Curly Health
The Curly Coated Retriever is one of the lesser-known retrievers with the Kennel Club registering only a handful of litters every year with an average litter size of 6.
The Curly Coated Retriever is a relatively healthy breed but of the health issues identified the top cause of death by disease in Curlies is cancer.
As with many breeds the cancers recorded are of not one specific type, but the data contains incidents of Lymphoma, Mast Cell tumours, Osteosarcomas and brain, lung and liver tumours. It should be understood however that no specific type stands out as a particular weakness.
The Kennel Club Breed Health Standard recommends that as Good Practice all Curly Coated Retriever breeders should undertake tests for hip and elbow scores, alongside prioritising genetic diversity (COI).
The Curly Coated Retriever Club would also encourage all breeders to undertake tests for Exercise Induced Collapse (EIC), Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) and Glycogen Storage Disease (GSD) where possible. These tests are explained further below.
Hip Dysplasia is a malformation of the hip joints causing pain and lameness. The breed ‘mean’ score is 10.2 and it is recommended that the sire and dam of litters should have hip scores lower than the average.
Elbow Dysplasia is a malformation of the elbow joint causing pain and lameness, ideally breeding stock should present with scores of 0:0.
Coefficient of Inbreeding (COI) The degree of inbreeding with dogs can be measured using a calculation called the coefficient of inbreeding. This determines the probability that two copies of a gene variant have been inherited from an ancestor common to both the mother and the father. The lower the degree of inbreeding, the lower the inbreeding coefficient. The higher the degree of inbreeding, the higher the risk is of dogs developing both known and unknown inherited disorders.
Exercise Induced Collapse (EIC) This condition leads to a defect in nerve communication during intense exercise. In affected dogs, certain factors can trigger the collapse including type of exercise, temperature and excitement.
Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) is an inherited disease of dogs that causes gradual loss of vision over a period of months or years.
Glycogen Storage Disease (GSD III) is caused by an enzyme deficiency that leads to abnormal glucose levels in tissues such as cardiac (heart), skeletal and smooth muscle. Clinical signs of affected dogs usually occur around 7 months of age and include vomiting, regurgitation, progressive muscle weakness, exercise intolerance and heart problems.
Before selecting a puppy, it is advised that prospective owners research the pedigrees of the stud dog and dam, and ask the breeder about the medical history of the parents, grandparents and great grandparents. It is wise to consider carefully whether to purchase a puppy if some of the diseases identified, or other previously unidentified diseases, are in the family line.
If when choosing a puppy any of the above tests have not been considered necessary by the breeder (and there may be good reasons) consider asking them to explain why. The breeder should be able to present any relevant certificates for the above tests for both parents of a litter if requested. Alternatively, the Kennel Club’s health test results finder should contain this information.
Below are some of the health problems reported to the Curly Coated Retriever Club that are not exclusive to the breed.
Allergies. These were various cases of stings, bites, mites and food intolerance.
Gastric Dilatation and Volvulus/GDV. Bloat, also known as gastric torsion, and also as gastric dilation volvulus (GDV) syndrome, is a life-threatening disorder that happens when a dog’s stomach fills with gas and becomes twisted. It mainly occurs in deep-chested breeds.
These conditions are true emergencies because a twisted stomach can reduce blood flow, causing death of the dog’s stomach wall (necrosis). This can lead to perforation and fatal peritonitis. Once the stomach has been partially decompressed and intravenous fluids are flowing and breathing is improved, the next step is invasive surgery.
Sometimes the vet may reposition the stomach and fasten it to the inner abdominal wall to help prevent GDV happening again. It is essential if you suspect your Curly is bloating or experiencing a torsion that you seek veterinary attention immediately.
Epilepsy/Seizures Epilepsy is a chronic condition that causes repeated seizures (which may be described by terms such as ‘fits’) and is the most common chronic long- term neurological disorder in dogs. A seizure occurs when there’s abnormal electrical activity in the brain that leads to sudden but short-lived changes in a dog’s behaviour and/or movement.
The three main symptoms of epileptic seizures are loss of voluntary control, often seen with convulsions (jerking or shaking movements and muscle twitching), irregular attacks that start and finish very suddenly, and attacks that appear very similar each time and have a repetitive clinical pattern.
Other conditions experienced by owners (that are not exclusive to the breed) for which there are currently no genetic or screening tests for sire or dam include:
• Entropion (turning in of eyelids)
• Distichiasis (double row of eyelashes)
• Cataract
• Alopecia (seasonal hair loss from flanks)
• Canine follicular dysplasia (hair loss)
Breed Health Database
The Curly Coated Retriever Club holds a breed database with data for a number of reported health conditions for individual dogs.
It is important that this information is kept up to date and any new health issues with the breed are reported. We therefore ask that owners submit health related information to the Club even if their pets have been healthy throughout their lives and the only condition reported is the cause of death.
Please contact the CCRC Health Co-ordinator Nina Parker-Miles
Kennel Club Health Data 2024
Here are the links to the latest updated health scheme and DNA test statistics that have been added to the Kennel Club Website.
Hip Scores
For a list of UK Curly Hip Scores please click here.
Exercise-Induced Collapse (EIC) – 4 May 2023
The Kennel Club has approved a new official DNA test reporting scheme for Exercise-Induced Collapse (EIC) following consultation with the breed’s health co-ordinator on behalf of the Curly Coated Retriever breed clubs.
EIC leads to a defect in nerve communication during intense exercise. In affected dogs, certain factors can trigger them to collapse, including excitement, some types of exercise and changes in temperature. First clinical signs are usually noticed between five months and three years of age, but they can also appear later in life.
This disease is described as an autosomal-recessive condition. For most breeds, this means that a dog must inherit two copies of an abnormal gene (one from its mother and one from its father) before its health is affected.
For Curly Coated Retrievers, this disease is more complex and researchers believe that environmental factors and/or other genetic influences can also contribute to whether a dog’s health is affected. Having other factors that influence whether or not a dog develops this condition means that their results are not as definitive as other tests. Instead, these results are a measure of risk. For example, having two copies of the abnormal gene may increase a dog’s risk but it doesn’t necessarily always result in clinical disease.
Since the impact of the EIC gene test for Curly Coated Retrievers is different to EIC seen in Labradors and Clumber Spaniels, results will be recorded as EIC_IncP. Tested dogs will be recorded on The Kennel Club systems as either:
Minimal risk (0)
These dogs do not have any copies of the EIC gene variant and are at minimal risk of developing the condition.
Minimal risk (1)
These dogs have one copy of the EIC gene variant, but are at minimal risk of developing the condition and may pass either one copy of the normal gene, or one copy of the abnormal gene on to future puppies.
Increased risk (2)
These dogs have two copies of the EIC gene variant and have an increased risk of developing EIC, and will pass a copy of the abnormal gene to all of their puppies.
The numbers assigned to each status indicate the number of copies of the EIC gene variant a dog has. Since this test for EIC evaluates a dog’s risk, rather than giving a definitive result, The Kennel Club cannot assign progeny as ‘hereditary clear’ and therefore results will only be recorded for individual dogs.
Test results will be added to the dog’s registration details which will trigger the publication of the result in the next available Breed Records Supplement and can also be viewed by visiting The Kennel Club website.
Results for dogs already tested can also be recorded, but owners will need to submit copies of the DNA certificates themselves. DNA test certificates should be scanned and emailed to Health Results (The Kennel Club).
To see the KC Announcement click here.
Breed Health Surveys
For the results of the Curly Coated Retriever Club and outside bodies Health Surveys into the breed in the UK please click here.