Health Issues in Gordons

The opinions I express are mine, based on my experience with several Gordon Setters (and the odd Golden Retriever) since 1984 and the communications with fellow Gordon owners and exhibitors I have known. They are coloured by my medical background.

Compared to other breeds, Gordon Setters are pretty healthy and I expect a good 12-15 years of life from them barring developing cancer. My oldest lived to 15.5 years.

Life Threatening

Bloat or Gastric Torsion: I have had 6 direct exposures to this deadly event where for unknown reasons, the stomach twists on its axis, cutting off circulation and thereby killing the dog, either within an hour or so or more slowly, over a few hours. IT IS AN EMERGENCY. GET TO THE VET AS FAST AS YOU CAN. Three times surgery saved the dog involved, the other times it did not. In one instance, the dog was operated on and some time later bloated again, despite the surgery that is supposed to prevent recurrence.

Symptoms include a bloated or distended belly, discomfort/restlessness, not drinking, drooling, vomiting, very pale gums with poor capillary refill, collapse, depression, rapid heart rate and panting. When in doubt, get the dog evaluated.

Treatment: Surgery is often required. It involves restoring the correct position of the stomach and then suturing it so it cannot re-twist. I have only just heard of one recurrence after corrective surgery and the dog was euthanized rather than putting him through surgery again. Risk of recurrence is said to be 70%.

Of the 3 dogs who didn’t survive, one was due to delayed recognition and another due to a stomach cancer. I don’t have details on the third.

Risk factors: 1) It tends to happen in larger, deep chested breeds. I have not seen or heard of it in the field type Gordons though this is no guarantee it doesn’t happen . Lean body condition may be associated

2)There is most likely an hereditary component and a breed predisposition. Gordon Setters are listed as a breed at risk. The events I describe were in relatives.

3)Eating dry food, single meal per day, drinking lots of water at once, some say eating rotten material may contribute

4)Advancing age. It is rare in pups and more likely in the older dog

5) It is suggested stressed, aggressive or fearful dogs may be at risk

Cancer: It is no more common in this breed and may be less than some. I know of one of my dogs who died before age 5y from a stomach cancer. My Dual Champion died age 7y of perhaps a fibrosarcoma. I’ve had one with insulinoma, another with mammary gland tumours and I’m sure other cancers are around. There seems to be no way of ensuring a cancer-free existence.

Less Life Threatening

Hip dysplasia: Not all lame dogs have hip dysplasia and not all dysplastic dogs have symptoms or limitations. There are genetic and environmental influences to the development of this problem so some breeders have x rayed their breeding stock to weed out dysplastic animals. I have read that this has not affected the incidence of dysplasia over the years but I have not seen hard statistics about this. Gordon Setters were ranked 41 out of 173 breeds listed in terms of incidence, citing a rate of 18.8% (OFA)

An extremely well-known Dual Champion competing several years ago was known to have x-ray proven hip dysplasia. He finished Field and Conformation championships, lived a long and healthy life and fathered many dysplasia-free offspring. Should this talented dog have been bred? This is the breeder’s conundrum.

To date I have never had a complaint of hip dysplasia from any of my dogs. All x rayed animals have been clear.

Back Arthritis: Older Gordons may have some hind end weekness and discomfort as time goes on, not related (so far) to the state of their hips. It has caused pain with jumping (age 10), loss of ‘spring’ in the hind end and ‘knuckling’ of the back feet as they walk.

Low Thyroid: This is one of the most common conditions in Gordons in my experience and is listed as a fairly frequent state in the UK too. It is an easily treated chronic condition that can cause poor coat, poor wound healing, obesity, decreased energy and reproductive problems. Dogs should be tested from a fairly young age (eg 3 years)to screen for this.

Sebaceous Cysts: These are benign usually little lumps that can turn up anywhere and cause no particular problems. Usually they are pea-size, occasionally larger and can usually be ignored.

Epilepsy: I have known 3 dogs with this, 2 related, 1 not and no cause was ever found. No conclusive genetic line was identified and to date the heredity of epilepsy is unknown. I have also had a Golden Retriever with this condition.

I would not breed a dog with epilepsy but sometimes this develops later in life when the dog has already been bred (not in my case thus far). This is another difficult problem for breeders.

Progressive Retinal Atrophy: I have no experience with this and have heard of none in my animals to date. DNA testing can be done to determine carriers of the gene for this.

In Summary

I have found Gordons to be healthy and long-lived for the most part. My biggest annoyance is that low thyroidism is so prevalent but given all the other things that can afflict dogs, this is fairly minor.

My biggest concern is gastric torsion. Constant vigilance and awareness is key to catch this should it occur.