FAQs of Health Testing:
Why all Sloughi owners should consider health testing their dogs
Compared to many other breeds, the Sloughi is a robust and healthy breed with very few prevalent genetic diseases. While this is fantastic, no one in the breed should take it for granted and the entire breed community should stay vigilant about identifying and minimizing any health issues in the breed.
A simple way for everyone to contribute to this goal of keeping the breed as healthy as possible is for all Sloughi owners to consider doing some sort of health testing on their Sloughis and to share any results publicly. There are established, required health tests that a breeder must complete before breeding a Sloughi. However, anyone can (and should) consider health testing their Sloughi, even if it won't be bred.
To explain a bit more, we've written an FAQs of Health Testing meant for Sloughi owners who aren’t breeders. If you have questions that aren’t addressed below, consider asking your breeder or feel free to reach out to us about it at any time.
Q: Why should I do health testing if I don’t plan to breed? Isn’t taking my dog to the vet enough?
A: Health testing is usually optional for dogs who won’t be bred, though it can depend on the breeder and their contract. One reason you might consider health testing is that it takes a more in-depth look at certain areas of your dog’s health and may catch potential health problems earlier than if you only rely on your annual vet visit. Exams such as the OFA eye and heart exams can only be done by specialists in those fields. As specialists, they will have more experience detecting specific health issues and determining how a person should proceed if something is detected.
Health testing is also a great way to support your breeder. They have put so much effort into making sure your puppy has the best chance of being healthy (by researching health issues in different pedigrees and health testing their dogs before breeding). A simple way to support them is to have a few health tests done on your dog. This way, your breeder will either have confirmation that they were successful in breeding healthy dogs or have the information available to them for future litters if any health issues do show up.
Q: Where do I even begin to know what health testing I should do?
A: A good starting place is the recommended tests for Sloughis on OFA’s website. The American Sloughi Association’s Code of Ethics informed this list of recommended testing. You will see on OFA’s website that some tests are listed as optional for Sloughis. These are things the breed community wants to be aware of and keep an eye on, but that aren’t a widespread issue at this time. In addition to considering whether to do these optional tests, it is always a good idea to talk to your breeder for their opinion. There may be specific tests (outside of OFA’s list) they recommend or health issues they want to be aware of in their bloodlines.
Q: I’ve decided what tests I want to have done, but how do I go about finding someone to do them?
A: That depends on the test. For simple genetic tests (such as PRA), there are many labs that can do them. These require either a blood sample or a buccal swab be sent to the lab of your choice. If you plan to list the results on OFA’s website, first make sure they are a company that OFA recognizes for results. The individual lab may be able to tell you if their results are recognized by OFA, but if they aren’t able to confirm then you can contact OFA directly to ask.
For many tests, like OFA cardiac and CAER eye tests, you can go to a specialist (first make sure they are certified to perform that specific test) or find a local OFA health clinic that offers the test. The health clinic option is consistently much cheaper. To find health clinics near you, OFA has a calendar they keep updated with information on where, when, and what clinics are available. On this calendar you can see exactly what tests are offered at each clinic and many listings will include prices. Make sure to note if walk-ins are allowed or if you must sign up in advance. You should also be aware that some tests have a recommended or even required minimum age for a dog to be tested. As always, if you have any questions about how or where to get a specific test done, your breeder should be able and happy to help you.
Q: Why should I make my dog’s health test results public? Isn’t it good enough if my breeder and I know the results?
A: Even if your dog isn’t going to be bred, we strongly encourage you to publicly share all results from any health testing you have done (even results that may not be favorable). We say this because it is extremely important for the entire breed community to have as much information as possible about different bloodlines and their health. This is particularly important for a rare breed such as the Sloughi. With so few individual dogs in the US and even fewer litters being born, every decision any breeder makes can and likely will have a huge impact on the future of the breed in the US.
Some OFA test results are automatically made public, including all thyroid tests and all passing hips. When it is optional to have results listed publicly, as a courtesy we suggest making sure your breeder is comfortable having those results public before submitting them to the OFA public database. However, all reputable breeders should want this information available for everyone to see and use in future breeding decisions.
Q: I see that some OFA tests expire. Does this mean I have to test my dog more than once?
A: Some tests do expire. These are tests or exams that look for the signs of diseases or health issues, but that can’t test for a specific gene. For that reason, these test results may change over the course of a dog’s life. It is entirely up to you if you choose to do a test again once it has expired. However, we will reiterate that the more information available to the breed community, the better possibility of keeping the breed as healthy as possible.
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Why all Sloughi owners should consider health testing their dogs
Compared to many other breeds, the Sloughi is a robust and healthy breed with very few prevalent genetic diseases. While this is fantastic, no one in the breed should take it for granted and the entire breed community should stay vigilant about identifying and minimizing any health issues in the breed.
A simple way for everyone to contribute to this goal of keeping the breed as healthy as possible is for all Sloughi owners to consider doing some sort of health testing on their Sloughis and to share any results publicly. There are established, required health tests that a breeder must complete before breeding a Sloughi. However, anyone can (and should) consider health testing their Sloughi, even if it won't be bred.
To explain a bit more, we've written an FAQs of Health Testing meant for Sloughi owners who aren’t breeders. If you have questions that aren’t addressed below, consider asking your breeder or feel free to reach out to us about it at any time.
Q: Why should I do health testing if I don’t plan to breed? Isn’t taking my dog to the vet enough?
A: Health testing is usually optional for dogs who won’t be bred, though it can depend on the breeder and their contract. One reason you might consider health testing is that it takes a more in-depth look at certain areas of your dog’s health and may catch potential health problems earlier than if you only rely on your annual vet visit. Exams such as the OFA eye and heart exams can only be done by specialists in those fields. As specialists, they will have more experience detecting specific health issues and determining how a person should proceed if something is detected.
Health testing is also a great way to support your breeder. They have put so much effort into making sure your puppy has the best chance of being healthy (by researching health issues in different pedigrees and health testing their dogs before breeding). A simple way to support them is to have a few health tests done on your dog. This way, your breeder will either have confirmation that they were successful in breeding healthy dogs or have the information available to them for future litters if any health issues do show up.
Q: Where do I even begin to know what health testing I should do?
A: A good starting place is the recommended tests for Sloughis on OFA’s website. The American Sloughi Association’s Code of Ethics informed this list of recommended testing. You will see on OFA’s website that some tests are listed as optional for Sloughis. These are things the breed community wants to be aware of and keep an eye on, but that aren’t a widespread issue at this time. In addition to considering whether to do these optional tests, it is always a good idea to talk to your breeder for their opinion. There may be specific tests (outside of OFA’s list) they recommend or health issues they want to be aware of in their bloodlines.
Q: I’ve decided what tests I want to have done, but how do I go about finding someone to do them?
A: That depends on the test. For simple genetic tests (such as PRA), there are many labs that can do them. These require either a blood sample or a buccal swab be sent to the lab of your choice. If you plan to list the results on OFA’s website, first make sure they are a company that OFA recognizes for results. The individual lab may be able to tell you if their results are recognized by OFA, but if they aren’t able to confirm then you can contact OFA directly to ask.
For many tests, like OFA cardiac and CAER eye tests, you can go to a specialist (first make sure they are certified to perform that specific test) or find a local OFA health clinic that offers the test. The health clinic option is consistently much cheaper. To find health clinics near you, OFA has a calendar they keep updated with information on where, when, and what clinics are available. On this calendar you can see exactly what tests are offered at each clinic and many listings will include prices. Make sure to note if walk-ins are allowed or if you must sign up in advance. You should also be aware that some tests have a recommended or even required minimum age for a dog to be tested. As always, if you have any questions about how or where to get a specific test done, your breeder should be able and happy to help you.
Q: Why should I make my dog’s health test results public? Isn’t it good enough if my breeder and I know the results?
A: Even if your dog isn’t going to be bred, we strongly encourage you to publicly share all results from any health testing you have done (even results that may not be favorable). We say this because it is extremely important for the entire breed community to have as much information as possible about different bloodlines and their health. This is particularly important for a rare breed such as the Sloughi. With so few individual dogs in the US and even fewer litters being born, every decision any breeder makes can and likely will have a huge impact on the future of the breed in the US.
Some OFA test results are automatically made public, including all thyroid tests and all passing hips. When it is optional to have results listed publicly, as a courtesy we suggest making sure your breeder is comfortable having those results public before submitting them to the OFA public database. However, all reputable breeders should want this information available for everyone to see and use in future breeding decisions.
Q: I see that some OFA tests expire. Does this mean I have to test my dog more than once?
A: Some tests do expire. These are tests or exams that look for the signs of diseases or health issues, but that can’t test for a specific gene. For that reason, these test results may change over the course of a dog’s life. It is entirely up to you if you choose to do a test again once it has expired. However, we will reiterate that the more information available to the breed community, the better possibility of keeping the breed as healthy as possible.
Back to Health Page