Pre-Breeding Health Examination:
Eyes . . . Checked for abnormalities or discharge as any abnormality could be a sign of a problem -- PRA screening if the dog isn't already cleared by parentage. Click here to read more!
Ears . . . Checked for redness/infection, or mites.
Mouth & throat . . . Checked for gum colour, teeth health, and swallow reflex.
Skin & coat condition . . . Checked for any skin abnormalities like redness/irritation, and for a healthy shiny coat.
Heart . . . Checked for irregular heartbeat patterns as this is the first sign of a heart problem -- heart will be listened to by a stethoscope and monitored on an ECG machine. Our dogs to read more! Click Here hearts are checked thoroughly every time, prior to breeding.
Lungs . . . Checked for rhythmic breaths and clarity of lungs -- the lung is also one of the first indicators of heart health. Rhythmic breaths under 40 breaths per minute mean the heart is beating normally and blood flow is good. Click Here to read more!
Stomach palpitation . . . Checked for any signs of bloating, lumps, abnormalities or discomfort.
Flexion of joints . . . Checked for fluid movement of joints for any sign of discomfort or tension in the hips or slipping of the patellas/knees. Patellas must be a grade 0 (meaning no slipping and normal). Hip issues are rarely seen in the Cavalier and Miniature Poodle, so our main focus is on the Patellas which are very common in the smaller breeds. Click Here to read more!
Reflexes and equilibrium . . . Checked balance by turning the dog on it's back to make sure the dog can roll upright again, and neurological reflexes.
Temperature . . . Checked for normal body temperature as too high or too low can indicate a number of problems.
Weight . . . Checked for healthy weight as a dog who is overweight can have stressed vital organs, ligaments and joints, and an underweight or overweight dog can indicate a number of problems.
Blood panel . . . If a dog's temperature, weight, stomach palpitation, reflexes or equilibrium were to show any cause for concern, we would get a blood panel test which checks the function of all vital organs, such as the liver, kidneys, spleen, etc. We also do a blood panel at least once per year in a general wellness exam even if no cause for concern is seen in their pre-breeding examination. Click Here to see what that entails!
Ovulation test . . . Females are checked to see where they are in their cycle, and that everything looks normal under the microscope.
Prostate exam . . . Males are checked for any abnormalities.
Why does our vet check even the little stuff like the eyes, ears, and mouth in a pre-breeding health examination?
Everything, even the little things can add up, and the overall health of the dog is just as important as the big stuff!
Canine Health Check . . . All of our breeding dogs are Genetic Health Tested through Canine Health Check (by Pawprint Genetics) for over 254 diseases and traits OR they are Cleared by Parentage which means that the parents of the said dog were screened and cleared of genetic disease and testing the future generation would be redundant and pointless because the clear/healthy parents can't pass on anything else besides clear and healthy genes.
Wisdom Panel . . . Many our breeding dogs are ALSO Genetic Health Tested through Wisdom Panel for cross-reference/confirmation as well as for testing their heterozygosity which is imperative for the Cavapoo in particular to ensure that a breeding dog has good genetic diversity.