Mary Jane Weir
President
Canadian Poodle Club
An open letter to the Canadian Poodle clubs:
We are dismayed to learn that there is organized resistance to the effort in Canada to remove the disqualification of particolor Standard Poodles and their progeny.
The Standard Poodle has been the subject of extensive genetic research over the last few years. The data produced by this work are chilling.
The genetic diversity of the Standard Poodle has been reduced to the point where the immune system is seriously compromised. Without a competent immune system, dogs have no defense against the pathogens that we all encounter on a daily basis. Further, loss of the ability of the immune system to distinguish between an external pathogen and its own tissue is being manifested as skyrocketing rates of autoimmune disorders such as Addison's disease and sebaceous adenitis. These are horrible diseases for which there are no veterinary treatments adequate to restore an animal to normal health. Genetic research can increase our understanding of the underlying pathology of inherited diseases in dogs, but there is nothing geneticists can do to "fix" this problem. Many of the genes necessary for a functional immune system in Poodles have been lost from the breed's gene pool, and there is no modern technology that will restore it to proper function.
There is no genetic technology that will restore the Standard Poodle breed to the good health that all dogs deserve. This can only be accomplished by breeders, who must recognize that time is very quickly running out for this breed. It is going to require a substantial realignment of priorities as well as an extraordinary level of cooperation among breeders around the world. Geneticists can provide guidance in this process and there are many that are ready and willing to help. But breeders need to know that it is possible to break something to the point where it cannot be fixed. The responsibility to get this right is solely yours.
Carol Beuchat, PhD
Scientific Director
Institute of Canine Biology, USA
&
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology
University of California Berkeley, USA
Jonas Donner, PhD
Director of Research & Development
MyDogDNA, Genoscoper Laboratories, Finland
Iwona Głażewska, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Plant Taxonomy and Nature Conservation
University of Gdansk, Poland
Claudia Melis, PhD
Research Scientist
Department of Biology
Norwegian University of Science & Technology, Norway
Pieter Oliehoek PhD
Conservation Biology & Canine Genetics
Institute of Canine Biology, USA
CA Sharp
President
Australian Shepherd Health & Genetics Institute, Inc
www.ashgi.org