I have been keeping Michelle and Tayda in my thoughts too and am glad to see that, all things considered, the news is good! I was happy to help her start to sort through all this with her girl. Michelle is a wonderful mom and I know that Tayda is in good hands.
Also I hope everyone remembers to "test" their test strips. I have a dear friend who lost her girl way too soon to fanconi because her strips were bad and it wasn't caught early enough.
Pat, regarding your comment about my bitch Cleo, I have not tested her because there is absolutely no need to. I am well aware of the carriers and affecteds that are in the pedigree, and have dealt with diagnosing and treating a fanconi dog before so I am fully prepared for what potentially lies ahead. Thanks, but I'll save my money for the direct test. Blood/DNA has been in Missouri for several years, ready to go. I have been stripping her several consecutive times each month since she was a year old, and a marker test isn't going to change that. If she tests affected, that won't help me any, I'll still have to keep checking as i do, and I usually do it much more often than necessary anyways. If she tests better than affected, then I *could" stop stripping her, but probably wouldn't want to until the direct test. I continue to check my other kids occasionally even though the marker test makes them appear to be "safe". After all, it is JUST a marker test and not totally reliable. But it sure is a godsend! The marker test was developed as a temporary test for current breeding plans, and that's exactly how I'm using it. If/when any of my dogs are bred, both parents will be tested before hand, as I do with many other potential health risks. The boy Cleo lives with has tested clear, so no worries about an oops litter. Breedings were done before the marker test arrived, but the dog Cleo was bred to tested clear, so the puppies will be fine and no need to test her for that reason either.
Would I love to know what her results are? Absolutely! And I still encourage everyone I talk to to do the marker test if they want to for peace of mind. It's a wonderful tool. But my financial and living situation changed significantly last year (for the worse) so I'm not going to pay for a test I'll have to redo later, when it doesn't affect the onset of the disease. You can't treat it before it comes and the test doesn't help tell you when it's coming. Someday curiosity might get the best of me and I'll go ahead with the marker test. But for now I'm content where I'm at. For those who want to and can afford to test their whole household twice, kudos!
Pat, I don't know why you continue to throw out negative comments about me in these forums, but I would appreciate you going to the source in the future for the facts before making false assumptions.
The gang sends their love and baroos to Michelle, Tayda, and the Lenster!
