Hello ... I recently had a puppy from clear parents , Have this problem called TVD . She was the only one from a litter of 10 with this problem . She wasn't the runt but was one of the smaller ones when she was born . Any one know or have had this problem ? Do the dogs have a quality of life ?

I am assuming you have told your breeder, right?

Some dogs last quite some time, others don't. I think it really depends on the amount of regurgitation in the heart...which will eventually lead to congestive heart failure.

Please tell both the bitch owner/breeder of the puppy that you have, along with the owner of the stud dog of this diagnosis.

Rather than go into all the discussion which I am sure will ensue shortly, I would strongly recommend that you see a canine cardiologist for "lifestyle" recommendations for your puppy.

Additionally, I would suggest googling the words TVD Labradors and reading all that you find. Dr. Meg Sleeper is doing research at UPenn to hopefully find the method of TVD transmission. She is another good source of information for you.

How old was she when she was diagnosed, and what were her symptoms that led you to believe there was something wrong with her. Has the rest of the litter been echoed n=by a cardiologist, or do they just show no symptoms of a problem? Sorry you have to deal with this, but you will learn a lot about TVD from some of the answers you will get here.

I have a 6 month old pup with severe TVD. So far she has no quality of life issues. She's a normal lab pup who runs all day at 200 mile per hour. Her cardiologist does not feel she needs any exercise restrictions. She is on heart medication and a diuretic. If you would like to contact me privately feel free.

I am confused.

You seem to know quite a bit about the litter. Did you breed the litter, Jenn?

You also know that the sire and dam were clear of something. Of what were they clear? And how were they cleared?

You also know about that the puppy was diagnosed with "moderate tricuspid valve dysplasia." How was the puppy diagnosed and who made the diagnosis? What did the professional who diagnosed the puppy tell you about the problem and the quality of life probable for the puppy?

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania are conducting a study on Tricuspid Valve Dysplasia (TVD) in Labrador Retrievers. TVD is a congenital cardiac defect, is heritable, and can lead to heart failure. The research team is seeking to identify the responsible gene(s), and are in need of blood samples from affected dogs as well as their immediate relatives (affected or unaffected). This research is funded through a grant from the AKC Canine Health Foundation with the financial support of the OFA.

See website below to download the forms needed. Meg Sleeper's e-mail is on the form. She would be a very good person to talk to about this, IMO.

Best of Luck.

Jenn

Hello ... I recently had a puppy from clear parents , Have this problem called TVD . She was the only one from a litter of 10 with this problem . She wasn't the runt but was one of the smaller ones when she was born . Any one know or have had this problem ? Do the dogs have a quality of life ?

I know my samples are submitted to them. I hope they find something out very soon!

I am so very sorry for your pups diagnosis, but PLEASE submit a blood sample to Dr Sleeper's TVD study!

brdr: no need to start pointing fingers, does it matter who bred the litter really? I guess you echo-clear all your dogs and have never produced a TVD affected Labrador? You are very lucky if thats the case.

You misread my post. I am confused, not pointing fingers. And I am still confused. Perhaps you are the one pointing fingers.

I know of an 11 year old Labrador who has been diagnosed with moderate TVD. He is tested every time a clinic is here and the diagnosis is still the same. He has not been limited in his exercise throughout his life and has shown no signs of problems. He was diagnosed as a puppy.
Good luck with your dog.

With all due respect, Laurie, some dogs with TVD do well and some dogs drop dead. Certainly, the OP needs information from the cardiologist who diagnosed TVD. Even so, no one can predict the future, especially based on the experience of one or a few dogs.

I think it is overall a mistake to reassure owners and breeders, especially when you do not know how this information will be used. For example, if the OP is the breeder, what long term effect will reassurance have on the current puppy's owner and on the breeder's future breeding plans. Likewise, it is a mistake to predict the worst possible outcome--for exactly the same reasons. Very little is known about the OP and the affected puppy. And the life of the puppy hangs in the balance.

With all due respect to you, a LOT is known about the OP.
With all the litters they breed they should already have educated themselves on TVD long ago. It's not a new problem.
Ps- if the mother is the dysplastic one she bred to her yellow male, the clue to where the TVD came from is in the pedigree.

web link does not work....so I am clueless.

The blood was sent to U Penn ..

Surely, Just Me, you have learned that nothing is simple on this forum and things are not always what they seem.

The two I know of are still living. One about 8 years and one about 7 years. The dogs were never bred to the same stud dog again and it never showed up again. BIG YET ! We took the word of the very good vet at that point years ago. Gave the pup to a friend as a pup with needs. Still going strong out on a great farm. I do think some die at birth or a few days later and we never know that TVD was the problem.

Hello Everyone and Thank you for your insight ...

The Parents again were Heart cleared with the OFA . I'm learning that their is no test yet for this disease to see if they are carriers . So we have to wait to see if the other pups are carriers or clear .Since this All the pups in that litter have gone to get evalued and are all clear for tvd . So only one of the pups out of 10 was affected . Minnie has been a trip since the day she was born . Half the size of everyone else she would nurse on top of her other litter mates always pushing the other pups off . She has a will to live and I think she will be fine . We can't blame anyone for this since their is no test if they carriers . We all try to do our best to prevent problems in the breed . BUT we are not god . I just wanted to prepare myself for what lies ahead for this little girl and what I can do to make her life better.
m
I don't believe in putting dogs to sleep just because they have a challenge in life . I believe everything happens for a reason and minnies blood that was sent to U Penn could play a role isn helping and finding the marker to the disease . [

Jenn, I only know what other breeders have told me about TVD, but it is my understanding that the people who are knowledgable about TVD think it may be a dominant trait, in which case both parents would not have to be carriers. A dominant can be inherited from a single parent. However, there doesn't seem to be much doubt that the trait is incompletely penetrant, which means that a dog can have the gene but not express it. So the littermates to a TVD dog could produce it even if they themselves are phenotypically normal.

Before Meg Sleeper's study, Dr. Kathy Wright was doing a study at the Childrens' Hospital in Cincinnati. According to her studies, she found that TVD was a dominant trait with incomplete penetrance. What that means is a dog who has the gene for TVD, will either be affected to some degree or will test clear. Because this is a dominant trait, this dog will pass the gene to some of his/her puppies. Those puppies will either have the disease to some degree or will simply have the gene and continue to pass it on unnoticed. Of course, that's why we need a test to determine if indeed a dog has the gene for TVD. In my opinion, if we find such a test, I believe we will also be surprised to find that it is pretty wide spread in the breed. Why some dogs express the disease and others do not remains a mystery, but I know of several lines in which this disease is pretty prevalant. Call it popular stud dog syndrome, but in almost all the early cases I saw of TVD, I could trace it back to that dog. I will say however that since breeders are testing for it on a more broader scope, I have found other lines unrelated to this dog, but because he was a very popular sire, it spread quickly throughout the breed and forced breeders to find out why there was a problem with dogs just dropping dead. This was when we first discovered TVD and had the means to test for it.

The only sure way to test for the actual disease is by echo cardiogram with color doppler. However, cardiologists are still some what on the fence as to what normal regurgitation is and some dogs may or may not pass based on the cardiologist's interpretation.

My experience with TVD is when a bitch I bred was diagnosed at 14 months with "severe" TVD. I noticed that she had an intolerance to exercise, meaning she would go lay down within 5-10 minutes of playing ball with the other dogs. I had no clue what TVD was at the time, but I then found out her sire had moderate TVD (and no she was not related to the popular sire). I was told she would not live past 8 years of age before succumbing to CHF. The cardiologist said not to put her on any meds until she started showing signs of CHF. My girl has lead a pretty normal life and enjoys going back into the showring as a veteran. She's done quite well and I am pleased to say that she will be celebrating her 12th birthday in December-way to go Truly!!

To the OP, if you'd like to email me your pedigrees, since I can't access the link you've provide, I'd be happy to look over the pedigrees to see where TVD may be coming from.

Dianne Mullikin, EMT-B
Los Angeles, CA

They have a small list of dogs that carry EIC on Labradata.
Is there any such list for TVD