Border Collie Health

This section of the page is still under construction - more information to follow.

CEA - Collie eye anomally

Trapped Neutrophil Syndrome - (TNS) - is an immune problem in Border Collies. Symptoms can be variable which has made it difficult to recognise as a genetic problem. A common symptom is recurrent infections in young pups, but some develop abnormal faces a few weeks after birth while others appear normal until vaccination when they have a bad reaction and never recover, while others live to several years of age with only occasional problems. Many cases of 'fading puppy syndrome' have turned out to be unrecognised cases of TNS. TNS is a genetic disease with recessive inheritance (like CL) which means that to have an affected puppy, both parents must be carriers (ie one defective and one normal copy of the gene but showing no adverse effects) and about one quarter of such litters will be affected. Information with thanks from Border Collie Club of Great Britain.

Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis - (CL) Neuronal Ceroid lipofuscinosis is a type of lysosomal storage disorder that results in accumulation of lysosomal storage bodies in the cells of many tissues of the affected animal. This leads to progressive neurodegeneration (degeneration of brain and eye cells) and results in severe neurological impairment and early death. Affected dogs appear normal at birth, but begin to exhibit symptoms early in life – around 1- 2 years of age. The age of onset and severity of the disease can vary greatly among individuals. The symptoms include progressive motor decline with seizures and loss of coordinated muscle movements, cognitive decline and abnormal behavior. Visual impairment may occur. Due to the severity of the disease, affected Border Collies rarely survive beyond 26-28 months. There is no treatment or cure at this time. Information courtesy of Optigen.

Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) Since the name is just what it implies, it can be a progressive disease, that may not appear until later in life. This is a completely different and unrelated disease to CEA. As the name indicates, PRA is a progressive disease which refers to retinal degeneration. It can result in complete blindness in one or both eyes. However, Collies seem to be blessed with the fact that PRA seems to have an early onset. Fortunately, this is an eye disease that has largely been eradicated thanks to breeders efforts of test breeding potential carriers. Since PRA is a simple recessive gene, it is much easier to test for than CEA. Also, thanks to funding of certain grants by the Collie Health Foundation, research is being done to locate the genetic markers for this disease, which will further reduce the occurrence. Currently there is no genetic test for PRA, but rumor is that researchers are very close to finding a DNA marker.

PRA has proven to be a simple recessive in all the breeds studied. Again, this means that even though the condition is not present at birth, both parents must be carriers. If one parent has PRA, half the puppies may develop PRA, but all will be carriers for the disease. Early signs of the problem may be noticed by the owner as "night blindness." The dog has trouble seeing in dim light and will bump things. An expert may detect early signs in the eye at six months or younger. Information from colliehealth.org

BAER Hearing tests.