Before we had the linked marker test, all an owner or breeder could do was strip test their dog's urine for glucose monthly after the age of 3 years old and hope that the dog never became symptomatic. Responsible breeders tracked their puppies and their health so they knew what they were producing, they used older stud dogs, and they shared their information with people who had related dogs. When a researcher expressed an interest in working with the basenji community, the responsible breeders who had been hit with Fanconi in their lines stepped up and donated their dogs' blood for the DNA databank and supplied thorough health information and pedigree information their dogs. This resulted in a family group of over 200 dogs that allowed the researchers to locate a marker for the disease. Thanks to the now thousands of samples that the researchers have, they continue to narrow in on the gene and we will hopefully have a direct gene test in years to come.
The DNA Marker Test was released on July 17, 2007 so all basenji breeders could use the test prior to the 2007/2008 breeding season so no basenji puppy need be born affected by this disease. Though the basenji community has done a lot to get the word out, many websites, and posts on email lists and this forum, there still is a lot of misinformation out there. The DNA Marker Test can be done as soon as a puppy can be give 3 cc's of blood. The results of the DNA Marker Test are publicly available so anyone considering purchasing a puppy can check if the parents or puppy has been tested by typing in the name or registration number of dog of interest into the OFA search engine, http://www.offa.org Not only does the OFA database show that the dog was tested but the date the test was run and links to parents, siblings, and offspring if tested.
