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Before purchasing a Brittany Spaniel, you should learn a bit about the health problems in the Brittany breed. Brittanys tend to be a healthy breed, but there are a few common genetic problems in the breed you can watch for.

  Ask your breeder about the health problems in the specific lines of the dogs your puppy comes from. If the breeder can’t tell you any area where his or her dogs could improve, I would question their honesty and their perspective.

As with most breeds, Brittanys can have hip dysplasia. Hip dysplasia is a genetic disease that causes arthritis in one or both hips in affected dogs. It can result in lameness and pain and resulting decreased physical activity especially as the dog ages. But it can also be a hidden condition. Brittanys have won Best of Breed in conformation shows despite having hip dysplasia, since it doesn’t always change their gait enough for the judge to notice.

Most reputable breeders will try to decrease the risk that the puppies they produce have hip dysplasia. For example, many breeders certify the sire and dam of a litter by having their hip x-rays evaluated by the OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals).

www.offa.org

  To acquire OFA certification, the dog must be at least 2 years of age. It’s my understanding that the OFA doesn’t certify younger dogs because sometimes they are fine and the disease shows up when they reach 2 years of age. (If you are concerned about the risk of hip dysplasia, you can have a puppy x-rayed and evaluated, and if there is a problem, the head start in diagnosing it may allow a greater variety of options in treatment. However, the puppy won’t be able to get an OFA number until he or she is 2 years old.)

  When looking for a puppy, ask the breeder to show you the OFA certificates for the sire and dam of the litter. Look to see that the parents are graded as “good” or “excellent”.

  Even experienced dog people have ended up with a dog that has hip dysplasia because the breeder said the parents’ OFA was normal, but had actually forged the certificates. Personally, I feel it’s so important to check, that when I’m considering buying or breeding a dog, I long onto the OFA website and check the information. As long as you know a dog’s registered name (Canadian Kennel Club names are also searchable) and registration number, you can confirm that they really have been certified by the OFA.

  When a dog is OFA certified, it means that it appeared to have normal hips when evaluated by a vet (who is experienced in looking for hip dysplasia). Having said that, both parents or a litter may appear normal, while they still carry the genes that pass on hip dysplasia to their puppies. As of yet, the tests available can only look at whether the dog shows the disease, but cannot check for the underlying genes.

PennHip is another organization that checks breeding stock for hip dysplasia.

http://www.vet.upenn.edu/pennhip/

Breeders ideally will check the hip status of not only the parents of the litter, but also as many siblings of these dogs and as many littermates as possible in each generation. (You’ll hear the term “breadth” of pedigree used in describing this pattern of testing.) This gives the most complete picture of hip health in the breeding lines as possible.

  But even the most conscientious breeder may sell you a puppy that ends up being diagnosed with hip dysplasia. When buying a puppy, it’s a good idea if you ask your breeder in advance about whether they have a health guarantee that includes hip dysplasia. For example, the breeder may guarantee that if your dog is diagnosed with hip dysplasia, once you provide proof from a vet, they will take the affected dog back and provide you with a replacement puppy. Don’t accept anything unless it’s in writing.

Did you know that Glaucoma is a genetic disease associated with the Brittany breed? Brittany Spaniels are also prone to other heritable eye diseases. Many reputable breeders try to reduce the occurrence of eye problems in their litters by having the sire and dam CERF’d annually.

http://www.vmdb.org/cerf.html

  Eye diseases may not show up until the dog ages. So the dog must be rechecked annually for the CERF number to remain valid.

  A dog that has a valid CERF number appeared to have normal eyes when evaluated by a vet (who is certified as an experienced examiner by CERF.)  Having said that, both parents of a litter may appear normal, while they still carry the genes that pass on eye diseases to their puppies. As of yet, the tests available can only look at whether a dog shows the disease, but cannot check for the underlying genes.

 Anyone can go to the CERF website and do a search to find out a dog's CERF status, using information such as registered name, registration number, or CERF number.  They also offer a search by mail.  CERF posts many articles online so you can learn more about genetic eye disease in different breeds of dogs.

  For breeders that become members of CERF, CERF mails out a breed specific  list of people and dogs (grouped by age) who passed CERF clearances in the last few years. Also for sale is a list of guidelines for breeding dogs (within your breed of interest), based on CERF findings. We are members and find the information very worthwhile.

Epilepsy is another possible genetic problem associated with the Brittany breed. There are no tests available allowing the breeder to check for epilepsy (the disease or the genes that cause it) in their dogs. So in this case, even more than with other diseases, you will be relying on the integrity of the breeder i.e. you hope that they would be honest enough to report that epilepsy could be a problem if any of their dogs had seizures.

Patellar luxation may occur in Brittanys, although it seems to be more common in smaller toy breeds. (Brittanys are considered a “medium sized” dog.)  Patellar luxation is a loose fitting knee cap that may increase the chances of arthritis in the knee. It is more likely to occur in bow-legged dogs, as the force of the muscles tends to pull the knee cap towards the midline of the body. Definitive diagnosis cannot be made until 6 months of age. Many owners notice their dog has a problem during walks, when the dog’s knee cap gets stuck. The dog moves along in a strange manner, until the patella goes back into position. But a dog with patellar luxation may appear to move in a completely normal way most times. So the problem may go unnoticed by family meeting the sire and dam of a litter. Exercise may lessen the severity and surgery may be helpful in treating the condition.

In Control of Canine Genetic Diseases, by George A. Padgett, DVM (1998), there are 29 diseases documented in association with Brittany Spaniels. (They are grouped by type of disease e.g. cardiac disease, disease of the nervous system, etc., rather than frequency of occurrence).

1. Hypothyroidism

2. Hemophilia A

3. Hyperlipoproteinemia

4. Patent Ductus Arteriosus

5. Complement Deficiency

6. Discoid Lupus Erythematosus

7. Inguinal Hernia

8. Umbilical Hernia

9. Portosystemic Shunt (Extrahepatic)

10. Cerebellar Degeneration

11. Epilepsy

12. Sensory Ganglioradiculitis

13. Spinal Muscular Atrophy

14. Cataracts

15. Ectropion

16. Glaucoma

17. Imperforate Lacrimal Punctum (Epiphora)

18. Lens Luxation

19. Progressive Retinal Atrophy

20. Cryptorchidism

21. Calcinosis Circumscripta

22. Hip Dysplasia

23. Luxation of the Patella

24. Missing Teeth

25. Osteochodritis Dissecans

26. Osteochodritis of shoulder joint

27. Overshot: Upper jaw extends beyond lower jaw.

28. Undershot: Lower jaw extends beyond upper jaw

29. Hypospadias

  This source based his findings on numerous sources since the 1930's. The list includes any disease where even one case was scientifically documented in the breed. So these diseases aren’t all commonly found in the breed; it’s a list of the known possibilities, for reference.

  Control of Canine Genetic Diseases is a very useful reference book, with plentiful information about canine genetics applicable to breeding and it may be available at your Public Library. 

  To look up the basics on any canine disease, one good source of information is: The Merck Veterinary Manual, 8th Ed., 1998, ISBN #0-911910-29-8; which may also be available at your local library or bookstore.

The short answer is that not enough data is available for all the diseases.

  In the above article, I tried to focus on describing the diseases that seem to occur most frequently in Brittanys. Having said that, Brittanys tend to be very healthy as a breed, and many Brittanys are perfectly healthy, having none of the diseases listed.