A Survey of Fauve Health
by the Basset Fauve de Bretagne Club of America
A primary mission of the Basset Fauve de Bretagne Club of America (BFdBCA) Health Committee, chaired by Kristine Rae Olmsted, is to have the most current Fauve health information available. To accomplish this goal, the Committee in 2023 designed and fielded a health survey to collect general Fauve health information. The survey was programmed by Murrey Olmsted and data were collected over a 3-month period. Below are the primary findings.
Who are the Fauves in the survey?
- Health information was provided for 219 Fauves. Of those, 21% had been bred, 60% were spayed or neutered, and 68% were females.
- 58% of responding owners have one Fauve. The range of Fauves in a household was 0 to 14.
- 97% obtained their Fauve from a breeder; the rest were obtained via rescue. Most were born in the United States. Other countries of origin included New Zealand, Ireland, France, Australia, Germany, Canada, Finland, Denmark, Russia, Sweden, The Netherlands, Poland, and the UK.
How healthy are these Fauves?
The good news is that the Fauve is a healthy breed. Of the Fauves surveyed, 76% reported no health conditions. While this may seem low, a number of “issues” reported below included things like shyness, sensitive stomachs, and separation anxiety. Our Fauves are healthy!
A major survey objective was to identify diseases or conditions that appeared most frequently in our current Fauve population. When reviewing the data, please keep in mind that it is much more common for individuals to respond to surveys when there are problems than when there aren’t. Therefore, the true percentages of dogs experiencing health conditions are likely lower than reported here.
The reported health issues are shown in the chart on the right. Unfortunately, complete information was received for only 79 Fauves and the chart shows the percentage of those 79 Fauves with the indicated health issue.
Let’s take a closer look at each of these health issues.
Allergies. A few dogs had experienced skin problems due to allergies.
Behavioral. Some owners reported fearfulness, territorialism, separation anxiety, and shyness.
Benign tumors. Most of the reported cancer or tumors were benign in nature.
Cardiac. A few dogs had heart murmurs, AV block, or stenosis.
Digestive. Several dogs had food allergies or sensitivities as well as sensitive stomachs.
Ears. Those hound ears contributed to otitis and yeast infections.
Eyes. The major eye concern was primary open angle glaucoma. Thirty-nine dogs had been tested for POAG. Of those, 32 were clear, 5 were carriers, and 2 were affected.
Orthopedic. A few dogs were found to have patellar luxation, arthritis, and ‘turned out’ feet.
Seizures. One dog had experienced seizures that started at age 11 months.
Urinary. Urinary issues included urinary tract infections, kidney failure, incontinence, and stones.
Did you participate in the survey?
Health surveys like this provide an important snapshot of a breed’s health. When compared to previous surveys, it is possible to determine which disorders have been successfully reduced or eliminated in the breed, and which are increasing. This survey took, on average, 8 minutes to complete. Why might Fauve owners choose not to participate?
My dogs are healthy, so why bother? A healthy dog’s survey was the easiest to submit. This information is important because knowing how many Fauves are healthy helps us put the reported health problems into perspective. So please, the next time we field a health survey, tell us about your happy, healthy hounds.
If my kennel’s health issue(s) were made public, it would affect my reputation. The Health Committee recognizes that this concern might deter breeders, in particular, from participating in the survey. Therefore, we made clear that no specific kennel’s health issues can or will be made public by the dissemination of these data. There is no way for particular health issues to be linked to any given kennel or owner.
It’s nobody’s business. Not true – if you are a breeder, health issues in your kennel have the potential to become a widespread problem for other breeders and pet owners alike. Knowing that an issue has emerged or become prevalent in the breed is everyone’s business – for the good of the breed and for those of us who love them.
The Health Committee hopes to repeat this survey at periodic intervals in order to track the health of our hounds.
