Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 1 - BeaCon Voluntary Open Health Registry Year 7 General Report March, 2008 Welcome to BeaCons Open Health Registry Report for year 7. It is amazing how many years have
passed since the concept of an open registry was mulled over by the BCCA health committee in fall 1998.
After BeaCon incorporated in April 1999, the open health registry was initiated and this is our seventh
year of recording wellness and potentially genetic health conditions for the breed.
Resistance to entering dogs persists due to fears that a breeder and his/her kennel will be maligned. That
is a very real fear and it demonstrates how far the Beardie community has yet to travel before the breeds
health becomes the highest priority for everyone.

This dilemma needs to be addressed because breed numbers have declined in recent years (at least in the
USA; see a later section for the figures). Consider the factors listed below and you should grasp the
concern: Lack of widespread participation in the open registry by breeders and the related restriction of
openly available information, A 5.4 point higher average coefficient of inbreeding (10 generations) of USA registry dogs
compared with original USA foundation stock The phenomenon of the popular sire use which lowers genetic diversity over generations
( http://www.beaconforhealth.org/Popular_Sire.html Particularly new breeders face limited amounts of information when trying to make the most informed
decisions that should include known health concerns.

Thus, the directors of BeaCon want to thank each and every Beardie owner and breeder who has made
their information publicly available through this open health registry. You are a treasure for current and
future breeders as you create an important legacy. For those who only put in their healthy dogs and dont
report those with health problems, please reconsider for the sake of future generations. Who May Participate? ALL BEARDED COLLIES of known parentage Deceased or living Healthy or with a health problem From any country The primary owner, a co-owner, or a breeder (as of spring 07) may submit information, but written consent
is always required from all the owners.
Why Are Healthy as Well as Those with Health Problems Important? The largest number possible is needed to give a complete picture of the extent of wellness or health
problems. To allow calculation of disease incidence. There need to be enough dogs to calculate disease frequencies
that are applicable to the general population of Beardies, not just those in the open registry. o For example, if there are 57 dogs with Addisons in 916 dogs, the frequency of Addisons is 5.9%.
If the total number of dogs is 1800 dogs, the frequency is significantly lower, 3.1%. To provide whole family information which breeders can use for relative-risk pedigree analysis in diseases
that are autosomal recessive. To provide data for researchers. To allow prospective puppy buyers data on health of Bearded Collies which may enable them to make
more informed choices, or at least know what questions to ask breeders. Who May Submit Information Owners with whom the dog lives. Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 2 - A co-owner. The primary owner (defined as the person with whom the dog lives) must send in a signed
consent. A breeder. Starting in the spring of 07, a breeder may also submit information. The primary owner must
send in a signed consent. In the case of a breeder entering pups in a litter prior to sale, if their contract
notes the pup is in BeaCons open registry that suffices as consent. Breeders who enter a sire or dam into the registry can indicate if the dog has produced a disease in
offspring. This policy was started in year 3 because breeders are not always able to convince their puppy
buyers to participate in the open registry. It is vital to know about certain health conditions in offspring.
Specific diseases of interest are Addisons, symmetrical lupoid onychodystrophy, systemic lupus
erythematosus, and hypothyroidism. Any disease can be noted in the other category; e.g., autoimmune
hemolytic anemia or immune-mediated thrombocytopenia, or polyarthritis, or a heart condition. Dams
producing a disease can have the number of cases and the litter (s) indicated. Sires producing a disease
may have the number of cases indicated. The name of a dog with the specific disease produced cannot be
listed. A dogs information is not publicly available if entered by a co-owner or a breeder until the primary
owners consent is received. How To Submit Information. This may be done either by hard copy form or on-line at www.beaconforhealth.org/sqlweb.
Documentation. No changes have been made from previous years. Copies of health screening test results are requested. This is especially important for dogs from countries other than the USA. We attempt to validate the
information for USA dogs through the on-line registry databases (OFA or CERF). When that is not possible, it is so
noted in the dogs report.

Health screening tests that have not been submitted to another registry can be included in the registry. Preferably, a
copy of the documentation form is sent to BeaCon; e.g., a copy of the CERF ophthalmologists exam for an eye
exam.
Updating. Reminders are sent late each calendar year to owners of all living dogs in the registry as of the most recent data entry. Updating should be done yearly, even if the dog has had no changes. You can also update
whenever there has been a change in your dogs health or new health screens done at any time.

If you have entered a diagnosis which is later changed, contact beaconbb@bellsouth.net with the new information, or log in to your account and make the change yourself.
Pedigrees and Coefficient of Inbreeding (COI). Every effort is made to be accurate in the pedigrees. As new dogs are entered into the database, a five generation pedigree is generated offline and posted. Owners are
notified and asked to confirm accuracy of the pedigree. Data for pedigrees come from many sources including
pedigrees submitted by owners, the Kennel Club Breed System Bearded Collie database updates, and online
databases. With the advent of the on-line registry system, fewer hard copy pedigrees were submitted; thus the
dependence on other sources. Pedigrees are generated with Breeders Assistant, starting in January 2006. If an error
is found in a pedigree, please notify E. Sell ( beaconbb@bellsouth.net ) with the correct information.
A COI is the mathematical definition that elucidates closeness of relationship in a pedigree. It is usually expressed
as a percentage and it was developed by Sewall Wright (Coefficients of inbreeding and relationship. Am Nat.
56:330-8, 1922). Basic principles are that inbreeding only exists if the ancestor appears on both sires and dams
side of the pedigree.

COIs can be calculated, but it is complex, and various online sources describe how to do this. It isnt complex if
one uses a pedigree software program with the built in calculation. The Breeders Assistant software was used to
calculate 10 generation COIs as reported further on.
Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 3 - Use of Data and Caveats. Viewers of the open health registry data are responsible for interpretation and use of the information. The purpose of this registry is to give objective data on disease and wellness, not to draw
conclusions about any particular line, sire, or dam.
We caution the reader that a sire or dam cannot be assumed to be a carrier of an undesirable genetic trait simply
because that health problem is reported in a single progeny. Furthermore, some genetic diseases may be influenced
by environmental factors, not yet defined.

Geneticists believe the following circumstances are indicative of heritability: Relatively frequent occurrence of the disease When mating a sire and dam several times results in the same health problem in more than one litter. When a dog or bitch mated with different mates results in the same health problem in several litters.
If several dogs from the same kennel are reported with the same problem, you cannot assume that the problem
occurs with high frequency. You have to know the status of the other dogs from that kennel before making any
assessment regarding prevalence. This means that full participation by a breeder is important, rather than selectively
entering just healthy dogs in the registry.

Many hereditary problems, other than those transmitted by an autosomal dominant mode of inheritance, involve
healthy parents, one or both of whom are carriers of the genes responsible.

Information that a particular dog or bitch has produced a problem is vital to any breeder. This is especially critical
for novice breeders just establishing their programs because they are least likely to have a good network for finding
and verifying such information.

BeaCon encourages breeders to enroll pups in BeaCons Open Health Registry before they go to their new
homes. Having a large number of healthy young dogs to follow over the long term is an optimal resource to
determining frequency of diseases in any breed.

The inclusion of dogs in this registry is by the free choice of the owner/co-owner. Absence of dogs from this registry
is also by the free choice of the owner/co-owner. Notice of the registrys availability is made through resources
available to BeaCon: BeaCons newsletter (Lighting the Way) and web site ( www.beaconforhealth.org ), and Beardie internet lists.
Notice of Copyright. All information contained in this report is fully copyrighted by the Bearded Collie Foundation for Health (BeaCon). Permission is granted to print information only for personal use or for publication
in educational materials for Bearded Collie owners. Nothing obtained from the information available herein may be
published in any form, whether for profit or not, without permission of BeaCon.
Respectfully submitted, the Board of Directors for the Bearded Collie Foundation for Health (BeaCon) Cindy Alspaugh
Linda Aronson CJ del Valle Karen Drummond Judy Howard Jana Jezkova Richard Masley Elsa Sell Jo Tucker Chris Walkowicz
April 15, 2008 Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 4 - How Many Beardie Collies are Born in the USA?
This year for the first time we include a table showing several sets of figures about the numbers of Beardies in the
USA. The data start with 1977 when the breed was recognized by the AKC. All data come from AKC reports;
some are standard reports and some are special reports. The decline in number of litters and number of pups in
registered litters from 2002-2006 was statistically significant, as reported in Lighting The Way.

Since the number of dogs registered with AKC in a given year may include imported dogs, as well as USA dogs
born late in the prior year, we also have the number of foreign born, AKC registered dogs. The registration system
in the USA leaves it up to a puppy buyer to register their dog. Unless AKC adopts a procedure similar to the UK
(where breeders register individual pups that is not left to the puppy buyer), the AKC dog registration figures
wont be an indicator of the number of dogs born here.

In 2007 the number of USA born and registered Beardies (405) was very near that in 1977 (397) 30 years
previous. There is some relief to be found in this seemingly distressing decline from two sources: (1) AKC dog registrations for a number of breeds have been declining in recent years (2) The number of USA born pups increased in 2007, compared with 2006. Year # Dogs Registered* # Foreign Born Registered # USA Born Dogs Registered # USA Litters Registered # Pups in USA Registered Litters Av # pups Per registered USA Litter 2007 413 8 405 107 591 5.5 2006 447 30 417 103 537 5.2 2005 485 29 456 118 658 6.0 2004 562 28 534 142 842 5.6 2003 543 15 528 161 897 5.8 2002 587 20 567 186 943 5.9 2001 620 27 593 142 953 5.8 2000 682 29 653 196 1031 5.6 1999 614 29 585 178 1202 6.1 1998 752 30 722 188 1077 6.2 1997 711 30 681 196 1249 6.3 1996 720 58 662 171 1031 5.8 1995 762 49 713 189 1105 5.9 1994 640 37 603 160 1057 6.0 1993 749 26 723 166 912 5.8 1992 766 26 740 185 1092 6.0 1991 796 47 749 203 1162 6.0 1990 700 32 668 172 1062 5.9 1989 713 34 679 182 1128 6.1 1988 817 32 785 206 1175 6.2 1987 760 28 732 177 1098 6.0 1986 797 23 774 187 1175 6.4 1985 858 23 835 189 1253 6.6 1984 858 23 835 208 1330 6.4 1983 895 22 873 207 1190 5.9 1982 763 20 743 193 1257 6.4 1981 723 28 695 158 1095 6.4 1980 653 35 618 156 909 5.9 1979 588 31 557 132 782 6.2 1978 472 29 443 98 684 6.2 1977 446 49 397 89 496 5.8 1976 - 135 - - - - *This number includes dogs born in USA and foreign born dogs. Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 5 - This Year A Quick Look. The Netherlands has participants for the first time (27 owners and 74 dogs), due to efforts of several people. Also
Hungary and Slovakia are represented for the first time.

There are 491 participating owners, an increase of 81 from the previous year, and 1203 Beardies, an increase of 242.

There is little change in the frequency of the most common health problems; fear issues and autoimmune problems
continue to lead the list. The frequency of health screens is little changed. Puppy mortality is about 5% stillborn and an additional 7-8% dying by 6 weeks of age.
Participation. The following table shows the cumulative participation over the years.
Year # Owners # Dogs Dogs added 1 169 303 -
2 205 410 107
3 278 593 183
4 315 678 85
5 357 808 130
6 410 961 153
7 491 1203 242
Definition of Registry Years Year 1. July 2000 Aug 2001 Year 2. Sept 2001 Nov 2002 Year 3. Dec 2002 Nov 2003 Year 4. Dec 2004 Nov 2004 Year 5. Dec 2005 Jan 2006 Year 6. Feb 2006 Feb 2007 Year 7. Mar 2007-Mar 15, 2007 Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 6 - Cumulative Report for Year 7 Contents Demographic data Health problems Autoimmune health problems Health screening tests Reproductive outcome Mortality Coefficient of inbreeding Demographic Data for Complete Open Health Registry Item # Owners Australia
Belgium
Canada
Czech Republic
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Hungary
Ireland
Netherlands
New Zealand
Portugal
Scotland
Slovakia
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
United Kingdom
USA
Not indicated 491 10 3 29
11 2
9
1 20 2
1 27 3
1
2
1
3
1
1 56 306 2 Dogs 1203 Location
USA
UK, Scotland
Netherlands
Canada
Germany
Australia
Czech Republic 653
205 74
64
46
38
33 % of total dogs
54.3%
17.0%
6.2%
5.3%
3.8%
3.2%
2.7% Sex - male
intact
neutered
unknown

Sex - female
intact
spayed
unknown

Sex unknown 542
299
231 12 659
320
328 11 2 45.1% of all dogs
55.2% of male dogs
42.6% of male dogs


54.8% of all dogs
48.6% of female dogs
59.8% of female dogs
Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 7 - Owners from one new country participated this year, the Netherlands; they provide 74 new dogs to the registry.
This happened because of enthusiasm for the registry and engagement of owners by several leaders.
Health Problems. A higher percent of dogs were healthy this year, 55.8% vs. 47.7%. This reflects entry of younger dogs, and some of these were put into the registry as young pups before going to their new owners.
Frequency of specific health problems is reported if there are more than 20 cases. Some owners entered health
problems only into update notes; all effort has been made to also create a health problem record from the update
notes for a more accurate accounting.

A caveat of both the healthy dog and disease frequencies is that they apply to this specific population of Bearded
Collies. It wont be possible to speculate if the findings are applicable to the broad population of Beardies until
several thousand more dogs are in the registry.
Health Problem # of
Dogs % of
All Dogs None 671 55.8% Fear, loud sharp noises 164 13.6% Autoimmune diseases (see table
below) 135 11.2% Hypothyroidism* 90 7.5% Cancer (all types)** 76 6.3% Umbilical hernia 60 5.0% Hip dysplasia 44 3.7% Fear, other 31 2.6% Dietary allergy/food intolerance 28 2.3% Atopy 27 2.2% Allergy, flea bite 23 1.9% Depigmentation*** 23 1.9% Inflammatory bowel disease 19 Nail problems other than lupoid
onychodystrophy 18 Teeth, overshot 17 Arthritis 17
Vaccination reaction 16 Hot spots 14 Cognitive dysfunction 14 Cryptorchid 13
Hyperactivity 12
Cushings disease 10 Urinary infection 10 Kidney failure 9 Stroke 9
Monorchid 9
Epilepsy, idiopathic 8 Exercise induced collapse or
hyperthermia 6 Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency 5 Demodectic mange 4 Keratoconjunctivitis 3
Diabetes mellitus 2 Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 8 - * The incidence of autoimmune thyroiditis in the open health registry Beardies is unknown; data from OFA labs
suggest it is of low incidence 1.7% of 298 having OFA panels; 4.3% of 793 having panels done at the Michigan
State University Lab. ** Cancer diagnoses were: nasal in 8
liver in 10
mammary 5
bone 5
spleen 4 (plus 1 of liver and spleen)
hemangiosarcoma 3
testicular, stomach, abdominal 2 each
The reader is referred to the online OHR search facility for a look at the less common cancers (other).

*** Note: some cases of depigmentation can be autoimmune in nature (e.g., vitiligo, or associated with lupus or
pemphigus). Since there are other causes of depigmentation, it was not placed into the table with autoimmune
diseases.
Autoimmune Problems (# diseases = 167; # dogs having diseases = 135, or 11.2% of all dogs). Although the frequencies appear to be unduly high in this population of Bearded Collies (i.e., in the open health registry), it is not
known if the figures are applicable to the general population of Bearded Collies world wide. That will remain
unknown until a much larger number of dogs are in the open registry.


Disease
#
% of All Dogs #(%) with > one
A/I disease** Addisons disease (hypoadrenocorticism) 59 4.9% 10 (17.0%) Symmetrical lupoid onychodystrophy
(SLO) 28 2.3% 6 (21.4%) Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) 19 1.6% 5 (26.3%) Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) 15 1.3% 4 (26.7%) Autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) 12 1.0% 2 (16.7%) Rheumatoid arthritis* 11 1.0% 9 (81.8%) Pemphigus 7 6 (85.7%) Immune-mediated thrombocytopenia (ITP) 7 5 (71.4%) Discoid lupus erythematosus 3 2 (66.7%) Myositis 1 1 (100%) * These include cases of suspected immune polyarthritis
**This does not include hypothyroidism because thyroid panels were not commonly in use earlier in the registry
22 dogs had more than one disease: 17 dogs had 2 A/I diseases
3 dogs had 3 A/I diseases
2 dogs had 4 A/I diseases Addisonian dogs 13 are hypothyroid
20 have fear of loud sharp sounds (33.9%)
2 each have SLO, IBD, or AIHA
3 have pemphigus
1 each has discoid lupus erythematosus, systemic lupus erythematosus, or immune-mediated thrombocytopenia SLO dogs
3 have pemphigus 2 are hypothyroid 1 has systemic lupus erythematosus Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 9 - Health Screening Tests
Screening Test Done
# % of
All Dogs Hips 485 40% Eyes 453 37.7% Thyroid 347 28.9% Elbows 98 8.2% Hips and eyes 257 21.4% Hips and elbows 95 7.9% Hips and thyroid 151 12.6% Hips, eyes, and thyroid 117 9.7% Hips, eyes, elbows, and
thyroid 30 2.5% Von Willebrand Disease 10 MDR-1 5 The frequency of individual health screening tests and the various combinations were minimally changed from the
previous year. MDR-1 stands for multiple drug resistant disease gene; that gene is mutated in some dogs of some
breeds who have inability to readily clear certain drugs across the blood brain barrier. The result can be
neurological effects, such as seizures in certain Collies after taking excessive doses of ivermectin. All five Beardies
reported in the registry had a normal MDR-1 test.

Of interest, there are several working Beardies in the registry. One breeder has had eye exams done on breeding
stock of working origin and for several generations. This has been done because of concern that breeding standard
registry Beardies to a working Beardie would introduce eye problems in the progeny. To date, all eye exams have
been normal. For a current litter of third generation working Beardies, the great great granddam (KC registered)
was normal 9 years of age. The granddam (first generation working dog) has had four normal exams, the most
recent at 6 years 4 months (a sister not being bred was normal at a younger age). The dam (second generation
working dog) and four littermate sisters are normal at 4 years 1 month. Six 2 month old puppies (3 bitches and 3
dogs) are normal; they are the third generation working dog breeding.
Reproductive Outcome Dogs. There were 102 with reproductive history recorded; only 38 had semen checked and 93 were bred. The
following table shows the number of bitches bred, the number of litters and puppies produced.
Item # Av SD Bitches bred 342 3.7 3.9 Litters produced 310 3.4 3.7 Total puppies produced 1786 22 24.6 Total female puppies produced 847 11 12.2 Total male puppies produced 848 11 13.4 A large SD (standard deviation) means that there was a large variation
in the number of puppies that each dog produced.

Not all breedings resulted in litters. Problems developing in the dogs progeny were: Health Problem # dogs producing problem # progeny with problem Addisons 6 13*
Symmetrical lupoid onychodystrophy 6 7 Systemic lupus erythematosus 1 1 Hypothyroid 7 8
Other 8 1 nail problem
4 heart problems Cryptorchid 28 13 Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 10 - * one dog produced 5 progeny with Addisons, one produced 3 with Addisons and one produced 2 with Addisons

Females. 180 of the 207 females were successfully bred and they produced 376 litters for a total of 2161 pups. The
total number of pups is 379 more than in the last report. Forty addition litters were reported since the last report.
Cesarean section delivery was done in 35 (9.3% of all litters), which is up from 6.5% in year 5. The breeding methods were: Natural 249 (66.2%) A/I fresh 35 (9.3%) A/I chilled 18 (4.8%) A/I frozen 10 (2.7%) A/I operative 10 (2.7%) Not recorded 54 The number of progeny born and congenital problems are given in the table. Male pups
# % of total total born 1199 - live born 1120 93.4 live @ 6 wks 1043 87.0 % of those alive at 6 weeks with a problem cryptorchid 62 5.9 mismark 53 5.1 umbilical hernia 38 3.6 bad bite 12 poor pigment 11 cleft palate 3

Female pups
# % of total total born 1097 - live born 1041 94.9 live @ 6 wks 971 88.5 % of those alive at 6 weeks with a problem mismark 54 5.6 umbilical hernia 44 4.5 bad bite 12 poor pigment 4 cleft palate 2
Specific later health problems in the progeny of bitches are shown in the next table.

Health Problem # bitches
producing
problem # progeny
with
problem Addisons 10 16* Symmetrical lupoid onychodystrophy 6 8 Systemic lupus erythematosus 2 2 Hypothyroid 8 8 Other 17 22** * One bitch produced 6 Addisonian puppies Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 11 - ** Among the problems were 5 puppies with heart problems (3 PDA; 1 persistent right aortic arch); 1 each
produced hyperthyroid, discoid lupus, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, pyelonephritis (early death at 3 wks), kidney
failure (several died as young dogs), exocrine pancreatic insufficiency.
Mortality . There are 271 (22.7%) deceased dogs. There may be others also deceased but their owners have not responded to update requests. Autopsies were conducted on 20 (7.4%) deceased dogs. Owners should remember
that autopsies will sometimes be helpful in establishing the cause of death. If more autopsies were done in those
where death is not due to very old age and related maladies, there would certainly be more identifiable causes of
death.

Mode of death was natural in 35, euthanasia in 207, accidental in 10, and not documented in 19.

Causes of death in different age groups are given below.

The leading causes of death before 9 years of age were autoimmune (n=14, 26.9%) and accidental (n=10, 19%) for a
cumulative total of 45.9%. The final report of the BCCA 96-98 health survey found 30% of deaths before age 9
were due to autoimmune causes. This is of concern and focus should be on supporting research to identify cause(s)
of the problems, and hopefully elimination of these problems where feasible. Cancer was the leading cause of death for 9-14 year olds and old age takes over thereafter. Age Group # (%) Deaths Causes of Death 0 2 yr 11 mo 10 (3.7%) 3 accidental
3 autoimmune: 1 each pemphigus (and
SLO), IBD, Addisons
2 aggression, family
1 each intussusception (after
hemorrhagic gastroenteritis), epilepsy
idiopathic 3 yr 6 yr 11 mo 23 (8.9%) 7 autoimmune: 2 SLE, 1 each SLO with
aggression due to pain, ITP, AIHA,
Evans syndrome, Addisons
5 accidental
3 unknown
2 cancer, small intestine
1 each, acute renal failure, chronic
interstitial nephritis, respiratory failure,
acute fulminating pancreatitis after
whelping, suspected warfarin poisoning,
neurological (no description) 7 yr 8 yr 11 mo 19 (7.1%) 4 autoimmune caused or associated: 1
each AIHA, SLE, Addisons (kidney
failure), infection as a result of immune
mediated polyarthritis
3 unknown
3 cancer: 1 each spleen, small intestine,
liver
2 accidental
1 each per food poisoning, vascular
invasive abdominal mass, sudden onset
of complete hind leg paralysis, kidney
failure cause unknown, sudden breathing
problems, aggression toward family
member, after surgical A/I 9 yr 13 yr 11 mo 140 (52.0%) 40 cancer (28.6% of age group)
10 unknown Year 7 Report for BeaCon Open Health Registry, March 2008. Page - 12 - 8 old age (12