TURNIN’ THE HERD CUT TO THE CHASE (DUFFY)

MDR1 INFORMATION

We always want to open and honest about our dogs, and when he got the results back from Duffy, we saw he was a carrier for the MDR1 Gene, which sounded scary for us, because no one wants to hear something is wrong with their pet, but the more we researched about it, the more relief we felt. And now we are even more careful to make sure his litters are as healthy as can be!

Taken directly from https://kickingkaussies.com/genetics.com

A Normal "normal" result means that your dog does not have the mutation that causes the associated genetic disease. A Carrier "carrier" result indicates that your dog has inherited one copy of the mutation that has been reported to cause this genetic disease. Your dog may not be clinically affected by this mutation because two copies of the mutation are usually required to cause disease. An At-Risk "at-risk" result indicates that your dog may have inherited one or two copies of the mutation that has been reported to cause this genetic disease. Depending on the mode of genetic inheritance for this particular disease, inheriting one or two mutant copies of the gene may result in the disease.

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Each genetic test from Paw Print Genetics can have 1 of 3 results. 

• Normal (clear): also seen as n/n

  • Indicates the dog is neither affected nor a carrier for the disease and have no increased risk of having affected pups. 

• Carrier: also seen as "n/m" or "m/n" or "one mutant copy"

  • Indicates the dog carries one copy of the mutation for this disease. Although this dog will not be clinically affected, if bred with another "carrier" for this disease the pairing produce affected puppies. To avoid producing "affected" puppies, this dog should only be bred with dogs that are "normal (clear)" of this disease. 

• Affected: also seen as "m/m" or "two copies" or "two mutant copies"

  • Indicates this dog carries two copies of the mutation for this disease and is at high risk for having clinical symptoms of this disease. This dog should not be bred as the offspring are at high risk for being carriers or being affected by this disease. 

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According to Paw Print Genetics "Multidrug Resistance 1, also called MDR1, is an inherited condition affecting several breeds of dogs, especially herding dogs such as the Australian Shepherd. The Mutation in the ABCB1 gene associated with MDR1 causes dysfunction of P-glycoprotein, which is responsible for removing certain drugs and toxins from the body. Clinical signs are most commonly associated with distribution of the drug in the central nervous system. If an at-risk dog is treated with one of several common drugs (see below*), they are at risk of developing neurologic symptoms that could range from tremors, excess salivation, anorexia and blindness to coma and even death. Because of the defective ability to metabolize specific drugs, these drugs can be lethal even at low doses. The MDR1 mutation does not cause adverse effects in dogs unless the dog is exposed to these drugs. Therefore, veterinarians should be notified when a dog is at risk for multidrug resistance 1 prior to administration of any medications. Though the exact frequency in the overall Australian Shepherd population is unknown, in North America 37% out of 1,421 Australian Shepherds were carriers and 10% were at-risk. In Europe, 48% out of 907 Australian Shepherds were carriers and 11% were at-risk. Worldwide, the percentage of carriers ranges from 25% to 44% and the percentage of Australian Shepherds at-risk for MDR1 ranges from 10% to 25%.