How Breeders Can Help
We require blood samples collected from 45 Deerhounds with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and 45 DCM-free, healthy Deerhounds to act as a control group for comparison purposes.
In order to participate in the study:
- Your Deerhound needs to have undergone echocardiography (cardiac ultrasound) by a vet who has further cardiology qualifications, such as the RCVS certificate in cardiology, the RCVS Diploma in Veterinary Cardiology, ECVIM or ACVIM Diploma in Cardiology
- To isolate DNA, we require a blood sample. If your Deerhound is seeing a vet and having a blood sample taken for other purposes, please ask the vet to keep 5 mL of surplus blood in EDTA tubes for use in this study. This blood sample can be taken by any vet.
To enrol your dog you can follow these 3 easy steps:
- If your dog has echocardiography results and a blood sample (or will have in the near future), please complete the online consent form and email a copy to deerhoundgenetic@gmail.com
- Complete the online submission form. For this you will need:
- A copy of your dog’s echocardiography report
- Pedigree details, including the name of your dog's dam and sire
- Your dog’s bodyweight (kg), ideally measured on the day of the echocardiogram
- If available, we would also like an ECG and/or a 24 hour Holter recording, although these are not essential. If your dog has undergone these tests, it would be helpful If you had a copy of the results to enter
- Post the blood samples either to Germany (for all EU countries except the UK), to the UK or to the USA. The Scottish Deerhound Club of America will cover the $20 postage fee if the sample can also be used in their DCM study.
If you have any questions about this process, please email Emily Dutton at: deerhoundgenetic@gmail.com or emily@cheshirecardiology.com
Unfortunately, the study cannot cover any postage costs incurred or any fees your vet or cardiologist may charge.
