hereditary factors because the hip dysplasia structural alterations, which are at the basis of the pathological process, are due first of all to a flaw of genetic origin.

Genetic factors: the modality of hereditary transmission is determined by several genes and so it is a polygenic type. The disease can be transmitted from a parent to a descendant even if the parent does not have dysplasia because he is a carrier of the genes of the disease. In fact, dysplasia is not expressed in all genetically affected subjects, but only in a part of them. The genetic heritage of the parents can be considered free from dysplasia not only when they themselves are not affected, but also when all their brothers, sisters, grandparents and uncles were not found to be dysplastic. Therefore, to know if a subject not infested by dysplasia is a breeding which does not transmit this disease in its progeny, it is needed to know its gene pool, so evaluating all the relatives.

Environmental factor: In the expression of the extent of the pathology important environmental factors are involved too: nutrition, type and quantity of physical exercise, possible traumas and possible concomitant diseases. These environmental factors are able to affect the level of the result of the disease, but, in general, not the presence or absence of those malformations which are behind the dysplasia.

Taken from Fondazione Salute Animale (Cremona)

Elbow dysplasia AD

Elbow dysplasia is an alteration of the formation of the dog’s elbow articulation. In severe cases it can lead to lameness and arthritis. The pathology has a mainly polygenic hereditary component, but it is facilitated by environmental factors. Some dog races are more predisposed than others to develop the disease. In the case of the Lagotto Romagnolo, even in the cases in which the hip dysplasia were at a severe level, the elbow dysplasia is generally nearly inexistent (ED 0 or BL).

Juvenile epilepsy (JE)
The benign familial juvenile epilepsy (BFJE) is a Lagotto Romagnolo’s neurological hereditary disease which manifests itself in the sick cubs starting the 5th – 9th week of age and it spontaneously regresses at the 8th- 13th week. The affected dogs show neurological symptoms with generalized ataxy and hypermetria. Until the laboratory tests (EMG, magnetic resonance) abnormalities are not observed.

What is the genetic test for?
The genetic test allows to identify the genotype of the breeding animals to be used for mating to reduce the onset of the mutation responsible for juvenile epilepsy of the Lagotto Romagnolo.

Possible outcomes of the genetic test:
– Wild-Type / Normal, genotype:
N / N The dog has both normal N alleles, therefore it does not develop the disease and transmits the normal allele to 100% of the offspring.
– Heterozygous / Carrier, genotype:
N / MUT The dog has a normal N allele and a mutated MUT allele. It is a carrier, which has a 50% chance of transmitting the changed allele to its offspring.
– Mutated homozygous, genotype:
MUT / MUT The dog has both mutated MUT alleles. The animal has a high probability of developing the disease and transmits the mutated allele to 100% of the offspring.
In the reproductive field The table below illustrates the modalities of transmission of the genetic disease to the offspring, according to the genotype of the reproducers.
It is recommended to perform these tests, through a simple EDTA blood sampling, before planning mating to avoid the birth of affected subjects.

Referenze bibliografiche Seppälä EH, Jokinen TS, Fukata M, Fukata Y, Webster MT, Karlsson EK, Kilpinen SK, Steffen F, Dietschi E, Leeb T, Eklund R, Zhao X, Rilstone JJ, Lindblad-Toh K, Minassian BA, Lohi H. LGI2 truncation causes a remitting focal epilepsy in dogs. PLoS Genet 7: e1002194, 2011.

Furnishing
This pathology is not to be understood as a real disease as the dog does not suffer in any way.
In fact dogs with Furnishing have a different mantle than regular, because they have shorthaired paws and muzzle compared to the rest of the body which does not present the habitual curl.
As in JE, in this case too, the gene which causes this pathology has been discovered and it works in a similar way: normal (F/F or AA/TT), carrier (F/f or AA/tt ) and affected. The latter, being evident, is not tested.
Lysosomal Storage Disease (LSD)

A new neurodegenerative disease has been recently discovered in the Lagotto Romagnolo. The genetic background of the disease has been studied by means of a collaboration between Helsinki University and Bem University, Switzerland. From this study it is presumed a pathogenic mutation to be found. In total 1300 Lagotti have been tested (using samples given for other aims) as a part of the research. The 11% of the tested dogs was carrier of the recessive mutation while only the 1% was affected.
The Lagotto Romagnolo’s Lysosomal Storage Disease is characterized by a lack of coordination in involuntary movements, as if the dog swayed. Moreover some of the sick subjects have had a case of nystagmus ( involuntary movements of the eyes) and behavioral changing, as aggressiveness. The appearance of the first symptoms of the disease is very variable, usually around 23 months, and approximately in a period between 4 months and 4 years. The disease has incomplete penetrance, in fact 3 out of 25 dogs tested with the mutation in homozygosity did not show any clinical symptoms. The most relevant clinical sign is characterized by the presence of ataxia. The degenerative condition is progressive and affected dogs go so far as to be euthanized. At the pathological level, the material that is not stored due to the disease accumulates in neurons and other cells of the brain, causing the latter to die and become dysfunctional. In addition to the storage disorder, progressive brain atrophy (CA) has also been found in the breed. The clinical signs and onset time are similar between the two different disorders and therefore it is not possible to make a diagnosis based on the dog’s symptoms alone. The genetic cause of progressive brain atrophy has not yet been identified, but there is ongoing research that aims to shed some light.

What is the genetic test for?
The genetic test allows to identify the genotype of the breeding animals to be used for mating to reduce the onset of the mutation responsible for Lagotto Romagnolo lysosomal storage disease.

Possible outcomes of the genetic test:
– Wild-Type / Normal, genotype:
N / N The dog has both normal N alleles, therefore it does not develop the disease and transmits the normal allele to 100% of the offspring.
– Heterozygous / Carrier, genotype:
N / MUT The dog has a normal N allele and a mutated MUT allele. It is a carrier, which has a 50% chance of transmitting the changed allele to its offspring.
– Mutated homozygous, genotype:
MUT / MUT The dog has both mutated MUT alleles. The animal has a high probability of developing the disease and transmits the mutated allele to 100% of the offspring.

In the reproductive field The table shows the modalities of transmission of the genetic disease to the offspring, a second one of the breeding genotype.

Referenze bibliografiche Kyöstilä K, Syrjä P, Jagannathan V, Chandrasekar G, Jokinen TS, Seppälä EH, Becker D, Drögemüller M, Dietschi E, Drögemüller C, Lang J, Steffen F, Rohdin C, Jäderlund KH, Lappalainen AK, Hahn K, Wohlsein P, Baumgärtner W, Henke D, Oevermann A, Kere J, Lohi H, Leeb T. A missense change in the ATG4D gene links aberrant autophagy to a neurodegenerative vacuolar storage disease. PLoS Genet 11: e1005169, 2015.

thanks to Edith Van Der Kuiji for the YouTube link which enables us to see a female affected by Cerebellar Ataxia and shows the characteristics of the paghology: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brg5dlV9Ej4

Lagotto alopecia

Seasonal alopecia or flank alopecia is a disease that mostly affects females of this breed. It is a hormonal-based pathology that is triggered precisely by a conflict between the hormones of the bitch. This is triggered by the reduction of the photo period, so when you pass from autumn to winter and the solar lighting falls. Females will shed their hair in the flank areas during this period and then put it back in the spring. There are no problems of a physical nature, only of aesthetics.

Teeth

Another thing of extreme importance for our dear furry friends is the teeth.

The breed standard admits 3 types of teeth:

– Scissor
– Pincer
– Reverse scissor

There are also two types of anomalous closures to be understood as serious defects, so much so that they are the cause of disqualification in beauty exhibitions:

– Prognathism
– Overshot

Contacts

Info

In the development of the puppy it is advisable to administer chondroprotectors, which are useful for the correct development of the cartilage, fibrous and connective tissues of the joint system and for proper bone mineralization. Here a product recommended by us: Consequin Ultra.

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Vernio (PO)

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