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The IALA/ALAA Paw Rewards Program and the ALAA Health testing recommendations were written with renowned breeding specialist
Dr. Iyampillai Arun, DVM, PA .
ALAA Breeder Members are rewarded Silver or Golden Paws next to their breeder listings as a direct result of the health testing performed
in their individual programs. Contact the ALAA dog registrar for details. The Rewards program is voluntary and member breeders are expected to maintain their own status by keeping up to date on
health testing for their paw listing. Paw logos will be removed from a members listing if at anytime they are not current on testing to this status or requested a formal exemption (via a letter to
and reply from the dog registrar or Quality Assurance officer) due to a specific case.
Silver Paw Rewarded to breeder members in good standing
that have submitted their region specific Code of Ethics, registered all their breeding dogs and their offspring
with their Sister Association. And have submitted Hip and Elbow exams (meeting the ALAA requirements for a paw) and one normal CERF Eye test to the ALAA on all breeding
dogs of breeding age or 12 months which ever comes first will be granted one silver paw.
Golden Paw
Breeder members in good standing that have submitted their region specific Code of Ethics, registered all their breeding
dogs and their offspring with their Sister Association. Submitted Hip and Elbow, one Eye and a CBC BLOOD SCREENING
(this is a CBC/blood screening, and sent out to a lab NOT run in house) including Thyroid panel: complete thyroid
antibody profile required, free T4, TSH and TgAA this is the OFA Thyroid certification panel detailed below, the dog must be tested every 18 months, to the ALAA on all breeding
dogs of breeding age or 12 months which ever comes first will receive one silver and one gold paw.
Notes on receiving a optional paw:
- If you are working with Antech Diagnostics you need to run the Superchem CBC, SA020 and the Thyroid Profile 6, SA410.
If you are doing the Dr. Dodds, CBC and Thyroid Panel you must run the Profile 7200 with add on TgAA. Either test is acceptable, Dr. Dodds uses
Antech but gives a personal reading and consult of the results, direct to Antech is more common with Vets. Ask for the OFA thyroid certification panel plus the full CBC.
- If you have submitted DNA parentage identification profiles on all breeding dogs an IALA/ALAA member may place the following
statement on their website. "Our breeding dogs are IALA/ALAA DNA profiled. All of our breeding dogs have been DNA'd and their DNA
profiles have been submitted to the IALA/ALAA. This has been done to protect the buyer and support parentage identification.
The IALA/ALAA strongly recommends this profiling of its' members and we are proud to be an IALA/ALAA/DNA breeder."
- If a Breeder Member has requested to be in the optional Paw Program:
- It is up to the individual Breeder Member who has opted into the Paw Program to keep current on all the program requirements or the paw will be removed until the paw level testing is completed.
- Yearly and random audits will be performed. However, it is up to the Breeder Member to maintain current standing. If at anytime current status is not maintained, it is assumed that tests have been performed but not yet received by the ALAA Dog Registrar. The breeder will receive a notice to send in current tests within 14 days. If tests are not received within 14 days the paw will be removed until tests are received. Once tests are received the paw will be reinstated.
- All dogs in a Breeder Member's program of breeding age or breeding must meet the paw level of the Breeder Member or the paw will be removed until the paw level testing is completed.
- Dogs not yet of breeding age or breeding due to initial purchase may not whelp/have litters registered until that dog meets the requirements of the paw level of the Breeder Member. Examples below:
- If a dog is of breeding age and does not yet have testing to meet the paw level, the breeder must request an exemption from the Dog Registrar stating the dog will not have a litter until all paw level testing is produced. An exemption will be granted as long as the dog does not whelp until testing is completed.
- If a dog is purchased in whelp, a contract of the purchase agreement must be sent to the Dog Registrar stating the dog was purchased in whelp. An exemption will be granted for this whelp only.
- If dog has been purchased younger than breeding age and is completing testing at an age over one year, the breeder must request an exemption from the Dog Registrar. An exemption will be granted as long as the dog does not whelp a litter prior to testing.
- As a requirement of the Code of Ethics all dogs of any breed bred by an ALAA Breeder Member must meet the requirements of membership. Therefore, for a Breeder Member to have a paw, all dogs of ANY breed bred by the member must meet the paw level requirements of the ALAA and be sent to the ALAA Dog Registrar. These dogs of other breeds are not registered but records are kept on file
- Please note specific requirements and levels are listed on the ALAA website under ALAA Health Testing.
- The paw rewards will be updated yearly to include current recommendations of the ALAA, breeders with paws (gold or silver) will receive at least 6 months notice as to changes in requirements to allow time for additional testing.
It is suggest, and required for gold paw status, that ALAA Breeders test to OFA thyroid certification as follows:
General Procedures
Purposes - To identify those dogs that are phenotypically normal for breeding programs and to
gather data on the genetic disease - autoimmune thyroiditis.
Examination and Classification - Each dog is to be examined by an attending veterinarian and
have a serum sample sent to an OFA approved laboratory for testing according to the available
application and general information instructions (see website http://www.offa.org) . The
laboratory fee will be determined by the approved laboratory. Check with the referral laboratory
for special requirements for sample handling and tests for registry purposes. Samples received
within 48 hours do not have temperature requirements, but those in shipment for a longer period
of time must be received at 60oF or less.
Certification - A breed database number will be issued by OFA on all dogs found to be normal at
12 months of age or older. Ages will be used in the certification process since the classification
can change as the dog ages and autoimmune disease progresses. It is recommended that
reexamination occur every 18 months.
Preliminary evaluation - Evaluation of dogs under 12 months of age can be performed for private
use of the owner since a few dogs are already positive at that age. However, certification will not
be possible at that age.
Dogs with autoimmune thyroiditis - All data, whether normal or abnormal, is to be submitted for
purposes of completeness. There is no OFA fee for entering an abnormal evaluation of the
thyroid in the data bank. Information on results determined to be positive or equivocal will not
be made public without the explicit written permission of the owner or agent.
Thyroid abnormalities fall into several categories - Two types will be defined by the registry.
- ·Autoimmune Thyroiditis
- ·Idiopathically Reduced Thyroid Function
Autoimmune thyroiditis is known to be heritable. Those dogs with laboratory results that are questionable - therefore, not definitive, will be
considered as equivocal. It is recommended that the test be repeated in 3-6 months.
Classification: The method for classifying the thyroid status will be accomplished using state of the art assay
methodology.
Indices of thyroiditis:
- Free T4 by dialysis (FT4) - This procedure is considered to be the "gold standard" for
assessment of the thyroid's production and cellular availability of thyroxine. FT4D
concentration is expected to be decreased in dogs with the thyroid dysfunction due to
autoimmune thyroiditis. In 2006 the FT4D assay was no longer available and the Free T4 2
step procedure was substituted for registry purposes. The thyroid committee of OFA will
decide whether or not to continue using FT4-2s if a substitute dialysis procedure becomes
available.
- Canine Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (cTSH) - This procedure helps determine the site of
the lesion in cases of hypothyroidism. In autoimmune thyroiditis the lesion is at the level of
the thyroid and the pituitary gland functions normally. The cTSH concentration is expected
to be abnormally elevated in dogs with thyroid atrophy from autoimmune thyroiditis.
- Thyroglobulin Autoantibodies (TgAA) - This procedure is an indication of the presence of
the autoimmune process in the dog's thyroid. For the NSB corrected TgAA, <10 = negative, 10 to 25 = inconclusive, and
>25 = positive.
Certification
- Normal
- FT4 Within normal range
- cTSH Within normal range
- TgAA Negative (10 = negative, 10 to 25 = inconclusive)
- Positive autoimmune thyroiditis
- FT4 Less than normal range
- cTSH Greater than normal range
- TgAA Positive (10 to 25 = inconclusive, >25 = positive)
- Positive compensative autoimmune thyroiditis
- FT4 Within normal range
- cTSH Greater than normal range or equal to normal range
- TgAA Positive (10 to 25 = inconclusive, >25 = positive)
- Idiopathically reduced thyroid function
- FT4 Less than normal range
- cTSH Greater than normal range
- All other results are considered equivocal
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Australian Labradoodle Association of America, Inc.