Collie Genetics
As some are aware but many still do not know collies can carry a variety of problematic genes which should be tested for through DNA swabs and laboratory analysis. We took a chance purchasing Nessa just to have the chance to have her tested and through good fortune she has tested clear of all known collie carrier genes that can lead to health issues. Pairing completely clear dogs with dogs who are carriers “cleans” the gene pool for future generations. How this works: In general a dog would need two copies of a problematic gene to be ‘affected’, by breeding carriers (who carry only 1 copy each of two different problematic genes ex. MDR1 and CEA) to clear dogs the subsequent litter would statistically produce half completely clear pups, 1⁄4 pups that would carry 1 problematic gene and the other 1⁄4 would carry both problematic genes. At Lanz Hollow we strive to only breed a dog that is carrier for at most 2 problematic genes and always pair such a dog with a completely genetically clear dog to produce pups that will be useful to the breeding population in the future. There are of course more than 2 problematic genes carried by collies but we feel these strict parameters are needed for the group as a whole to eliminate issues in dogs. (Problematic genes carried by collies include: DM, DMS, PRA, CEA, MDR1, CN, and VWDII.