Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Deafness and coat color links in Border Collie puppies
By De Risio, Luisa et al.·Published in Veterinary journal (London, England : 1997)·2011·Neurology/Neurosurgery Unit, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Prevalence, heritability and genetic correlations of congenital sensorineural deafness and pigmentation phenotypes in the Border Collie.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of Border Collie puppies was tested for hearing issues, and it was found that 97.6% had normal hearing, while 2% were deaf in one ear and 0.4% were deaf in both ears. The study showed that congenital sensorineural deafness (CSD) has a genetic basis, meaning it can run in families. Additionally, some genes related to deafness also affect coat and eye color. This information can help breeders make informed decisions to reduce the occurrence of deafness in future litters.
People also search for: Border Collie deafness symptoms · congenital deafness in puppies · Border Collie coat color genetics
Abstract
The objectives of this study were to estimate prevalence, heritability and genetic correlations of congenital sensorineural deafness (CSD) and pigmentation phenotypes in the Border Collie. Entire litters of Border Collies that presented to the Animal Health Trust (1994-2008) for assessment of hearing status by brain stem auditory evoked response (BAER) at 4-10 weeks of age were included. Heritability and genetic correlations were estimated using residual maximum likelihood (REML). Of 4143 puppies that met the inclusion criteria, 97.6% had normal hearing status, 2.0% were unilaterally deaf and 0.4% were bilaterally deaf. Heritability of deafness as a trichotomous trait (normal/unilaterally deaf/bilaterally deaf) was estimated at 0.42 using multivariate analysis. Genetic correlations of deafness with iris colour and merle coat colour were 0.58 and 0.26, respectively. These results indicate that there is a significant genetic effect on CSD in Border Collies and that some of the genes determining deafness also influence pigmentation phenotypes.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20570536/