Staffordshire Bull Terriers in the UK: their disorder predispositions and protections

Abstract

Background The Staffordshire Bull Terrier is a popular dog breed in the UK but there is limited reliable evidence on disorder predispositions and protections within the breed. Using anonymised veterinary clinical data from the VetCompass™ Programme, this study aimed to identify common disorders with predisposition and protection in the Staffordshire Bull Terrier. The study hypothesised that Staffordshire Bull Terriers would have higher odds of aggression compared with non-Staffordshire Bull Terriers. Results The clinical records of a random sample of dogs of all types were reviewed to extract the most definitive diagnoses for all disorders existing during 2016. A combined list from the 30 most common disorders in Staffordshire Bull Terriers and the 30 most common disorders in non-Staffordshire Bull Terriers was generated. Multivariable logistic regression was used to report the odds of each of these disorders in 1304 (5.8%) Staffordshire Bull Terriers compared with 21,029 (94.2%) non-Staffordshire Bull Terriers. After accounting for confounding, Staffordshire Bull Terriers had significantly increased odds of 4/36 (11.1%) disorders compared to non-Staffordshire Bull Terriers with highest odds for seizure disorder (OR 2.06; 95% CI 1.24 to 3.40; p = 0.005). Conversely, Staffordshire Bull Terriers had reduced odds of 5/36 (13.9%) disorders, with lowest odds for patellar luxation (OR 0.15; 95% CI 0.04 to 0.61; p = 0.008). There was no significant difference in the odds of aggression between Staffordshire Bull Terriers compared with non-Staffordshire Bull Terriers (OR 1.09; 95% CI 0.75 to 1.58; p = 0.644). Conclusions This study provides a reliable evidence base of breed-specific disorder predispositions and protections that can be used by breeders to optimise breeding decisions. The findings can assist prospective owners of Staffordshire Bull Terriers to make informed decisions when acquiring a dog. From the relative number of predispositions to protections identified, there is no evidence that Staffordshire Bull Terriers have higher overall health problems than non-Staffordshire Bull Terriers.

Disorder predispositions and protections of Labrador Retrievers in the UK

“…(11.1%) specific-level disorders compared to non-SBTs and reduced odds of 5/36 (13.9%) disorders. At a grouped-level of diagnostic precision, SBTs had higher odds of 2/32 (6.3%) disorders and had reduced odds of 5/32 (15.6%) disorders compared to non-SBTs 43 . With significantly different risks between Labrador Retrievers and non-Labrador Retrievers for 19/35 (54.3%) specific-level disorders, these results show that the disorder profile of Labrador Retrievers is quite different to dogs that are not of this breed.…”

“…A cohort study design was used to estimate the 1-year (2016) period prevalence of the most commonly diagnosed disorders in Labrador Retrievers and for all other dogs 98 . Sample size calculations in Epi info (CDC) 99 estimated that, based on a UK dog population of 10 million 100 , approximately 834 Labrador Retrievers and 16,673 non-Labrador Retrievers would be needed to detect an odds ratio of ≥ 2.0 based on an estimated 2.5% of Labrador Retrievers having a specific disorder during the study period, assuming 80% power and 95% confidence with a 20:1 ratio of non-Labrador Retrievers to Labrador Retrievers 43,99 . Ethics approval was obtained from the RVC Ethics and Welfare Committee (reference number SR2018-1652).…”

“…Mean adult bodyweight was reported overall and broken down by sex for all breeds with adult bodyweight available for at least 100 dogs. Based on previous reports 43,101 , bodyweight was further categorized as "at or above the breed/sex mean", "below the breed/sex mean" and "no recorded bodyweight". Age was defined as the age (years) at December 31, 2016 and was categorised into five groups: ≤ 3.0, 3.0 to < 6.0, 6.0 to < 9.0, 9.0 to < 12.0 and ≥ 12.0.…”

Prevalence of commonly diagnosed disorders in UK dogs under primary veterinary care: results and applications

“…There are currently concerted efforts to identify key breed health issues by comparing disorder prevalence and risk between individual specific breeds and an appropriate comparator group such as crossbreds, other specific breeds [ 51 ] or all remaining dogs [ 52 ]. An application of the results from the current study would be to provide comparator disorder prevalence data on the wider dog population that could act as a baseline for the generation of breed-specific predispositions and protections.…”

“…An application of the results from the current study would be to provide comparator disorder prevalence data on the wider dog population that could act as a baseline for the generation of breed-specific predispositions and protections. For comparative inference with the greatest reliability, breed specific data should be extracted from the same information resource using the same methods as the comparator group [ 52 ]. The findings from such comparisons can be used to develop breed specific health plans that prioritise common, severe or long duration disorders; an example of such breed health plans is shown by the UK Kennel Club’s ‘Breed health and conservation plan’ project [ 37 ].…”