IGS
LET’S TALK ABOUT HEALTH ISSUES IN BEAGLES!
This week’s health is Imerslund-Grasbeck Syndrome (IGS)
Please be aware that the following information is designed to be informative only. It not a medical or clinical paper, the sole purpose to allow you as a beagle owner or a prospective beagle owner the opportunity to be aware of health issues that could occur. As always, it is recommended that you contact your vet and discuss any concerns that you have. If you are looking to purchase a puppy, ask questions like: What genetic testing do you do? Remember a genetic test is different from health testing puppies.
What is it?
IGS is an inherited recessive condition where Vitamin B12 cannot be absorbed through the intestines. If affects the red blood system and nervous system.
Symptoms
Puppies born with the condition will at first appear to be completely normal. They will not look any different to their healthy non-affected littermates. Signs and symptoms usually start to appear from approximately 2 weeks.
The affected puppy will fail to thrive. What does this mean? While the rest of the litter is gaining weight and reaching milestones, the affected puppy could be described as ‘the runt of the litter’.
Common Symptoms
Poor Appetite
Stomach Pain
Diarrhoea
Poor Weight Gain
Lethargy
Vomiting
Treatment
When the affected puppy is seen by a Vet who suspects IGS maybe what is causing failure to thrive bloods with be taken. This blood will then be tested for Vitamin B12.
If the puppy does have IGS the only way it will survive is a lifelong dependency of Vitamin B12 injections.
Conclusion
At the beginning of this article three words were written - inherited recessive condition. What does this phrase mean and how is it the key to eradication?
IGS is not a virus, a puppy cannot ‘catch’ it through exposure. It has to be passed on from the parents, they are the ‘carriers’. By careful selection, using beagles that are “clear” of IGS the beagle world can eradicate it. IGS is part of a genetic testing panel that is available to breeders. We have the test, it is up to all of us to test for it!
More information can be found in the following places:
*Beagle Health & Genetics Facebook Group