Familial Shar-pei Fever (FSF), or Swollen Hock Syndrome, is a common Shar-Pei issue. The symptoms are brought on by stress; in most cases when a Shar-Pei is separated form its owner. It is thought to be genetic but in August of last year there was no way to test for it. I had wanted to have my female tested before I went away to Basic Training and AIT but was unable to because there was no test available. The only way to diagnose FSF is during an attack, which usually last for up to two days. When I left for Basic I was worried but Dashia never had an episode. However my male has never been separated from my husband and we are concerned that he may have FSF and we would not know. I want to breed my dogs but without being sure that neither of them have the FSF gene how can I be sure that I am not producing bad pups? I have considered boarding him for a week or so to see if he has an attack but it just seems mean. We don’t want to stress him out but I feel we should know before we breed. Without some kind of testing available the only way to know is to test for an elevation in white blood cells, and liver enzymes, during an attack. That means he would have to have an attack before we would know, and I don’t want to do that to him, it’s just too cruel. There are other known was to “trigger” an attack but the thought of putting him through it at all makes my skin crawl. On the other hand if I breed them and find out that he does carry the gene and passes it on to even one pup I’m wrong for not knowing. I have tried to find a Shar-Pei breeder in my area but there is only one and she breeds any dog. I spoke with her before getting my female and she did have a litter at the time. They all had Cherry Eye’s yet she thought this was ok as long as she corrected it before selling the puppies; she was already planning for the next litter. So far I have come across no one in our area that breeds Shar-pei period let alone quality Shar-Pei, so I really don’t know who to ask. FSF is common in Shar-Pei, after the 7 months and 28 days I spent in the Army way from Dashia I don’t worry with her but Micky has never been put through that so we can be sure with him. Is there anything I can do to find out if he has FSF without scaring him or stressing him out on purpose? If not how do I know if the puppies he produces will be healthy?

I agree with Illusion-you really should be going to shows, and meeting as many sharpei people as possible. Personally, I also think you should be showing. IMO, there is no way to really know how your dogs compare to others without showing. Everyone thinks that their dog is the most beautiful and has the best personality. But you never really know until you compare with others.

Someone also suggested you join a breed specific forum. Again-great idea. You can talk all you want to someone who breeds brittanys or aussies or minpins, and you'll learn. But if you want to learn YOUR breed, you have to talk to experienced sharpei breeders-there really is no substitute.

I found this link about it, and it mentions nothing about stress.

http://www.sharpei.com.au/info/health001.shtml

I tried these sites when I was looking for information on testing available. There are a few more but I didn't save them. The first is a briefed over view but the second is a bit long.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shar_Pei_fever

http://www.royalsharpei.com/FSF.htm

Let me do a look around and try to hook you up with a Sar-pei mentor. I can t promise anything, but let me see what i can do. No idea what state or anything, but will likely mean alot of emails and phone calls.

Bauza...check your PM's. Got you some names for some very knowledgable and reputable Shar-pei folks who are more than happy to chat Pei's with you and help with any questions!

No DNA test for FSF yet (but they're trying), see:

http://www.cspca.com/Health/FamilialShar-PeiFever.pdf

It seems that it'll be just about impossible to find out whether your dogs have it or not. Stress does seem to be a major trigger (according to the CSPCA).

Kudos to you, Bauza, for looking before you leap! I hope you'll take LPN up on the mentor names PM'd to you!


***Edited By: gbroxon on 10/15/2009 5:09:24 PM***
Reason: sp

bauza...check PM's again, more names for you.