We need your help!

Please consider donating your dog’s DNA. It involves drawing a small blood sample and/or gently swabbing/brushing the inside of your dog’s cheeks.

Some breeds have made tremendous progress diagnosing and preventing heritable diseases in their lines. We need to acknowledge and promote the research of health problems affecting our German Wirehaired Pointers.

 At the 2009 Anniversary Nationals, we will be conducting a DNA Collection Clinic. You will have the opportunity to provide numerous research groups with the DNA necessary to promote identification and treatment of inherited health problems. Those of us with affected dogs are requesting your support. Contributing DNA does not mean your dogs are affected.  It indicates your willingness to do your part in keeping our breed healthy.

 We will be collecting blood and cheek samples for the CHIC Repository which is a DNA source for countless research projects. There will be a 50% reduced charge for collection amounting to $15 per dog. The GWPCA has generously agreed to pay mailing fees.

Please help us, by pre-registering and filling out the application and health survey available on our Nationals website.  You can mail your own paperwork and fee and bring the subsequent bar codes to Nationals, or you can send your application to me and I will have the labels and paperwork available in October. Please call or email with any questions you might have and refer to the information printed in our Spring issue of the Wire~News under “Our New Chics.”

Courtney Vogel will have information and applications for the Canine Epilepsy Research Project.  We desperately need DNA from German Wirehaired Pointers affected by seizures and from their immediate relatives. In case you were unaware, this devastating problem exists in our breed.  There have been 18 sample submissions from GWP’s in an epilepsy study in the United Kingdom. The Animal Health Trust reports an even split between affected and control cases…. 9 each in the last 18 months. Obviously, UK owners are concerned about this heritable problem. We too, must prevent epilepsy from continuing in our lines. I have spoken to several club members and hope they follow through with their commitment to support this research.

We will have cheek swab kits available for cataract research and the Animal Health Trust requests affected and clear dog DNA samples accompanied by a copy of an ophthalmologist’s CERF exam.  Fortunately, cataracts do not appear to be a huge problem in German Wirehaired Pointers, but until we determine the genetics of cataract expression, it remains a concern in our performance breed.

Those of you who have purchased von Willebrand’s Disease DNA kits can bring them to Nationals and we’d be happy to help you obtain your samples for submission.

 Please plan to bring copies of your dog’s 3-5 generation pedigree to include with the DNA samples. 

Application for DNA Repository

Cataract Study Submission Form

Cataract Study Collection Procedure

Epilepsy DNA Submission Form