October 2009
(Registry report update: October 2008 - see below)

Send results to the Hip/Eye/Heart Report Registrar:

Erin Pratt
eeedawg@gmail.com
Please contact Erin first by email if you wish to send hardcopies.

History of the Registry

The NSDTR Club of Canada’s Hip/Eye/Heart Registry has been in existence for over 20 years! Our early members were true pioneers with the inception of this project. Registries of any kind were few and far between and even fewer were in an open format.

On November 29, 1980 a meeting of the Club was held in conjunction with the Ottawa Kennel Club Show.  Present at this meeting were Executive members Alison Strang, Secretary/Editor; Linda Barnes, Treasurer; and members, Jim Barnes, Terry McGlashan, Brenda and Ken Stephens, and Ray and Trudy Stephens. The proposals made at that meeting were put to the membership by mail, and all proposals received approval in 1981, including: “Proposal 1: The club should establish a record of Tollers that have been x-rayed clear for hip dysplasia and certified either by OVC or OFA and examined clear for PRA and cataracts at regular intervals by qualified veterinarians.”

In the 1981 Summer Toller Talk, the first Registry list was published with seven dogs listed in the hip/eye section and six in the hip section. The importance of having proper paperwork to back up the listing was emphasized: “Barb (the Registrar at the time) stresses that dogs cannot be included in these listings unless photostat copies of certifications are received by her. Please let us keep this important file up-to-date.” The emphasis on accurate recording (backed up by copies of veterinary reports) has been maintained throughout the history of the Registry and is still paramount today.

By the early 1990’s it became apparent that only listing phenotypically normal dogs wasn’t providing breeders with a full picture, so in 1995 came the addition of known PRA Carriers and PRA Affected dogs. Also during the 1990’s came the addition of listings for Failed Hips and/or Eyes other than PRA and Date of ERG and Slitlamp. By 1995 there were 322 dogs in the Registry with four PRA Affected and four Carriers entered.

By 1998, now administered by Sue Kish, the Registry was flourishing. It exploded in size during Sue's tenure as Registrar because of her determination to include all Tollers and because of Toller enthusiasts’ willingness to be open with their information. Individual owners/breeders were contacted personally and encouraged to submit copies of veterinary reports on all the Tollers that they had owned. In early 1999, there were 646 individual dogs in the database, with 55 dogs listed as PRA carriers, 35 affected with PRA and 10 with failed hips. It was during this time that it became evident that there may be a history of pulmonic stenosis in the Toller population and the Registry was expanded further by adding heart results, thus making the Hip/Eye/Heart registry that we have today!

The Registry has had a host of dedicated volunteers administering it, Barb Charais got it off the ground and stayed for two years,  Sheila Paul held the position for 10 years from 1983 - 1993.  In 1993 Lynn Vail took over and maintained the registry for three years until 1996 when Sue Kish came on board.  Cheryl Tomayer has held the position since 1999.

Publishing the Hip/Eye/Heart Registry online allows for the timely release of updated information and reflects the pioneering spirit of our early members.

Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this list.  Please contact Erin Pratt to report any errors.  Information on this Registry is obtained from public OFA and CERF records in addition to information voluntarily provided by owners or breeders of individual dogs.
 

Toller owners don't need to be affiliated with any Club to contribute information to this Registry. The information is collected and made available solely to help Toller breeders to make better breeding decisions, in an effort to collectively work toward controlling genetic diseases.

This is a voluntary database. We need you to send in results whenever you get tests done and whenever they are updated, throughout the life of your Toller.

Information listed in this registry has been obtained from OFA, CERF and OptiGen listings and from the individual owners/breeders. Copies of the original certificates/reports must be submitted by the owner/breeder of the Toller.

Send results to the Hip/Eye/Heart Report Registrar:

Erin Pratt
eeedawg@gmail.com
Please contact Erin first by email if you wish to send hardcopies.

The NSDTRC (USA) also maintains a database. Contact Liz Corey,
Data Coordinator, turkeyridge645@msn.com for more information.