Sickness and Tests

As with any dog ​​breed, the Australian Labradoodle also has various diseases, but luckily we can now test for many genetic / hereditary diseases. Actually the hereditary things are very simple you have free dogs (don't have the disease gene). Carriers (have a disease gene but can only pass it on but do not get sick themselves). And you have sufferers, these have the gene double and will therefore also have the get symptoms of the disease.

If you know whether an animal carries the gene, you can breed responsibly:

Free x free	= 100% free
Free x carrier	= 50% free + 50% carrier
Carrier x carrier	= 25% free 50% carrier 25% sufferers so get sick

Most things can be found through DNA research and you can act well on it except Addison.
I will list all common hereditary defects as far as we know below.

HD = Hip Dysplasia.
This is an abnormality of the hips, it may be because the development has not been complete, or cartilage that is gone or poorly developed, wrong wear of the bones, etc. Our dogs are tested for this in the USA This is because the board of directors in NL has not recognized our breed and we do want to have the dogs tested correctly. In America, all Australian labradoodles are tested at the ofa, you can also view these test results online.
In NL they work with HD ABC -DE in USA with Excellent/ Good/ Fair/ Borderline/ mild HD/ HD and heavy HD we only breed with dogs Excellent and Good and very occasionally with a Fair (this is only if we really believe to be that this dog also has a lot of good input with the lines of the ALD). Excellent in USA equals HD-A+ in NL . Good in USA is HD-A- in NL and Good in USA stands for HD-B+ in NL. If you see that there are quite a lot breeds in which it is even allowed to breed with C hips in the Netherlands, you immediately see that the requirements are super strict with us. After all, the breeder does not want to sell you a sick dog or run a high risk that the dog will get something. The build-up of HD is 30% breeding related, 30% food related and 40% exercise related. So remember that you have 70% in your own hands and therefore have a lot of influence on this development during the first 12 months of his life.

ED = Elbow Dysplasia.
Similar to HD but in the elbows, we only breed with dogs that don't have this.

Patella Luxation
That is, the kneecap can move out of the groove. This may or may not happen at all with light pressure by a specialist (pat. free) it may be that there is some movement in it but it does not go over the edge (pat loose but free). If the disc can be pushed over the edge but shoots back on its own, it is patella 1. These dogs should not be used together in breeding, but only with one free to rule out any chance of aggravation. with patella 2-3-4, as you understand, these are the worse cases where the dog will also suffer and with 3 and 4 even has to undergo an operation, we never breed, and we have never done so. You can also pass patella in the first year careless movement does stimulate development.

VWD = Willibrand's disease.
This is a blood clotting disease that can be tested via DNA and this also exists in a human variant, now we no longer have to test for it because it no longer occurs in the ALD. Of course you can test for it.

PRA/PRCD = eye disease.
An eye disease in which you will become blind at a later age. Also hereditary to detect whether the dog has this gene.

IC = Improper coat
You can't really call this a disease because the dog will not die from it or experience a medical problem. Well it is true that the dog does not have / shows the appearance of an Australian labradoodle is just so desirable, and unfortunately many people are allergic to this coat, the dog has a short-haired coat in various locations. This can also be prevented by means of DNA testing.

Addison = Addison's Disease
The adrenal glands stop functioning and are caused by a deficiency of cortisol and aldosterone. This is not pleasant since the dog has to take medication for the rest of its life and must avoid stress. It is not fatal and with the right dosage and science, the dog can have a happy life for a long time to come. The disease is often not recognized because the dog has general complaints. This deviant gene is unfortunately still not to be tested by DNA research, the breed club and the breeders hope for a test soon but as long as there is not one we will have to think very carefully about the combinations and serve all dogs that have a sick child produced as a carrier and thus only cross with a free dog as far as we know.

DM = Degenerative Myelopathy.
Degenerative Myelopathy occurs in dogs later in life and unfortunately it is much more common than we think. The disease usually does not develop until after the age of eight and is characterized by loss of control of the hindquarters. The progressive disease eventually leads to paralysis. There is now a test for this. So our dogs are also tested for this to prevent dogs from having these can get disease.

EIC = exercise-induced collapse.
This is a neurological disorder also known as congenital epilepsy, we can also have this gene tested and as long as we cross free dogs with carriers or free crosses, the dog will not be able to get it itself. Unfortunately, there are so many different forms of epilepsy that cannot all be ruled out in advance.

Except for Addison, all our dogs are tested for the above things, as soon as Addison can be tested, this will also be done immediately with our dogs.

We will always look first at health of a combination, then at character and only at the last moment at color or other appearances.

How does the system work carrier or free or even sufferer

Below the explanation:

Free x free	= 100% free (you don't actually have to test puppies)
Free x carrier	= 50% free 50% carrier
Carrier x carrier	= 25% free 50% carrier and 25% sufferer
Suffer x free	= 100% carrier
Sufferer x carrier	= 50% sufferer + 50% carrier

Is free: your dog does not have the gene, cannot have it himself, but never pass it on to the children
Carrier is: the dog only has 1 of the 2 alleles, so does not get sick itself, but can pass the gene on to the children
Sufferer is: your dog has 2 of these alleles and will therefore not only pass it on but also become ill himself

WE DO NOT BREED WITH SUFFERS AND IF WE BREED WITH A BACKER IT IS IN COMBINATION WITH A FREE OPPOSITE. ALL PARENT DOGS ARE TESTED.

Every year all breeding dogs are also tested for more than 20 different eye disorders before breeding with these dogs. The eye test we do is from the ECVO