Basset Hound — questions to ask before paying a deposit
A responsible breeder will have these readily available. Deflection is a red flag.
Chondrodystrophy and intervertebral disc disease (IVDD)can shorten life or cause chronic pain
The same class of FGF4 skeletal mutation that gives the Basset Hound its short legs and long back also predisposes it, like the Dachshund, to premature disc degeneration and herniation, which can cause severe pain or paralysis.
Ask to see: A CDDY/IVDD-risk DNA test on both parents, or a radiographic disc-calcification assessment
UFAW / Dachshund: Intervertebral Disc Disease (names Basset Hound as a chondrodystrophic breed at elevated IVDD risk) (https://www.ufaw.org.uk/dogs/dachshund-intervertebral-disc-disease) · UC Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory / Chondrodystrophy (CDDY and IVDD) and Chondrodysplasia (CDPA) (https://vgl.ucdavis.edu/test/cddy-cdpa)
Primary open-angle glaucomacan shorten life or cause chronic pain
A build-up of pressure inside the eye that progressively and irreversibly damages the optic nerve, leading to blindness. Caused by either of two independent mutations in ADAMTS17 identified specifically in the Basset Hound and the Basset Fauve de Bretagne.
Ask to see: A DNA test for the ADAMTS17 mutations on both parents, plus a current ACVO eye exam
PubMed / Two Independent Mutations in ADAMTS17 Are Associated with Primary Open Angle Glaucoma in the Basset Hound and Basset Fauve de Bretagne Breeds of Dog (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26474315/)
Hereditary thrombopathia
An inherited platelet function disorder in which platelets fail to aggregate normally, causing prolonged bleeding after injury or surgery, such as oral bleeding from a cracked tooth; typically a mild-to-moderate bleeding tendency rather than spontaneous haemorrhage.
Ask to see: No OFA-registered DNA test could be confirmed; ask the breeder for documented normal clotting/platelet function screening in the sire and dam, or a specialist laboratory diagnosis clearing close relatives
PubMed / Defective platelet-fibrinogen interaction in hereditary canine thrombopathia (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3011147/) · PubMed / Basset Hound thrombopathia in a 4-month-old female Ba-Shar (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27037855/)
Gastric dilatation-volvulus (bloat)can shorten life or cause chronic pain
The stomach fills with gas and twists on itself, cutting off its own blood supply; without emergency surgery it is fatal within hours. The Basset Hound is one of the deep-chested breeds named at elevated risk, and a first-degree relative's history of the condition raises an individual dog's own risk.
Ask to see: No DNA test exists. Ask whether the sire or dam has had a prophylactic gastropexy, and whether gastric dilatation-volvulus has occurred in the litter's close relatives
Merck Veterinary Manual / Gastric Dilation and Volvulus in Small Animals (https://www.merckvetmanual.com/digestive-system/surgical-problems-of-the-gastrointestinal-tract-in-small-animals/gastric-dilation-and-volvulus-in-small-animals)