As DNA tests become available for milder conditions, breeders will be forced to avoid pro-ducing dogs with any diseases. “We are going to be pushed into making poor decisions for the breed, such as removing dogs from the gene pool for minor conditions, “Fortunately, ichthyosis does not affect a dog’s ability to hunt, retrieve, swim or participate in all kinds of activities. It is so important to not lose dogs with great qualities. A DNA test can be helpful as long as we use smart breeding.” 

“Breeders should not remove affected or carrier dogs from the gene pool,”  “This would reduce genetic diversity and create a super bottle neck. ”The best approach is to gradually reduce the mutation over six or seven generations. “You should consider the entire dog — all his or her qualities and characteristics. An affected or carrier dog that has much to contribute should be bred, although you should avoid breeding two affected dogs. Instead, breed outstanding affected or carrier dogs to clear dogs. This provides a choice of dogs to progressively decrease the frequency of the PNPLA1 gene mutation. ”The Golden Retriever Club Of America Health & Genetics Committee endorses this approach. 

Ichthyosis is a condition characterized by scaly skin and dandruff.  It does not cause itching, scabbing, or hot spots.  Ichthyosis is not  the same thing as allergies. In Golden Retrievers, it is usually very  mild.  However, in other breeds it can be much more severe. The Golden  Retriever Club of America says that it is a rare condition even though a  high percentage of dogs are testing positive for it. A few breeders are  making a big deal out of it. Most don’t test for it at all. We, along  with a growing number of other breeders are taking a middle of the road  approach. We do the test and use the results in making good breeding  decisions. At the same time, we feel that this is a minor issue and that  there are many other concerns that are more important.

What is Ichthyosis and How Does It Affect a Dog?

Ichthyosis is doggy dandruff. When a dog has symptoms, those symptoms  are usually a light flaking of skin. There can, however, be a wide  range of possibilities with regard to the severity of the condition.  Many  dogs that receive DNA results that  indicate that they are affected with Ichthyosis have no flakes or any  other kind of skin problem. Some dogs with Ichthyosis have a light  flaking of skin, most noticable when brushing. It does happen at times,  however, that Ichthyosis is bad enough for there to be a constant  flaking of skin. Even then, it is more of a nuisance to the owner than a  bother to the dog. A severe case could cause a dog to leave flakes of  skin wherever he sits or lies. These cases are not common. By far, the  majority of Golden cases are very mild.

Ichthyosis is not anything like allergies that many Golden Retrievers  suffer from. Ichthyosis very rarely bothers a dog. It doesn’t cause  itching or scabbing like allergies. Ichthyosis in Golden Retrievers  whether in its mildest form or its most severe is simply dandruff or  flaky skin.

The condition isn’t curable.  However, it is usually well-controlled  with brushing, mild shampoos and conditioners, and a diet high in fatty  acids. I have heard of several affected dogs who had flakes to totally  disappear after just a change in diet. The type dog food being fed  greatly affects the expression of Ichthyosis. 

Ichthyosis is a recessive trait.  This means that both parents have  to carry the Ichthyosis form of this particular gene for expression of  it.   If either parent is clear, there is no chance of any puppies being  affected. 

There are three possible results of the DNA test, affected, carrier, and clear. 

If both parents are carriers, 25% of the puppies will be affected.   In this case, 50% will be carriers, and 25% will be clear.   This does  not necessarily mean that 25% will be clinically affected.  This means  that a DNA test will show them to be carriers of 2 copies of the gene.   They could have clinical symptoms. 

In cases where one parent is a carrier and one is affected, 50% of  the puppies will be DNA affected.  Again, this doesn’t mean clinically  affected. 

If both parents are DNA affected, all puppies will be DNA affected. A  dog that is a carrier will have no chance of having the condition,  either by DNA test or clinically. A carrier is simply a dog with only  one copy of the defective allele for the gene. Two copies are needed for  a dog to be DNA affected.

The statistics on the percentage of Goldens with Ichthyosis according  to the DNA test would be quite disturbing if the statistics for the  number of Goldens with actual symptoms matched those DNA statistics. 

There is, however, a huge difference between the two. The DNA  statistics from Antigene, a testing company says that 30% of Goldens  are affected by Ichthyosis. However, the Golden Retriever Club of  America says that Ichthyosis is rare and that less than 1% of all skin  conditions in the breed are caused by Ichthyosis. Wow! What a difference  in the statistics! 1% of dogs with skin disorders or 30% of all dogs.   The  difference between the 1% and the 30% represents those dogs who have no  symptoms or with symptoms so mild that no one knows they are there.

Further information from Antegene says that 40% of Golden Retrievers  are carriers and only 30% are clear. When the number of dogs that are  either carriers or affected are broken down by the area of the world,  61% of Golden Retrievers in America are carriers, 52% in Australia are  carriers, and 83% of Golden Retrievers in Europe are carriers. 

For English Golden Retriever breeders trying to have breedings clear  of Ichthyosis, finding quality Goldens in the 17% that are clear of  Ichthyosis is a challenge. To do this would undoubtedly reduce the gene  pool tremendously and all for the sake of eliminating a condition that  the Golden Retriever Club of America says is rare and mild, for a  condition whose symptoms don’t bother the dog, for a condition that is  easily controlled by a healthy diet, regular brushing, and using mild  shampoos (all things that we should be doing for our dogs anyway), for a  condition that is responsible for less than 1% of all skin conditions  in Golden Retrievers, and for a condition that many veterinarians have  never heard of.

I have seen in talking to others and in reading that dogs with  clinical cases of Ichthyosis do tend to reproduce those symptoms.  Also,  dogs with a positive DNA test but with no symptoms tend to produce  symptom-free puppies. Keeping this fact in view is key in wisely using  the DNA test. 

The more prudent approach to breeding away from Ichthyosis is to  breed unclear dogs in lines who have clinical cases of Ichthyosis only  to clear dogs, to pursue a goal of eliminating the condition all  together over 6 -8 generations, to use the DNA test in making good  breeding decisions, to continue doing the test and using the results  wisely, to be open and honest to the public about what you have, and to  use good common sense about it realizing that there are other issues in  our breed that need greater attention. 

If too much importance is focused  on this mild skin condition, our breed would have 1% less skin problems  but would be full of dogs with other health problems, poor  temperaments, narrow unsightly heads, and poor conformations.

"To summarize, current research is telling us to consider:

• Starting early (before 2 years old)—reduces dystocia risk by almost 60%
• Breeding back-to-back—reduces pyometra, mammary cancer, and endometriosis risks
• Retiring early (ideally by 4, but not always)— reduces pyometra, mammary cancer, and endometriosis risks
• This is what we practice at Charolias Golden Retrievers
• FOR COMPLETE EXPLANATIONS... Continue reading!!!!!!

In order to follow the "Science" in these procedures, we have to be HANDS ON when we have a Whelping,....We have to and do keep all of our dogs in Great condition. 100 % on track with any veterinary services. 

Back in the day best practice for breeding was to wait until a dog was at least 2-4 years old, had at least 3 heat cycles to breed and also to skip at least 1 cycle between litters. 

Like many other things we used to do, when science is finally applied to our profession and we get information from good data, we realize that we could be doing better. 

We were wrong back then.

Let’s start with back-to-back breeding, or breeding without skipping a heat cycle. 

Traditionally, we thought that bitches needed a “break” between litters for their optimum health. 

That’s no longer considered best practice, for several reasons. 

First, when you look at the reproductive and nursing cycle of a dog and their healing needs, it’s fairly comparable to a human having a baby every 2 years or so. 

While I emphasize frequently that dogs are not people, I think that as an analogy this can be helpful to some who find initial mental resistance with breeding a bitch as frequently as twice a year.   

Next is the effect of progesterone on the uterus. One of the most vocal proponents of breeding back-to-back is well-known reproductive specialist Dr. Robert Hutchinson.   

In his seminars, Dr. Hutchinson explains that the progesterone level in the bitch remains elevated for two months after ovulation whether or not she has a pregnancy. This is a critical fact, since progesterone can be inflammatory to the lining of the uterus.   

When a bitch cycles and there’s no pregnancy, the uterine lining thickens from the inflammatory effects of progesterone and that can increase the risk of infection (pyometra) and endometriosis. In fact, while most of us think of pyometra as a bacterial disease, Dr. Hutchinson says it’s actually an inflammatory disease, with the bacterial infection being a secondary factor.[1] In Dr. Hutchinson’s own words, the progesterone “hammers the uterine lining for 60-plus days.”[2]  

An additional excerpt from the same seminar: 

 It's suggested not to skip a season, because we have been preserving the uterus from the effects of progesterone; what would be the benefit of exposing her uterus to two months of progesterone?  Progesterone's effect on the uterine lining is the reason why bitches six and over have a 33.3 percent less chance of conceiving than bitches under 6 years of age.

(Dr. Hutchinson also says that bitches should be spayed as soon as they no longer will be bred to help avoid future pyometra and other problems. Research shows that spaying also helps prevent mammary cancer, particularly when done by 4 years of age.)  

At the risk of repeating myself once again, dogs are not humans, and while human females shed the lining of their uteruses every cycle, dogs only shed their uterine lining when whelping. As linings stack up, they lose flexibility and elasticity, which can also contribute to fertility problems as that can affect the ability of eggs to attach.  

So his advice it to breed your bitches young and breed back-to-back and not to skip cycles unless you have a medical reason to do so.  

To add to this, skipping a pregnancy puts your bitch at risk for a phantom, or pseudo pregnancy—a false pregnancy.[3] False pregnancies look just like regular pregnancies, except there are no puppies. Your bitch, however, will gain weight, nest, have enlarged teats, and lactate.[4] But she won’t shed her uterine lining.  False pregnancies increase risk of mammary cancers in dogs. 

False pregnancies are common in dogs because they provided an evolutionary advantage to wild canid packs—wolves, coyotes, and wild dogs. If a bitch in a pack has a false pregnancy, that means she will lactate and can help nurse the pups of other females.  

Gestation and nursing use a lot of energy and require increased calories. Sometimes, the physiological burden of carrying and nursing a litter can deplete the fat and nutrient stores of a dam. Depending on her recovery, you may or may not want to consider skipping a cycle. 

Some people believe that because their bitches blow their coats that means they need more recovery time. Most often blown coats have less to do with recovery and more to do with lack of adequate calories and other nutrients during gestation and nursing.  

I always stress the importance of consulting a qualified reproductive veterinarian, and this is absolutely no exception. The opinion of a good repro vet should be your number one consideration for whether to breed back-to-back or skip a cycle, and you should have your bitch evaluated by your repro vet before every breeding.   

Other people also feel a bitch may need a break after a C-section. Again, talk to your vet. She can examine your dog and give a veterinary opinion on whether she should be bred or rested.   

When faced with additional costs, it might seem “fine” to cut corners like this and just breed if your bitch seems fine to you, but the cost of a visit is well worth it as the health and lives of my bitch and her puppies depend so much on how suitable she is for breeding at a given time.   

Besides breeding back-to-back, Dr. Hutchinson also advises to start breeding at a young age.[2] While I can’t find any reference where Dr. Hutchinson gives a specific age to start, there are a couple of studies on the subject.   

A Cornell University study presented at a Theriogenology conference in 2016 studied dystocia (difficult birth) in almost 700 litters. The study showed that bitches having their first litter after 2 years of age were 2.4 times more likely to experience dystocia compared to those having their first litter between 1 and 2 years of age.[6] Dystocia risk decreased with age and successive litters. Dr Cornelius had a journal paper in 2019 on dystocia risk, however the 2019 paper did not include age of first litter data.[7]  

(While not related to this post topic, I think it’s important to note that in the 2019 study, litter size was also highly correlated to dystocia, and dystocia is highly correlated to having stillborn puppies. According to this study, we’re looking for the “goldilocks” zone with litters—between 5 and 9 puppies—if we want to reduce risk of dystocia and stillbirth.)

There are also good reasons to wait until later to breed. In some cases, these reasons have nothing to do with the health of the bitch, although some do.

Examples for reasons to consider breeding later include

• Health concerns for diseases or conditions that only appear later in life and cannot be cleared through other means of testing (such as Addison's disease, some seizure disorders, some eye disorder, some heart disorders).  If you have a breed or line that is prone to some of these disorders, you may want to consider waiting to breed until your dogs are past a certain age to help reduce the breeding of dogs with these conditions.
• Dogs bred for conformation competition will need to be evaluated at 2 years of age or older. This is not a health concern for either parents or puppies, but it is a goal for some breeders.
• Working dogs are often not bred until titled. Again, this is not a health issue but is important to some breeders.

There is no one set age recommendation for when to stop breeding that I have ever been aware of. It’s different for each bitch, and you should consult your repro vet at each breeding to determine with her whether it’s advisable to keep breeding your bitch or if it may be time for retirement.   

In general, it’s been my experience that reproductive advice about when to stop breeding has been fairly consistent over the last 20 years: Stop breeding when litter size decreases or problems start to arise.   Personally, I prefer to stop breeding BEFORE problems arise. I would rather miss out on having one last litter than risking dystocia or other problems. Adding to this the information from Dr. Hutchinson about trying to start early, breed back-to-back, then retire early, I try to retire my bitches by 4. I’ve had occasion to go a little past that, but that’s the exception not the norm and it was done under the close guidance of my reproductive veterinarian.   

Hopefully, there’s enough information in here for you to go talk to your repro vet and decide where your own limits lie.   

To summarize, current research is telling us to consider:

• Starting early (before 2 years old)—reduces dystocia risk by almost 60%[6]
• Breeding back-to-back—reduces pyometra, mammary cancer, and endometriosis risks[1-3,5]
• Retiring early (ideally by 4, but not always)— reduces pyometra, mammary cancer, and endometriosis risks[1-3]

These are generalizations, not specific recommendations for you and your program. These generalizations are all subject to advice of your repro vet on the condition of each individual dog, they are not hard and fast rules, and as responsible breeders we must always consider the welfare of the bitch above all else.