I am registered on here, but am posting as visitor in case the breeder comes on here.  We bought a CKCS from a reputable breeder in August.  We already have a 7 yr old Cavvy which we took great pains to get from a eye tested and heart tested pedigree and she is 100% fine.  Our new puppy although from a different breeder has a very long heart and eye tested pedigree too and her breeder put us through hoops to prove to her that we could give her an excellent home (which hopefully we do).  We have now discovered through investigations in to our pups blocked tear ducts that she is developing rather rapidly a cataract in her left eye.  The vet is of the opinion that it is inherited as our pup is under 6 months.  The cataract was not there when she had two pre-purchase vettings before we got her (with all her brothers and sisters) and also not there when we had her looked at by our vet within two days of us buying her. Now her breeder is quite an 'assertive' woman who is very well known in the CKCS showing circuit as a judge and for her dogs.  She can be a little tough to deal as she can be a bit abrupt and intimidating.  My question is, would you ring her to tell her about our pups cataract, purely from the 'inherited' sense.  Ie knowing that one of the pups from that particular pairing has possibly got an inherited eye problem.  I am not worried about anything financial whatsoever, our pup is completely insured and will be having the cataract removed and sorted.  It was just from the breeders point of view, would you want to know if one of the pups you had bred had a problem like that?.

I am not a breeder but have friends who are.  It is your responsibility to tell the breeder and then ethically she should reevaluate her breeding program.  She should also let the owners of the same litter know about this development.  Hopefully responsible and breeder can be used together in this situation.  Although slightly embarassing for the breeder she needs to know and react.

I would always inform a breeder of any possible health problems, if your breeder is reputable then they would certainly want to know. One of mine had several problems when they were younger and I always kept their breeder fully informed via phone, email and in person.

I would tell the breeder but only after the puppy has been seen by an eye specialist

One of our Cavaliers had an ulcer diagnosed by an experienced  GP vet & was treated for it. In fact it transpired he hadn't got an ulcer but calcium/lipid deposits & a genetic condition called Corneal Dystrophy which the vet had not considered. I reduced the amount of fat in my dogs diets & touch wood it went away & has never returned.. Peter Bedford examined my boys eyes at a regular eye clinic

I'm not saying this is what your dog has but I would only accept a diagnosis regarding a dogs eyes from an eye specialist

I agree with Moonmaiden, you have to see an eye specialist first to ensure that the diagnosis is correct.  I had a dog with a very similiar thing as Moonmaiden described and it disappeared by the time she was 12 months old.  Oh and I was told that it was quite common in Cav's.  She has been tested yearly since and it's never reappeared.

I would firstly get a proper eye test by a specialist. Vets in  cannot specialize in everything and have been known to be wrong. If your pup is under 6 months the tear staining that I assume worried you may be a result of teething. This problem can also subside when the head grows and changes with maturity, again the eye specialist could tell you. As to telling the breeder , if you get specialists opinion that it is Hereditary Cataract ,then drop her a line and a copy of his report for her information. Assuming the parents were eye tested ,you will be able to check, it appears that she has done all reasonably possible to breed a healthy pup, sadly these things do happen. I'm sure she will understand your concerns for your pup.

I missed the blocked tear ducts-lots of puppy cavaliers appear to have these whist they are teething & have staining under their eyes they usually grow out of it

6 mnonths old is very young to develop even genetic cataracts They can & do develop more often at a later age & is the reason for the yearly eye tests pending the marker genes for a DNA test being found

I've had breeds that have genetic eye problems for 30+ years & the only diagnosis I trust is that of the eye panelists who are all specialists

I agree, see a proper specialist in his surgery as testing at shows is far from ideal.

I agree with all of the above, if it does turn out to be genetic whether the breeder is pushy or not, still give her a call and let her know about your problem, she should be able to guide you, at the end of the day she is responsible for what she bred.  Dont worry, good luck and take care.

Warm regards Susan

there is a HC DNA test coming soon in Staffs will Cavs be able to have that test done as well?

Unfortunately many of the same conditions in different breeds are caused by different genes.  Thsi is why for example all the breeds that can get PRA are not helped in the least by the DNA test available to Irish Setters.

They have started to do a complete mapping of the Cavalier Genome so yes there will be a test eventually. SHM & MVD must come first as they are life threatening Eyes are important but don't put the dogs life at risk

I would seek a referal to an eye panelist for a proper diagnosis. Bearing in mind that the pup has had a problem in this area it may well be that the cataract is an aquired one, and the specialist will know, and a GP vet will not.  At least then you have the proper info to go to with the breeder, as chances are she would want/need referal to a specialist anyway, to determine what axtion she shoudl take within her breedign program.

A freind of mine had info that one of her pups had epilepsy so stopped breeding from ehr line only to later find that the pup had a brain tumour and she had needlessly ended a breeding line as by then her youngest bitch was too old to be bred from.  So these things can have family or even breed wide implications so a sure diagnosis is needed.

Sorry, cant do links but have a look on the KC website under health issues and then there is a link to the Bva website which gives locations of specialist vets

The only way that I could reply was to login, so I can only hope that the breeder doesnt come on here.  Thanks for all your replies.  I was unsure as to what I should do, but at least by waiting until she is seen by a specialist then I can send a report to the breeder as proof and then she can make her own decisions as to what to do with her breeding with official information.  Our pup is having her eyes looked at by a specialist opthamolagist (sp?) coming down from Cambridge on Monday, so we shall know exactly whats going on.

Thankyou for your advice.

Good Luck Janice, your only asking for advice.

Warm regards Susan

We have HC coming out in our breed at the moment. The only way that we can breed safely is to know if any of our stock is infected. At the moment we are lucky that we can trace the dogs pedigrees right back to when they were first brought into this country, and to the imports/pet passport bred dogs (oh, and not forgetting AI ;) ) Any breeder worth their good name will want to know if there is a problem, no matter what that problem is. I would wait until it has been confirmed and then let the breeder know. I know I'd want to know.