Health Latest News

LPN Research Update August 2011

The University of Minnesota has recently provided an update to the International Leonberger Union about recent advances in their research into Leonberger Polyneuropathy. The teams in Minnesota and Bern, Switzerland, have made some progress towards identifying a genetic marker for late onset polyneuropathy, but final identification of this mutation(s) remains illusive. They have recently launched a further full scale analysis of DNA gathered from 48 Leos showing strong indications of polyneuropathy in spite of having been tested clear for the early onset LPN1 form of the illness. It is hoped that this group will prove to be the most promising test group to find the mutations for further forms of the disease. Also presented were the findings following one year of LPN1 testing, with numbers of clears, carriers and affecteds summarised. Unfortunately, it now appears that perhaps as many as 50% of D/N carrier cases will themselves show symptoms of polyneuropathy by mid-life, regardless of the fact that they carry only one copy of the mutation. The full report may be found in the polyneuropathy (LPN) section on the menu on the left, or by clicking here.

ILU Reproduction Survey report. September 2011

At the meeting of the International Leonberger Union in September 2009, there was a discussion about what appeared to be a high number of bitches failing to conceive following mating. It was decided to undertake a survey to learn more. In March 2010 the survey was launched. It was posted on the Union website in a "clickable" electronic format in 4 languages, as well as being separately circulated to owners via national Leonberger clubs. In September 2010, an interim report was briefly presented at the Union meeting in Leonberg. The survey was closed in March 2011, having been "live" for 12 months. The full report was recently presented at the meeting in Leonberg on Saturday the 24th of September 2011. You can find the full report in the Reproduction section on the menu to the left, or go directly to it by clicking here.

Osteosarcoma Research Opportunity

The leading cause of death in all dogs is probably cancer and among the most aggressive is a form of bone cancer called osteosarcoma. The Leonberger Club of Great Britain has been invited to participate in a research collaboration between the Animal Health Trust and the Broad Institute in Massachusetts.
Through the use of simple cheek swabs, enough genetic material can be gathered to help this study to identify patterns of inheritance leading to a potential genetic marker test for predisposition to this awful illness. To find out more about this research collaboration and how you can help, please go to the full article by clicking here.

LCGB LONG TERM HEALTH STUDY - Seeking Volunteers!

The LCGB invites our members to volunteer to be a part of an ambitious project aimed at learning about the health and longevity of our beloved breed. If you have a young Leonberger, between the ages of 8 weeks and four years of age, and would be willing to be contacted by telephone once a year to update us on the health of your companion, please get in touch with a member of the Health Subcommittee for more details. All information will be kept in complete confidence. No details of any individual dog's condition will be published, nor will the names of participating owners.  If you would like to help us learn more about the current health of our precious Leonbergers, please consider joining this important effort. All it takes is a chat on the phone each year. Click here for more details on how to get involved.