Finnish Spitz Dogs

WELCOME to the home of the Finnish Spitz Dogs. Here you will find information on dog breeding and finnish spitz puppies, looking for a pedigree and finnish spitz breeders, and some of the inherited diseases from which they sometimes suffer. We will also be looking at the Finnish lapphund.

Finnish spitz dogs as is suggested in the name, originating from Finland. They started life as a hunting dog to hunt large moose and bears and other large animals. They are also capable of hunting smaller prey like rats and squirrels that can sometimes get into your home.

In Finland, the finnish spitz is normally a working dog and is the national dog of Finland. In modern times they are now becoming a household dog as they are a very friendly and loving dog.

Are They Children Friendly

From what I have seen and read the finnish Spitz dog is a lover of children of all ages. Being a very lively dog they will enjoy children’s games and love being part of the game that you are playing.

They are a smart dog in that they will get to know who in the family takes them out for a walk the most, and who when they are out, likes to play games or throw a ball or run around with them.

Being a clever and alert dog they learn when someone is not in the mood to play with them and will move to another member of the family to play games.

They are also quite a protective dog and tend to shy away from strangers until they fit into the family life.

With that in mind, they are not aggressive to strangers but will not hold out a paw for them until they get to know them. They are more for looking after their immediate family than becoming friends with strangers.

Training a Finnish Spitz Dog

This is a very active dog, mentally very alert and always on the go. They need plenty of action like long walks each day to wear them out for the evening.

This makes them a hard dog to train as they have so much life and are always alert to what is happening around them.

The best way to train them is by going to a dog school with them on a weekly basis and being taught by someone who knows all about these types of dogs and how to get them to listen to your commands.

By keeping doing the same tasks over and over again the dog will eventually start to learn what you want it to do. This needs to be done as to keep the dog interested in what you are trying to learn it.

If you are well versed in training your own dog then this should not be a problem for you. However, if you have bought a finnish spitz puppy and this is your first dog it would be well advised to take him or her to a dog training school to get the best from your puppy.

HEALTH WATCH – Finnish Spitz Breeding
Courtesy of Joan Grant
Jayenn Kennel

FOR A HEALTHY LITTER:

Spitz Dog Breeds

The webscripts used for the pedigrees on this website include a variety of features. Initially, you will have the option of generating pedigrees for one to ten generations, although no more than five generations is recommended to maximize printing and screen display. You also have two search options for locating the Finnish Spitz you’re looking for. A “fast” search will return only those dogs with a name (or part of a name) exactly like the one word entered. A “slow” search will return all dogs with the name in any part of the registered name. The slow search option will also pick up minor differences in spelling. For example, with slow search if you enter the words “red hot” it will return dogs with both the words “red hot” in their names as well as those dogs with the one word “redhot”. You will then be given a list of dogs to select from for generating the pedigree.

Once the Finnish Spitz pedigree is generated, you will have additional options. By clicking on the links you may access littermates of the particular dog, offspring, breedings, reverse pedigrees (descendants), half siblings, and of course photos! One of the nicer features of this program is the ability to run test matings and generate a pedigree. Simply enter the names of the sire and dam, select the Finnish Spitz from the dropdown boxes on each and click on Create and a test mating pedigree will be generated. As the number of Finnish Spitz grows, this feature should become increasingly useful. Of course, it also requires that the data be updated with new offspring and breedings so please provide us with that information as it becomes available.

Wright’s Coefficient of Inbreeding (COI) The COI for each dog in the database has been calculated for ten generations with BreedMate’s Pedigree Explorer software. The number immediately under each Finnish Spitz name is the COI based on 10 generations. The software now will automatically display the COI for 5 generations as well and in the trial breedings.

Inbreeding can be defined as follows:
1. The probability that both genes of a pair in an individual are identical by descent, ie homozygous.
2. The probable proportion of an individual’s loci containing genes that are identical by descent.
3. The Inbreeding Coefficient is expressed as a percentage. The more common ancestors there are in a pedigree, and the closer they are in terms of generations to their descendant, the higher the COI of that descendant.

The Finnish Kennel Club strongly recommends avoiding breedings where the COI in a five generation pedigree is over 10%. (NOTE: The COI in a five generation pedigree generally is lower than in a ten generation pedigree if there are linebreedings in the furthest five generations.) The Finnish Kennel Club recommends that breedings result in a COI of 6.25% or lower, which would be the COI between breeding of second cousins. The Finnish Finnish Spitz Club strives to keep the COI of the whole population under 3%. A low COI lessens the risk of homozygous genes that may create problems in the breed. At the same time, it also decreases the probability of “setting” the desirable traits.

The COI does not reflect the cumulative effect of the probability that genes are passed down from generation to generation with successive line breeding or inbreeding. For this task, Wright developed the Coefficient of Relationship (COR). For example, a great-great-great grandparent may be operating as a grandparent due to numerous line breedings on that particular dog in the pedigree. Or a grandparent or great-grandparent may be operating as a parent in the probability of genes appearing from that dog because of repeated line breeding. One can also calculate the Percent Contribution (Percent of Blood) of an ancestor. In a sire-daughter breeding the contribution of the sire is in fact 75% instead of 50%. Normally the relationship between siblings is 50%, when there is inbreeding the COR of inbred siblings may be quite high. The probability of genes passing from a particular dog increases the more times that dog is listed in the pedigree. The COR now is displayed in the trial breedings. In addition, the dogs that appear multiple times in the pedigree will stand out with a gray background so it is easy to locate these Finnish Spitz.

A related coefficient percentage is known as the Ancestor Loss Coefficient (ALC). It describes the degree to which recessive traits from ancestor generations are lost. Another way to think of it is as how many unique ancestors an animal has. If there are no duplicate ancestors, then no unique ancestors are “lost”, and the ALC = 0%. When there are duplicate ancestors, more and more unique ancestors are “lost”, and the ALC percentage goes up. A lower number is preferable. Sometimes in the literature, you may see ALC abbreviated as AVK, which stands for the German word AhnenVerlustKoeffizient.

If you are concerned about numerous line breedings in a pedigree, we suggest you examine a ten generation pedigree for the dog and keep in mind that the probability of genes passing from a particular dog increases the more times that dog is listed in the pedigree. For further information on the COI or COR you may wish to review the following articles and visit the following websites. An excellent online mini-course on the basics of animal genetics is offered by Cornell University and may be found here: http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/usdagen/ For numerous articles on canine genetics and diversity, visit The Canine Diversity Project. Additional links are below and on our Links page.
Professor Brian Kinghorn’s Genetics Site
Inbreeding Lecture Notes with Diagrams
U of MO Extension Service Info on Inbreeding
Demystifying Inbreeding Coefficients

If you experience problems with any of the features, please let us know so that we may correct them. Just drop an email to Diane Helland.

This project began in early 2000 as part of the Breedbrowsers database. At that time, several people were instrumental in gathering information and inputting it into a database format. Please visit the Links page for additional acknowledgements. Due to extensive errors and problems with updating, the project laid stagnant for a couple of years. It was revived in its present format in early 2004.

The Finnish Spitz breed has remained remarkably healthy over the years despite fairly extensive inbreeding in the United States and Canada. This does not mean that health problems were entirely absent. Rather, in many instances where health problems presented the breeders worked hard at eliminating or minimizing their impact. Included in this category are cardiomyopathy and cleft palate. In order to preserve the healthiness of the breed, we have included a health information section that is available on each pedigree. We hope that breeders and owners will contact us regarding information for this section in order that future breeders can make wise breeding decisions. Information we’d like for this section includes: OFA and CERF results or numbers if available publicly. Given our limited gene pool, many of us do not automatically eliminate dogs afflicted or possible or known carriers based on only the occasional presentation of some disease.

Obviously, for this aspect of this project to be successful a willingness to share information is necessary. While some breeders have been very open about health problems in the past, others have not. We hope this is a step toward openness in the breed that will become the norm for most if not all breeders in the future. In the end, sharing the information preserves the healthiness of the breed that so many of us have enjoyed, and save owners and breeders from the heartache associated with an unwell Finnish Spitz. In addition, we’ve included a Health Watch page with practical advice for breeders on problems that may arise in a Finnish Spitz litter and what to look for in each litter.

We ask that everyone using this database be on your best ethical behavior with any information you gain from it. If you are unable to do so, please do not proceed further. If we learn of unethical use of the information, your access to the website will be shut down.

A word about titles. Although we recognize the importance of titles to breeders and owners, and are more than happy to include titles whenever possible, this will not be our first priority when updating the database. In addition, only titles from recognized registries and breed clubs will be included.

Finnish Spitz Pedigree

We hope you find this site informative and useful. It is the result of thousands of hours of work by breeders and fanciers of the Finnish Spitz. Please take a moment to visit our Links page for acknowledgement of those who have dedicated so much time and effort to making this possible, as well as links to their websites.

Before beginning, we suggest you take a few minutes to read the Info page and Features page. These pages will give you a better idea of the information you can access, and how you can display it, when running a pedigree search and generator. They will also advise you of additional ways you may use the database. If you have additional information, pedigrees or photos to submit, contact Diane Helland .

Below is a list of useful links for Finnish Spits Dogs and other related links for those looking for help. If any of these links no longer work please drop us an email and we will try and find a solution. If you would like to be added to this list please drop use your details so that we can add it. Your website must be related to what this site is about.

Useful Links

Pedigrees

International Pedigree Database–US based

Finnish Pedigree Database (Finland)

Swedish Pedigree Database (Sweden)

Genetics and Disease Info

Cornell University Online Genetics Course (no charge)

Genetics Online

Professor Brian Kinghorn’s Genetics Site

Canine Inherited Disorders Database

Luxating Patellas

Orthopedic Foundation of America

Penn Hip

OFA & Penn Hip Comparison

Canine Eye Registration Foundation (CERF)

PRA Information

Canine Heart Disease

Heartworm Disease

Canine Cancer

Clubs and Organizations

American Kennel Club

Finnish Spitz Club of America

Finnish Finnish Spitz Club

Swedish Finnish Spitz Club

Norwegian Finnish Spitz Club

Finnish Spitz National Rescue

Epilepsy Gene Mapping

From its origins in Finland, the Finnish Spitz breed has been plagued with idiopathic epilepsy. While the North American Finnish Spitz do not suffer from this genetic malady to the same extent as do the dogs in Finland, the genes behind our dogs in North America obviously originate from the same source. The Canine Epilepsy Project, a joint effort between the University of MO at Columbia and the University of MN, has collected blood samples from affected Finnish Spitz and their relatives for a number of years. Now Dr. Hannes Lohi at the University of Helsinki has moved ahead with this project. Dr. Lohi and his associates are working with the U of MO and have access to the samples previously submitted. For their research, however, they would like additional information on the samples from affected dogs that were previously submitted as well as samples from additional affected dogs.

If you previously submitted a blood sample from an affected dog, please download a copy of the questionnaire here, complete it and submit it in accordance with the instructions. If you have a Finnish Spitz that is affected with seizures with no known cause such as a head injury, please help this work move forward by having a blood sample drawn, completing the paperwork for the U of MO submission and completing Dr. Lohi’s questionnaire as well. Instructions and forms for submitting new samples to the U of MO which in turn will be available to Dr. Lohi are located here. Only by providing the necessary samples will we eventually have a DNA marker for this disease and be in a position to eliminate it from our breeding population!

Liver Issues

Anecdotal stories regarding liver issues in the breed have existed for years. In many instances, a dog with liver issues will exhibit lethargy and low appetite. Liver dysfunction initially is diagnosed by examining a number of liver factors in routine blood work. While the numbers may provide some clues regarding the specific liver issue, definitive diagnosis in living dogs may be difficult. Often the liver may look normal on ultrasounds but the symptoms persist. Biopsies often are not recommended with an ill dog as this further shocks the liver. In many instances, the recommendation is to treat the symptoms with a change in diet, pH adjustment, and ongoing monitoring. Until we obtain further information through exploratory surgeries or necropsies, it will remain difficult to document the liver issues that are affecting the breed. In the meantime, we have begun a project of charting the liver enzyme test results where medical data exists and check it against the progress the dog has made with various changes in diet. Because the liver is such a critical organ in the body, attempting to obtain better information in the coming years on the hepatic issues adversely affecting the breed is a priority.

YOU CAN HELP! If you have a dog that has experienced abnormal liver values we will appreciate the medical data you can provide. Only with the underlying medical data can we move forward in an effort to determine the number of liver issues affecting our Finnish Spitz and move on to testing and prevention. If you have a Finnish Spitz that has been affected with liver issues, please contact Diane Helland.

On an ongoing basis, the goal is to identify Finnish Spitz that are carriers for certain genetic disorders. With this knowledge, concerned breeders that are attempting to eliminate health problems in their breeding programs can breed around the issue through outcrossing or by breeding to another Finnish Spitz that appears to be free of the defective gene. The known genetic disorders in our breed include luxating patellas, epilepsy, liver problems and hip dysplasia. If you have a Finnish Spitz that has been diagnosed with any of these disorders please let us know. With this knowledge we can make progress in eliminating the incidences of these issues for breed prosperity for the future.

Finnish Spitz Dogs For Sale

For many new owners of Finnish Spitz, deciding on a puppy and a breeder to work with is a journey into the unknown. Because of the scarcity of pups, you may well end up never seeing the parents, the breeder’s premises, or the specific pup until s/he arrives at the airport near your home. For these reasons, we recommend that you ask any breeder that you consider getting a puppy from the following questions:

Ask to see a Pedigree

It is not important that there be a lot of champions (although the champions indicate that the breeder is having their dogs’ structure evaluated by outside judges, not just for appearance but also for sound structure and movement); it is important that the breeder know almost as much about the dogs behind the dogs they are breeding as they do about the dogs being breed. This means the breeder has spent a lot of time figuring out who they are breeding and why; what qualities of structure, health, temperament, etc. they want; it also means that they know the genetic possibilities that can crop up in dogs of their breeding.

Ask about the health of the dogs in the last three generations on the pedigree preceding your puppy, the temperaments of these generations, how long they lived, etc. Specifically ask if there is medical or anecdotal evidence of epilepsy, cardiac issues, luxating patellas or hip dysplasia in these lines. On your own, go to the Pedigree Search page of the pedigree database and enter the breeder’s kennel name for a list of their dogs in the database. Peruse the resulting list for health notes and testing. It is far better to see notes on known conditions than no health notes at all. Memos on known conditions indicate the breeder is testing, aware of and breeding with these conditions in mind. If there are no testing results, ask the breeder why no testing results are listed.

Ask the breeder what the OFA ratings are on the dogs in the pedigree: (you want a puppy whose parents are Fair, Good, or Excellent), OFA is the organization that reads the x-rays of the hips on these dogs to determine if they have canine hip dysplasia (CHD) or if there is a tendency towards it. You can also check on the dogs yourself by going to http://www.offa.org/search.html . On this page, you indicate the condition (hip dysplasia), the breed, some part of the dog’s name (you can use the kennel name), and what years to search. This way, you can check whether a breeder does OFA or not. If they do not do OFA, then you want them to have done PennHIP.

Ask how they determine if their breeding dogs and their puppies are structurally sound. Here you want to know what kinds of evaluations were done on the puppies to determine what tasks they may be best suited for, what characteristics were noted in their temperaments, and what qualities they might be expected to have as they mature. Ask what outside evaluations have been done to judge the quality of their breeding dogs. Ask them to describe what they look for in a dog that they are going to breed even if you do not know what to look for yourself, you will recognize if the breeder knows what to look for.

Ask whether the puppies were whelped in the home and how long the puppies were reared in the home. If they were not whelped and raised in the home, ask what has been done to ensure that the puppies are prepared for living in your home.

Ask what kind of work they do to socialize the puppies, get the puppies used to new situations, and get them eager to work with people. The period between five and eight weeks is a critical development period in puppies, and they need to be with their littermates to go through this period. They also need a lot of new things in their environment every day.

Ask if they will take the dog back at any time in its life if your situation should change. All responsible breeders guarantee that they will do this. Most guarantee a refund for a certain length of time and after that, they will still find the dog a new home to ensure that the dog goes into a good home for Finnish Spitz. You want a breeder who tells you, without your having to ask, that they want the dog back if for any reason at any time you cannot keep it. You want a breeder who cares what kind of life these little puppies are going to have and who wants each puppy to have a very good life for its whole life. If a breeder tells you that it is not possible to guarantee taking the dog back if your circumstances change, that breeder is telling you that they don’t care what happens to that dog if you need to rehome it.

Ask if you can call the breeder at any time with questions that come up as you and your puppy get to know each other. The breeder should be available to, and should want to, answer questions. Good breeders prefer you come to them than go to someone who doesn’t know their lines.

Be alert to the questions the breeder asks you: you want a breeder who wants to know about your home, your expectations of the dog, your life style (eg., active outdoor people, more sedentary, etc.) — all of these things help that breeder to know (1) if their puppies will find a good home with you, but more importantly (2) which puppy will best fit into your life style. Good breeders are looking for a good fit between the puppy and its new family. They then will pick out the puppy they believe will best fit your needs and requirements.

Finally, decide on the breeder you want to work with based on your inquiries and then be prepared to wait. Few breeders in the US breed more than two to three litters per year and may have a long waiting list. The months you put into waiting will be rewarded in the long term relationship you establish with your future family member’s breeder.

If you would like more in depth knowledge of the genetics behind our dogs, please explore the rest of our website for additional information.

Looking After Your Finnish Spitz Dog

As a natural breed that has not been significantly altered by breeders, the Finnish Spitz remains one of the healthiest breeds in the canine population. At the same time, it originally evolved from a small gene pool in Finland and that remains one of the main issues with the breed today. If the gene pool in Europe is small, the size of the gene pool in North America is much smaller. The well-being of the breed in North America faces two significant challenges.

First, because of the small gene pool the liklihood of genetic diseases has risen. With increased inbreeding and linebreeding due to a small gene pool more and more genes can expect to become homozygous rather than maintaining their genetically heterozygous characteristic. This increases the odds that dogs beyond the statistical norm will be affected and/or produce carriers of any defective genes. The challenge for breeders is maintaining a phenotype that fits the breed standard while diversifying the gene pool when there is little diversity available in North America.

The second major challenge is collecting documented, medical data on Finnish Spitz with the health issues that the breed is facing. In light of the fact that the vast majority of breeders–which in and of itself is a small number–only breed a couple of litters a year, either increasing the gene pool through imports and/or obtaining medical data on affected puppies and dogs requires funds far above the income from pups. In the absence of those funds, the necessary medical data simply does not exist. As we grow the FSHN we hope to help with funding of this type of testing. The most important aspects of this testing include identifying the specific issues affecting the breed as well as identifying the dogs that are carriers for each specific disease. This information allows breeders to make an effort to breed around the diseases with the eventual goal of eliminating them from the Finnish Spitz breeding population.

Despite these issues, breeders are well aware of certain issues in the breed and have worked to eliminate them.

Epilepsy

Finland has struggled for many years in dealing with the problem of epilepsy in the Finnish Spitz. In the absence of a genetic marker for this disorder, the Finnish Spitz Club in Finland developed an epilepsy pedigree with a probability indicator of which lines were most likely to carry the defective gene and attempted to eliminate the breeding of these dogs. As a result, the gene pool in Finland was dramatically reduced four years ago. Dogs imported in recent years are far less likely to carry the defective gene(s) for epilepsy than those imported before that time. Because our original gene pool was imported this is a disease that has affected a number of our Finnish Spitz. On the good news front, an extensive research project between the University of Minnesota School of Veterinary Medicine and the University of MO-Columbia vet school is making progress in seeking to identify a genetic marker for epilepsy. A number of blood samples from Finnish Spitz were submitted over the years and there is cautious optimism that a genetic marker for this disease will be found in the near future. We are supporting the work of Dr. Hannes Lohi at the University of Helsinki who specifically is attempting to find a genetic marker in the Finnish Spitz. Dr. Lohi has access to the samples submitted to the U of MO project but if you have a Finnish Spitz that is affected by seizures please go to our Current Projects page to see how you can help. Finding a genetic marker in our breed would allows us to quickly eliminate this disease from our breeding population.

Luxating Patellas

The second major health issue found in Finland is structural and involves the kneecap. Referred to as luxating patellas, the knee cap slips off or dislocates in dogs with this issue thereby causing damage to the surrounding tendons and ligaments. While this condition can be corrected, surgery is expensive and involves a lengthy recovery. This condition was severe enough in Finland that the Finnish Spitz Club in Finland requested the Finnish Kennel Club to require obligatory health screening of breeding Finnish Spitz through its health program (“PEVISA”) in 1994. Of course, our dogs rarely see the type of exercise that the hunting dogs in Finland experience so unless the condition is quite severe symptoms may not show up in our dogs for many years. Testing for this condition simply requires examination and palpitation of the kneecap by a veterinarian.

Cardiac Issues

Breeeders in North America have encountered a number of heart problems. Pulminary stenosis in two different valves in the heart have been documented as well as a hole in the wall separating the chambers of the heart. Where the stenosis is severe it can be corrected through the insertion of balloon in the affected valve but again this is an expensive procedure. A good veterinarian should be able to ascertain that a cardiac issue exists before the pups leave the breeder through a routine examination of the pups. These conditions will produce a heart murmur that can be detected at a very early age. In dogs that are only mildly affected limiting their exercise may be sufficient.

Achalasia

Achalasia is a disorder of the esophagus where the esophagus does not relax to allow emptying of the food in to the stomach. In most instances, a dog with this condition will vomit his food to empty the esophagus although in mild cases the symptoms may not be as noticeable. The best prevention is a careful watch of pups at the time of weaning for any difficulties in digesting solid food. While there is no documentation of this condition in the breed in Finland it is thought to cross nearly all lines here in North America.

The following conditions found in Finnish Spitz do not appear to distinguish between any lines.

Cleft Palate

Cleft palate (a hole in the roof of the mouth) is another genetic disorder that seems to cross most lines in North America. This disease is somewhat self-controlling in that puppies with this disorder will not survive more than a few days because they cannot nurse properly. At the same time, it is believed to be a combination of recessive genes that create this condition (i.e., the parents are not symptomatic but produce pups with the condition) so it is important to attempt to identify carriers and seek to limit the spread of the defective gene.

Hip Dysplasia

Hip dysplasia is one of the most difficult issues because of the number of causes. While there is a clear genetic component, and ongoing research to find a DNA marker across the breeds, it can also be caused by environmental factors. In order to address the genetic component, many breeders have x-rays performed on the hips of their breeding dogs before breeding them. At the same time, the hip structure is composed of a number of genes that makes it difficult to determine how the genes may line up from each parent. As a result, two parents with good hips may produce a pup with hip dysplasia. Documented evidence exists in other breeds, however, that the structure of hips in a breed can be improved through careful breeding.

Other Issues

Over the years anecdotal stories of problems with the liver, diabetes and cancer have circulated. It appears that most of the Nordic breeds have a predisposition to diabetes if they become overweight. For this reason, it is important to keep your Finnish Spitz on the lean side throughout his or her life. Similarly, a number of reports of various types of cancer have surfaced over the years. No one type seems to be dominant and this may well be due to environmental factors.

The stories of liver issues are more troublesome as they have been ongoing. Liver issues, however, are very difficult to diagnose in a live dog so without necropsies on dogs that have died of liver issues it is difficult to determine whether this is significant genetic issue in the breed. Finally, with a small gene pool autoimmune issues are bound to surface. Fortunately, to date there have been few reports of any significant autoimmune diseases.

Conclusion

We are fortunate to love a breed that is natural and quite healthy compared to most purebred dogs. At the same time, breeders struggle with maintaining a healthy gene pool given the small gene pool in North America. And we are hampered by the lack of documented medical evidence. Further, we are unable to simply eradicate possible carriers from the gene pool which would have the effect of a greater reduction in the gene pool. Each breeder has attempted to address health issues in the breed through a variety of methods including close breedings to determine which dogs may carry certain defective genes; testing of breeding dogs and affected puppies and necropsies on deceased dogs; and expansion of the gene pool through imports. Any of these measures are expensive, however, and require that breeders fund their breeding program far above and beyond the income they receive from selling pups. If you have a Finnish Spitz as a loving companion rather than as a breeder, you can help by sending any health-related information you have on your dog back to the breeder and/or to us, financially supporting our efforts to improve the health of the breed, and having necropsies performed on any of your dogs that die unexpectedly or from unknown causes. With further information, we can be more successful in our efforts to identify possible carriers for certain defects and breed around them with an improved gene pool down the road. With a focused eye on the health of the breed, we can leave these beautiful dogs in improved health for future generations.

Breeding Finnish Spitz Dogs

We recommend six basic steps for all litters and breeding programs.

1. The most important is to research, research, research the genetics behind the two dogs you are planning to breed together. Talk to the breeder and others who may have information on genetic disorders behind these dogs. Understand that if either parent has produced as little as ONE affected pup for some disorder it means that parent is a carrier for the defective gene. Check the pedigree database at www.pedigrees.finnishspitzhealth.org for at least 8 generations for research purposes. With the latest version of the Trial Breeding program you can obtain the Coefficients of Inbreeding on any proposed litters as well as the Coefficient of Relationships and the Ancestor Loss Coefficient for each dog in the pedigrees of the proposed breedings. Knowledge is power!

2. Test your breeding dogs to the extent possible. At a minimum, have their hips x-rayed and their patellas checked by your veterinarian. Luxating patellas are one of the most predominant issues in the breed going back to Finland and diagnosis is a simple palpitation of the joints by a veterinarian.

3. Avoid breeding any dogs that are affected with hip dysplasia, luxating patellas, liver issues, achalasia, cardiac issues or epilepsy. While our gene pool is small, it is NOT so small that affected dogs need to be bred to continue the breed.

4. Have your pups examined by a veterinarian before they leave your premises. While luxating patella and hip issues cannot be definitively diagnosed until the pups are two years old, your vet can tell you if the patellas feel loose and if the pups have a heart murmur indicating a cardiac disorder. That information then can be translated to the parents as known carriers for certain diseases so you can try to breed around that issue in the future.

5. Learn at least the basics of genetics and modes of inheritance for the diseases we see most frequently in Finnish Spitz. Assuming both parents are not affected, this does not mean they are clear for recessive diseases. If they are carriers, there is a very good liklihood that some of the pups from the litters may be affected or at a minimum will be carriers who in turn may pass the defective gene(s) on to their offspring.

6. Consider genetic health in your breeding decisions in addition to phenotype. This does not necessarily mean sacrificing conformation and/or phenotype. Any experienced breeder will tell you that they’ve had very pleasant surprises when breeding to an outcross. And it does us little good to have beautiful show dogs that are genetically unhealthy.

As a natural breed that has not been significantly altered by breeders, the Finnish Spitz remains one of the healthiest breeds in the canine population. At the same time, it originally evolved from a small gene pool in Finland and that remains one of the main issues with the breed today. If the gene pool in Europe is small, the size of the gene pool in North America is much smaller. The well-being of the breed in North America faces two significant challenges.

First, because of the small gene pool the liklihood of genetic diseases has risen. With increased inbreeding and linebreeding due to a small gene pool more and more genes can expect to become homozygous rather than maintaining their genetically heterozygous characteristic. This increases the odds that dogs beyond the statistical norm will be affected and/or produce carriers of any defective genes. The challenge for breeders is maintaining a phenotype that fits the breed standard while diversifying the gene pool when there is little diversity available in North America.

The second major challenge is collecting documented, medical data on Finnish Spitz with the health issues that the breed is facing. In light of the fact that the vast majority of breeders–which in and of itself is a small number–only breed a couple of litters a year, either increasing the gene pool through imports and/or obtaining medical data on affected puppies and dogs requires funds far above the income from pups. In the absence of those funds, the necessary medical data simply does not exist. As we grow the FSHN we hope to help with funding of this type of testing. The most important aspects of this testing include identifying the specific issues affecting the breed as well as identifying the dogs that are carriers for each specific disease. This information allows breeders to make an effort to breed around the diseases with the eventual goal of eliminating them from the Finnish Spitz breeding population.

Despite these issues, breeders are well aware of certain issues in the breed and have worked to eliminate them.

Epilepsy

Finland has struggled for many years in dealing with the problem of epilepsy in the Finnish Spitz. In the absence of a genetic marker for this disorder, the Finnish Spitz Club in Finland developed an epilepsy pedigree with a probability indicator of which lines were most likely to carry the defective gene and attempted to eliminate the breeding of these dogs. As a result, the gene pool in Finland was dramatically reduced four years ago. Dogs imported in recent years are far less likely to carry the defective gene(s) for epilepsy than those imported before that time. Because our original gene pool was imported this is a disease that has affected a number of our Finnish Spitz. On the good news front, an extensive research project between the University of Minnesota School of Veterinary Medicine and the University of MO-Columbia vet school is making progress in seeking to identify a genetic marker for epilepsy. A number of blood samples from Finnish Spitz were submitted over the years and there is cautious optimism that a genetic marker for this disease will be found in the near future. We are supporting the work of Dr. Hannes Lohi at the University of Helsinki who specifically is attempting to find a genetic marker in the Finnish Spitz. Dr. Lohi has access to the samples submitted to the U of MO project but if you have a Finnish Spitz that is affected by seizures please go to our Current Projects page to see how you can help. Finding a genetic marker in our breed would allows us to quickly eliminate this disease from our breeding population.

Luxating Patellas

The second major health issue found in Finland is structural and involves the kneecap. Referred to as luxating patellas, the knee cap slips off or dislocates in dogs with this issue thereby causing damage to the surrounding tendons and ligaments. While this condition can be corrected, surgery is expensive and involves a lengthy recovery. This condition was severe enough in Finland that the Finnish Spitz parent club in Finland requested the Finnish Kennel Club to require obligatory health screening of breeding Finnish Spitz through its health program (“PEVISA”) in 1994. Of course, our dogs rarely see the type of exercise that the hunting dogs in Finland experience so unless the condition is quite severe symptoms may not show up in our dogs for many years. Testing for this condition simply requires examination and palpitation of the kneecap by a veterinarian.

Cardiac Issues

Breeeders in North America have encountered a number of heart problems. Pulminary stenosis in two different valves in the heart have been documented as well as a hole in the wall separating the chambers of the heart. Where the stenosis is severe it can be corrected through the insertion of balloon in the affected valve but again this is an expensive procedure. A good veterinarian should be able to ascertain that a cardiac issue exists before the pups leave the breeder through a routine examination of the pups. These conditions will produce a heart murmur that can be detected at a very early age. In dogs that are only mildly affected limiting their exercise may be sufficient.

Achalasia

Achalasia is a disorder of the esophagus where the esophagus does not relax to allow emptying of the food in to the stomach. In most instances, a dog with this condition will vomit his food to empty the esophagus although in mild cases the symptoms may not be as noticeable. The best prevention is a careful watch of pups at the time of weaning for any difficulties in digesting solid food. While there is no documentation of this condition in the breed in Finland it is thought to cross nearly all lines here in North America.

The following conditions found in Finnish Spitz do not appear to distinguish between any lines.

Cleft Palate

Cleft palate (a hole in the roof of the mouth) is another genetic disorder that seems to cross most lines in North America. This disease is somewhat self-controlling in that puppies with this disorder will not survive more than a few days because they cannot nurse properly. At the same time, it is believed to be a combination of recessive genes that create this condition (i.e., the parents are not symptomatic but produce pups with the condition) so it is important to attempt to identify carriers and seek to limit the spread of the defective gene.

Hip Dysplasia

Hip dysplasia is one of the most difficult issues because of the number of causes. While there is a clear genetic component, and ongoing research to find a DNA marker across the breeds, it can also be caused by environmental factors. In order to address the genetic component, many breeders have x-rays performed on the hips of their breeding dogs before breeding them. At the same time, the hip structure is composed of a number of genes that makes it difficult to determine how the genes may line up from each parent. As a result, two parents with good hips may produce a pup with hip dysplasia. Documented evidence exists in other breeds, however, that the structure of hips in a breed can be improved through careful breeding.

Other Issues

Over the years anecdotal stories of problems with the liver, diabetes and cancer have circulated. It appears that most of the Nordic breeds have a predisposition to diabetes if they become overweight. For this reason, it is important to keep your Finnish Spitz on the lean side throughout his or her life. Similarly, a number of reports of various types of cancer have surfaced over the years. No one type seems to be dominant and this may well be due to environmental factors.

The stories of liver issues are more troublesome as they have been ongoing. Liver issues, however, are very difficult to diagnose in a live dog so without necropsies on dogs that have died of liver issues it is difficult to determine whether this is significant genetic issue in the breed. Finally, with a small gene pool autoimmune issues are bound to surface. Fortunately, to date there have been few reports of any significant autoimmune diseases.

Conclusion

We are fortunate to love a breed that is natural and quite healthy compared to most purebred dogs. At the same time, breeders struggle with maintaining a healthy gene pool given the small gene pool in North America. And we are hampered by the lack of documented medical evidence. Further, we are unable to simply eradicate possible carriers from the gene pool which would have the effect of a greater reduction in the gene pool. Each breeder has attempted to address health issues in the breed through a variety of methods including close breedings to determine which dogs may carry certain defective genes; testing of breeding dogs and affected puppies and necropsies on deceased dogs; and expansion of the gene pool through imports. Any of these measures are expensive, however, and require that breeders fund their breeding program far above and beyond the income they receive from selling pups. If you have a Finnish Spitz as a loving companion rather than as a breeder, you can help by sending any health-related information you have on your dog back to the breeder and/or to us, financially supporting our efforts to improve the health of the breed, and having necropsies performed on any of your dogs that die unexpectedly or from unknown causes. With further information, we can be more successful in our efforts to identify possible carriers for certain defects and breed around them with an improved gene pool down the road. With a focused eye on the health of the breed, we can leave these beautiful dogs in improved health for future generations.