This page is a work in progress - Please see our other pages
We are currently working on this page, please check back in!
|
HealthWhat health problems are in this breed?
While there are lots of different diseases & conditions that can affect this breed, it should be noted that the number of affected individuals is low across the population. Finnish Lapphunds in general, are considered a healthy breed. However, it is important to find a breeder that performs appropriate health screening. Screening is a necessity for breeders to make the most informed decisions they can, but it does not guarantee your dog will have no health concerns. This is because issues can be congenital, hereditary without genetic markers available or as a result of their environment - or any combination of these. Did you know? Finnish Lapphunds are one of the few purebred breeds that have an 'Open Studbook'. This means that new dogs of unknown pedigree are allowed to be registered in Finland as Finnish Lapphunds - if - they pass strict selection criteria. Why is this a good thing? It means that new genetics are being added into the breed every year, reducing the risk of genetic bottle necks that have been shown to cause health issues in some other purebred breeds. What tests are mandatory for my breeder to perform? Hip scoring Elbow scoring ACES Eye test prcd-PRA genetic screen Pompes genetic screen Hip scoring The Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) & Australian National Kennel Association (ANKC) instituted the canine hip and elbow dysplasia scheme 'CHEDS' in 2000. A set of 9 criteria are evaluated, each hip receives a total possible score upto 53 (106 in total) whereby 0 is perfect. The evaluation is looking for a hip joint where the femoral head sits tightly in the dogs hip socket. The higher the score the higher likelihood and severity, that your dog will develop joint changes leading to osteoarthritis. The current average for Finnish Lapphund in Australia is 11.03 (Xrays from last 5yrs as of 3/2/24). We recommend hip scoring all dogs (breeding or not) to gather data on the overall hip health of Finnish Lapphunds in Australia and most importantly make the right choices for your dogs long-term wellbeing. My dogs parents both have good hip scores, why should I bother with expensive testing? Canine Hip Dysplasia (CHD) is multifactorial. It has polygenic risks (multiple genes involved), and environmental risks. Environmental risks include; Exercise - Going on forced active walks when tired, using stairs, jumping up/down off couches, running and slipping on smooth surfaces, exercising in deep substrate. While most of these things are fine once a puppy has matured & the growth plates have closed, doing too much, too soon will increase risk of CHD. Nutrition - Too much or not balanced enough. While Finnish Lapphunds are medium sized, their bone growth and closure can mimic that of a larger dog. Meaning if you overfeed as puppies, it can lead to a disparity between bone growth and muscle mass, as a result, joint instability occurs increasing the risk of CHD. Certain lines are best fed on 'Large puppy' food until adults. Large puppy food is designed to optimise bone growth steadily over time, this ensures the puppies body grows evenly with the rate of their bone and joint growth. Your breeder will know what's best for their lines. While we support all researched based foods (Raw, Kibble and combinations), we do not advocate for raw feeding as puppies. This is because it's very difficult to ensure a proper balance of calcium:phosphate and protein percent. When any of these are out of balance it can affect their development. We are still working on this page please visit: Finnish Lapphund club of Victoria For health information about Finnish Lapphunds |
AboutWhat is it like to live with a Finnish Lapphund?
We are still working on this page please visit the Finnish Lapphund Club of Victoria To learn more about this breed |
HistoryWhere did they come from? What did they do?
We are still working on this page please visit Finnish Lapphund Club of Victoria To learn more about the history of this breed. |