Sanflorian Cavaliers

Our Cavaliers are screened annually by board-certified cardiologists and ophthalmologists. When they are at least
2 years of age, we have hip xray’s taken on all the dogs we hope to use for breeding. We submit these xray’s to
the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) for grading. Prior to breeding, all of our dogs are also examined by
our regular veterinarian to rule out luxating patellae and any other health problems. We do all of these screenings
because research has proven that making breeding decisions based on the results of these tests can reduce the risk
of the offspring developing certain conditions. We cannot emphasize enough, however, that no matter how much
testing is done, there can be no guarantees.

Once we have the results of screenings, we face the difficult task of deciding what to do with that information.

All breeds of dogs are prone to some genetic illness. According to Dr George Padgett’s “hierarchy of
disagreeableness” at least 5 of the conditions to which Cavaliers are predisposed can be classified as severe. To
prioritize how severe they are in comparison to each other, we consider the impact of the condition on the dogs’
quality of life, the availability and efficacy of treatments, and the emotional/financial impact of these conditions on
the dogs’ family. Every breeder is likely to weight these factors in a slightly different way based on personal
experience and resources. In our estimation, SM at any age and rapidly-progressing MVD are the most
devastating conditions we face.

We follow the protocol of breeding dogs whose hearts are clear at 2 1/2 years of age whose parents were clear at
5. We do not breed dogs known to have SM, nor a dog whose parents or grandparents are known to have it.
Where a dog is known to have a relative, but not ancestor, with SM, we proceed very cautiously.

Where hip, eye, or knee problems are found, we consider the severity of the problem along with the health of the
rest of the dog. For example, a dog with severe hip dysplasia should not be bred from, but a Cavalier with less than
ideal hips who is still heart clear at 8 years of age may, in our estimation, be a candidate to sire a litter.

In summary, we screen our dogs for health problems and use the results of those screenings to help plan matings
that will bring us closer to our goal of improving the health of our Cavaliers from one generation to the next.