In general, the Havanese is a healthy, happy breed but we do have several potential health problems of which you should be aware.
Heritable Cataracts
In terms of frequency, it seems that heritable cataracts would be the
most frequent health problem seen in Havanese. Responsible breeders and
owners alike will have their dogs' eyes examined by a veterinary opthalmologist
annually to look for any abnormalities. This exam should then be registered
with CERF,
the Purdue based organziation who maintains a database of all results.
The exam itself is much like a visit for you and I to the opthalmologist.
The eyes are dilated and then are examined to look for abnormalities.
It only takes a few minutes, costs are minimal and the benefits are enormous.
As a breeder, the annual CERF exam is the only way to know the current
status of your dogs' eyes. As a pet owner, the annual CERF exam allows
early intervention via surgery to correct the cataract while still operable
and to provide the best outcome. When researching the parents of a litter,
you MUST do your part to verify that the parents are indeed CERFed and
that the date of the exam is within the last 12 months. Do NOT ever take
someone's word that a CERF test is current. Check for yourself. To see
copies of what a CERF certificate looks like, click here. To reach the
CERF website to do your own research, click
here. To see a completed
CERF exam form or a CERF
certificate, click on the appropriate text link.
Deafness
Unilateral and bilateral deafness has been reported in the Havanese breed.
Although deafness does not appear as frequently as cataracts, it is certainly
easier to diagnose and control through careful breeding practices. A one
time test known as a BAER (brainstem auditory evoked response) test is
used to confirm the presence of normal hearing or to diagnose unilateral
or bilateral deafness. The test is relatively painless as electrodes are
placed on the scalp of the dog. Then foam earplugs are placed in each
ear to emit a tone. The electrodes measure the brain's response to that
tone and if the dog had normal, bilateral hearing a nice pattern of waves
will be shown on the screen. Click
here to see a copy of an actual BAER test.
Again, the BAER test is not that expensive and is painless for the dog. Holding them still for the few minutes it takes to perform the test is usually the greatest challenge. A unilaterally deaf Havanese can still make an excellent pet as they can compensate almost completely for their lack of hearing in one ear. Although we would not personally breed a Havanese that is unilaterally deaf, some breeders feel comfortable with that level of risk and do breed them. Of course, the biggest risk takers of all are those breeders who have no idea of the hearing status of the dogs they are breeding since they refuse to BAER test. If you would like to locate a BAER testing site near you, check out the information provided by Dr. George Strain at LSU.
Patellar Luxation
As in many toy breeds, the Havanese can have a problem with their patellas
(kneecaps to us humans!) "slipping" out of the trough in the
bone where nature intended them to slide. Puppies should be specifically
examined by a vet for this problem prior to being placed in their new
homes. After the age of 1 year, your vet can also check the patellas and
you can submit the test result to OFA (the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals)
for certification. OFA certifies the patellas as "normal" or
"abnormal" and also assigns severity grades to the abnormal
. Depending upon your dog's symptoms and the severity of the patellar
luxation problem, surgery may be required. The OFA website has much
more information available on patellar luxation.
Hip Dysplasia
Havanese can also occasionally have a problem with hip dysplasia. Although
not a widespread issue, it is still recommended that all dogs have hip
x-rays done prior to breeding. After the age of 2 years, OFA will grade
these x-rays and will issue an OFA certificate to those who pass. Passing
grades include Excellent, Good and Fair ratings. OFA also assigns a Borderline
rating as well as Dysplastic (abnormal) ratings of Mild, Moderate and
Severe. If a breeder plans to breed a dog prior to the age of 2 years,
it is recommended that a prelim hip x-ray be done and evaluated. Again,
the OFA website is a wealth of information
regarding hip dysplasia. Although the Havanese breed has several well known and frequently used sires who have a hip rating of fair, we see little focus from breeders to improve hip health. The average hip rating in our breed is "good" and OFA recommendations for improving hip health within a breed involve breeding only dogs whose hip rating is at or above the average rating for the breed. They also recommend looking at the number of fair ratings within both the depth and breadth of your pedigree before choosing to breed a dog. We're committed to continual improvement of hip health here at Tejano Havanese, even though we've not ever produced a dysplastic dog. We simply intend to keep it that way if at all possible by being diligent in this area and "bucking the trend" in our breed.
Legg-Calve-Perthes
Another skeletal abnormality seen occasionally in Havanese is Legg-Calve-Perthes
(LCP). The same x-rays used to evaluate hips can also be used to evaluate
the dog for LCP. If a breeder first has the hips evaluated by OFA, they
can then use that OFA number to have the x-ray evaluated for LCP. In my
opinion, this is an easy opportunity for breeders to screen their dogs
for yet one more potential health issue.
Misc. Skin Problems
Skin and coat issues tend to be more of a cosmetic nuisance than a true
health issue, but can run the gamut from poor coat quality and dandruff
to sebaceous adenitis (SA), which is basically an inflamation of the sebaceous
glands. Relatively little is known about SA, even in breeds who have been
studying SA for years. In some dogs, SA is more of a cosmetic issue while
in others it may present along with additional disorders (such as Cushings
Disease) which can complicate the situation. While a skin punch biopsy
is the "gold standard" in confirming SA, I don't see much value
in it as a screening tool to rule out SA. Breeders who claim a dog to
be free of SA on the basis of a one time biopsy are only fooling themselves
I'm afraid.
Cardiac
Heart murmurs are reported within our breed and we make it our practice here to have OFA Cardiac Exams performed on our dogs. We do these every two years or more frequently for our older dogs. In general, I find that owners whose Havanese do indeed have cardiac issues do not report that publicly on OFA so I feel these problems are understated in our breed. Hopefully at some point our parent club will include cardiac testing on the list of tests required to receive a CHIC number or health related award from HCA.
Liver
During my time as HCA president, an article was published stating Havanese was one of the breeds who had a very high incidence of liver issues. We were surprised as that was not something borne out by our club's health survey, the health foundation's ongoing research or by personal experience by most breeders. In looking at the data used for the article, it was found that the author used data only submitted through veterinary school clinics, which often require a referral (and a serious situation) in order to be seen there. The resulting numbers that came in for Havanese represented a very small population of the breed...so small that it was statistically meaningless. Nevertheless, you will read on some websites that all Havansese should have an SA320 blood test (paired bile acids) as a way to screen out liver disease prior to breeding. This claim is simply not borne out with facts. Antech labs (who run the SA320) states in their documentation that both the sensitivity and specificity for this test is low in both areas and that there are many factors which can influence test results. In addition, as part of the health foundation's research, SA320s were run on over a hundred Havanese and did not seem to relate at all to liver disease in Havansese who were otherwise asymptomatic. The same Havanese could have the SA320 test run several times within a week or two and would have vastly different results from the labwork. Some results would be in the normal range, others would be abnormal. If this test were used for routine screening in our breed, it appears that some Havanese who do not have liver disease would be labelled wrongly as having a problem and other Havanese might be seen as being normal when in fact that is not the case. What problems that could cause for breeders who are simply trying to do the "right" thing. Again, at this time I do not perform this test nor do I recommend it as a screening tool. Of course, if your Havanese is small for its age or if it exhibits other signs of liver abnormality you should check first with your vet to see if this is part of further testing that may be needed.
Other Less Frequent Health Problems
All of the following have been reported but are less frequent than the
issues I have mentioned above. Although they are less frequently reported,
their severity can have a much greater impact on the health and quality
of life for the dog. These problems include:
- Cushings Disease
- Thyroid Problems
- Diabetes
- Kidney Dysplasia
Chondrodysplasia
Also known as CD, this is basically a form of dwarfism in which the growth
plates in the legs close prematurely causing short, bowed and/or asymmetric
forelegs in the Havanese. In and of itself, CD is NOT a disease, but rather
a skeletal abnormality. It is theorized however that a cluster of problems may sometimes accompany CD . Research
into this is in the very early stages, but you can learn
more at the HEART website which serves as the health foundation for
the Havanese breed.
A "Healthy" Breed???
I suppose by now, that is what you are wondering as Havanese are often
referred to as a relatively healthy breed. Be assured that most Havs live
a long, happy life ranging up to 15 years of age. As a club, the HCA is
very proactive in our stance towards limiting the proliferation of health
issues within our breed. You can help us in this effort by becoming an
informed consumer and insisting on only purchasing your Havanese puppy
from a breeder who health tests. Your market pressure will be much more
persuasive than any program implemented by the HCA. Please lend us your
support!
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