Welcome to the Scottish Deerhound Club of America’s web site on Deerhound health issues. We hope this will help Deerhound owners and breeders, as well as those considering adding a Deerhound to their home.
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The 2023 National Specialty Health Clinics are going to be our biggest ever!
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Photo by Ellen Bonacarti.
We are THRILLED to announce that our breed has a new genetic test — the DEPOHGEN™ test for Delayed Post-Operative Hemorrhage (also called Delayed Bleeding Syndrome or hyperfibrinolysis)!
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Photo by Margory Cohen.
Thankfully, congenital heart disease is rare in Deerhounds, but it does occur.
Photo by Amber Duff.
It’s been a long time coming, but we’re delighted to report that the Holter project has begun! We have already started to monitor dogs and are booking dogs now for the fall.
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Photo by Amy Opoka.
Although congenital megaesophagus is exceedingly rare in Deerhounds, here is some recent research that may be helpful with any future cases.
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Photo by Katrina Richardson.
Our research is still being impacted by COVID. Many projects continue to be delayed. But we have made a bit of progress on some fronts.
Photo by Verena von Eichborn, who passed away last week and whose photos will be greatly missed on this website.
Below are a couple of articles from the fall on new developments in diet-associated dilated cardiomyopathy.
Photo by Susan Trow.
Some high-profile people say that the top priority for making breeding decisions for all dogs, including Scottish Deerhounds, should be to increase genetic diversity. I believe this recommendation is a mistake that could harm, rather than improve, Deerhound health. Read more
All photos by Marjan de Raad-Hemminga.
Even though it is not a test for a genetic disease, Deerhounds do have a new genetic test available: for the recessive mutation that causes hairlessness in our breed.
Emerging information in Greyhounds suggests that Deerhounds may experience a third type of clotting disorder called thrombotic disease, in which a blood clot forms in the wrong place or at the wrong time.