Stocklore Descendants
The Stocklore Dalmatian bloodline was created by geneticist and
Dalmatian breeder, Robert Schaible Ph D
, in an effort to
correct a serious genetic problem in the breed. As early as
1916, scientists noted that Dalmatians had very high levels of
uric acid in their urine, making them prone to form bladder
stones. Over the years, researchers determined the ability to
produce normal levels of uric acid was controlled by a single
gene. Efforts were made to locate Dalmatians with normal levels
of uric acid. None were ever found leading scientists to believe
that all purebred Dalmatians have a mutated form of the gene
that controls uric acid levels. So, Dr. Schaible developed a
plan to transfer the normal gene from another breed to the
Dalmatian.
The gene transfer was done by a process known as backcrossing. Starting in 1973, with the breeding of a Dalmatian to a Pointer, with normal levels of uric acid, Dr. Schaible bred generation after generation of offspring back to purebred Dalmatians. In each generation he tested the offspring and used only those with normal levels of uric to produce the next generation. After four generations of backcrossing to Dalmatians, the dogs were 31/32 purebred and had all the characteristics of Dalmatians except for the uric acid defect.
At that point, Dr. Schaible contacted the American Kennel Club (AKC) to request registration for two of his dogs. In 1981, after a careful review of all the data from Dr. Schaible's backcross breeding program, the AKC
registered two of his dogs, Stocklore
Stipples and Stocklore Linus, as purebred Dalmatians and the
President of the AKC issued the following statement: "If there
is a logical, scientific way to correct genetic health problems
associated with certain breed traits and still preserve the
integrity of the breed standard, it is incumbent upon the
American Kennel Club to lead the way."
Unfortunately, Dr. Schaible's remarkable achievement was not well understood at the time and the registration of his dogs caused considerable controversy in Dalmatian breeding circles. In 1984, under pressure from members of the Dalmatian Club of America (DCA), the AKC informed Dr. Schaible they would not register any more Dalmatians from his line as long as DCA objected to them. So, Dr. Schaible turned to the United Kennel Club (UKC) to register his dogs.
Since most Dalmatians in the United States are registered with the AKC, the Stocklore Dalmatians were effectively isolated from the main Dalmatian gene pool. In the late1980s and early 1990s a few other Dalmatian breeders bred their AKC Dalmatians to Stocklore Dalmatians to produce pups with low uric acid. The most notable of those breeders were Holly Nelson, DVM and Joanne Nash. Nelson and Nash worked hard to convince fellow Dalmatian breeders about the health advantages of the Stocklore bloodline.
Unfortunately, Dr. Nelson, who was in her early 40s, died suddenly in 1990. Without Nelson's enthusiastic support for the project interest faded. For the next 20 years Dr. Schaible kept his breeding program going with little help or support from fellow Dalmatian breeders. Eventually the last of his females with normal levels of uric acid grew old and died leaving no daughters behind to replace her.
At the beginning of 2005 all that remained of the Stocklore bloodline, that began with so much promise, were two middle aged stud dogs, frozen semen from two deceased stud dogs, a few unneutered males living in pet homes with people who had no interest in breeding.
A breeding program with no females is in serious trouble. So it was cause for celebration when, in March 2005, one of Dr. Schaible's stud dogs was bred to an AKC female and produced two female pups with normal levels of uric acid. Dr. Schaible kept one of the pups and sent the other to Denise Powell, an experienced Dalmatian breeder in California. Powell named her pup Holly, in memory of Holly Nelson and picked up Nelson's work of advocating for Stocklore Dalmatians.
In an interesting twist of fate, the Dalmatian Club of America (DCA) sponsored a study in 2005 - 2006 in which ultrasound was to be used to detect bladder stones in Dalmatians. Ultrasounding was done during an annual event when club members from all over get together for several days of seminars, meetings and competitive dog events. So the Dalmatians in the study were from what are considered to be the best bloodlines and owned by people with more than a passing interest in the breed.
Of the 377 Dalmatians that took part in the study 173 were female, 202 were male and gender was not reported on two. 25.4% if the females and 71.3% of the males had stones or the kind of sediment that can become stones in their bladders. Even though DCA has put a great deal of effort, over many years, into making Dal owners aware of the fact that virtually all Dalmatians have high levels of uric acid in their urine which can lead to the formation of urate stones, members were stunned by the results of the study.
The study shattered the widely held belief that only a small percentage of Dalmatians form stones and that stones can be prevented through a combination of strict diet, careful monitoring of water intake and giving the dogs frequent opportunities to urinate. The researchers concluded their report on the study by saying "Since all purebred Dalmatians are homozygous recessive for the huu gene responsible for hyperuricosuria, (high levels of uric acid in the urine), it is not possible for breeders to select for normal uric acid production in this gene pool. For breeders desiring to correct this defect, continued consideration of the Dalmatian x Pointer backcross project is certainly warranted."
Adding to the buzz about Dr.Schaible's decades old breeding program, was an announcement that the gene that controls urine uric acid levels had been identified by research team at the University of California at Davis. In 2007 DCA invited the principal researcher, Danika Bannasch, DVM, PhD to give a talk about her work at the club's annual get together. During her talk, Dr Bannasch explained how DNA samples from descendants of Dr. Schaible's backcross program had been the key to identifying the gene for normal and the mutation that causes Dalmatians to have high levels of uric acid.
In the past few years Stocklore Dalmatians have been brought back from the verge of extinction and there is a growing community of Dalmatian lovers who are dedicated to preserving the unique bloodline created by Dr. Schaible.
Today all Stocklore Dalmatians and their descendants are registered with
the UKC. But Stocklore Dalmatians are routinely bred to AKC
Dalmatians because most Dalmatians in the United States are
still registered with the AKC. Puppies from such "mixed
marriages" are registered with the UKC.
More and more, people who are in the market for Dalmatian puppies are seeking out breeders of UKC Dalmatians because of their dedication to producing healthy pets.
You can learn more about the uric acid defect in Dalmatian, Dr Schaible and the line he created on the following websites.
http://www.news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=8853
www.dalmatianheritage.com/about/schaible_research.htm
www.luadalmatians.com
, in an effort to
correct a serious genetic problem in the breed. As early as
1916, scientists noted that Dalmatians had very high levels of
uric acid in their urine, making them prone to form bladder
stones. Over the years, researchers determined the ability to
produce normal levels of uric acid was controlled by a single
gene. Efforts were made to locate Dalmatians with normal levels
of uric acid. None were ever found leading scientists to believe
that all purebred Dalmatians have a mutated form of the gene
that controls uric acid levels. So, Dr. Schaible developed a
plan to transfer the normal gene from another breed to the
Dalmatian.The gene transfer was done by a process known as backcrossing. Starting in 1973, with the breeding of a Dalmatian to a Pointer, with normal levels of uric acid, Dr. Schaible bred generation after generation of offspring back to purebred Dalmatians. In each generation he tested the offspring and used only those with normal levels of uric to produce the next generation. After four generations of backcrossing to Dalmatians, the dogs were 31/32 purebred and had all the characteristics of Dalmatians except for the uric acid defect.
At that point, Dr. Schaible contacted the American Kennel Club (AKC) to request registration for two of his dogs. In 1981, after a careful review of all the data from Dr. Schaible's backcross breeding program, the AKC
registered two of his dogs, Stocklore
Stipples and Stocklore Linus, as purebred Dalmatians and the
President of the AKC issued the following statement: "If there
is a logical, scientific way to correct genetic health problems
associated with certain breed traits and still preserve the
integrity of the breed standard, it is incumbent upon the
American Kennel Club to lead the way."Unfortunately, Dr. Schaible's remarkable achievement was not well understood at the time and the registration of his dogs caused considerable controversy in Dalmatian breeding circles. In 1984, under pressure from members of the Dalmatian Club of America (DCA), the AKC informed Dr. Schaible they would not register any more Dalmatians from his line as long as DCA objected to them. So, Dr. Schaible turned to the United Kennel Club (UKC) to register his dogs.
Since most Dalmatians in the United States are registered with the AKC, the Stocklore Dalmatians were effectively isolated from the main Dalmatian gene pool. In the late1980s and early 1990s a few other Dalmatian breeders bred their AKC Dalmatians to Stocklore Dalmatians to produce pups with low uric acid. The most notable of those breeders were Holly Nelson, DVM and Joanne Nash. Nelson and Nash worked hard to convince fellow Dalmatian breeders about the health advantages of the Stocklore bloodline.
Unfortunately, Dr. Nelson, who was in her early 40s, died suddenly in 1990. Without Nelson's enthusiastic support for the project interest faded. For the next 20 years Dr. Schaible kept his breeding program going with little help or support from fellow Dalmatian breeders. Eventually the last of his females with normal levels of uric acid grew old and died leaving no daughters behind to replace her.
At the beginning of 2005 all that remained of the Stocklore bloodline, that began with so much promise, were two middle aged stud dogs, frozen semen from two deceased stud dogs, a few unneutered males living in pet homes with people who had no interest in breeding.
A breeding program with no females is in serious trouble. So it was cause for celebration when, in March 2005, one of Dr. Schaible's stud dogs was bred to an AKC female and produced two female pups with normal levels of uric acid. Dr. Schaible kept one of the pups and sent the other to Denise Powell, an experienced Dalmatian breeder in California. Powell named her pup Holly, in memory of Holly Nelson and picked up Nelson's work of advocating for Stocklore Dalmatians.
In an interesting twist of fate, the Dalmatian Club of America (DCA) sponsored a study in 2005 - 2006 in which ultrasound was to be used to detect bladder stones in Dalmatians. Ultrasounding was done during an annual event when club members from all over get together for several days of seminars, meetings and competitive dog events. So the Dalmatians in the study were from what are considered to be the best bloodlines and owned by people with more than a passing interest in the breed.
Of the 377 Dalmatians that took part in the study 173 were female, 202 were male and gender was not reported on two. 25.4% if the females and 71.3% of the males had stones or the kind of sediment that can become stones in their bladders. Even though DCA has put a great deal of effort, over many years, into making Dal owners aware of the fact that virtually all Dalmatians have high levels of uric acid in their urine which can lead to the formation of urate stones, members were stunned by the results of the study.
The study shattered the widely held belief that only a small percentage of Dalmatians form stones and that stones can be prevented through a combination of strict diet, careful monitoring of water intake and giving the dogs frequent opportunities to urinate. The researchers concluded their report on the study by saying "Since all purebred Dalmatians are homozygous recessive for the huu gene responsible for hyperuricosuria, (high levels of uric acid in the urine), it is not possible for breeders to select for normal uric acid production in this gene pool. For breeders desiring to correct this defect, continued consideration of the Dalmatian x Pointer backcross project is certainly warranted."
Adding to the buzz about Dr.Schaible's decades old breeding program, was an announcement that the gene that controls urine uric acid levels had been identified by research team at the University of California at Davis. In 2007 DCA invited the principal researcher, Danika Bannasch, DVM, PhD to give a talk about her work at the club's annual get together. During her talk, Dr Bannasch explained how DNA samples from descendants of Dr. Schaible's backcross program had been the key to identifying the gene for normal and the mutation that causes Dalmatians to have high levels of uric acid.
In the past few years Stocklore Dalmatians have been brought back from the verge of extinction and there is a growing community of Dalmatian lovers who are dedicated to preserving the unique bloodline created by Dr. Schaible.
Today all Stocklore Dalmatians and their descendants are registered with
the UKC. But Stocklore Dalmatians are routinely bred to AKC
Dalmatians because most Dalmatians in the United States are
still registered with the AKC. Puppies from such "mixed
marriages" are registered with the UKC.More and more, people who are in the market for Dalmatian puppies are seeking out breeders of UKC Dalmatians because of their dedication to producing healthy pets.
You can learn more about the uric acid defect in Dalmatian, Dr Schaible and the line he created on the following websites.
http://www.news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=8853
www.dalmatianheritage.com/about/schaible_research.htm
www.luadalmatians.com