Major concern of all dog owners is the health of their pooch. In this article we present some of the common health problems that Old English Sheepdog owners can expect and deliver recommendations on keeping your Old English Sheepdog healthy. Doing your due diligence when getting a puppy is something that can prevent genetic diseases for future generations and save you a lot of income that you would potentially spend on large veterinary bills. 

Disclaimer: This article contains a lot of information. We have conducted surveys with OES owners and provide you with insights about Old English Sheepdogs’ health and how did OES owners deal with particular conditions. However, nothing that is written in this article can be taken as a diagnosis, and it is very hard to make conclusions about your sheepie based only on the information provided here. It is important that you visit your veterinarian as soon as you notice that there are some significant changes in behavior of your OES, and if in any moment you feel that your sheepie is not well, please take her to veterinary clinic. 

When considering your OES health, there are two categories of diseases that you could face. One group contains hereditary and genetic diseases, while the other category contains diseases that are sometimes result of chance, environment, or lifestyle of your dog. The first category of diseases you can eradicate by selecting National Club’s verified breeders or doing a proper research of your puppy’s parental history and asking to get full set of genetic and other heath tests. For the other category, regular checks with your primary care veterinarian should lead to happy and healthy life. Of course, viral, bacterial, parasitic, or fungal infections are possible any time down the road, but if you take veterinary recommended precautions and ensure that your pooch does not become too heavy, you belong to the category of majority OES owners that don’t have any major health issues throughout their life.

Old English Sheepdogs have an average lifespan of 10-12 years; however, there are many instances where bobtails would live 15 to 18 years. This will largely depend on the genetic predisposition and health, as well as on how you chose to live with your pooch. If they have regular veterinary checkups, if they don’t get infected or injured, and if you feed them with healthy and nutritious food, there is a large chance that your Old English Sheepdog could live longer than average. In the continuance of this article, we take a deeper look into hereditary and general health of Old English Sheepdogs.

Hereditary and genetic diseases affecting Old English Sheepdogs

In order to understand genetic diseases affecting Old English Sheepdogs, we deliver a short overview why this is a significant and not a very easy solvable problem. Same as humans, dogs could be carriers of various genetic mutations and abnormalities. 

Humans have a choice of doing prenatal genetic tests to verify if their offspring will be born with low risk of common genetic disorders. However, unlike our canine friends, we rarely test parents before they procreate. This is due to the fact that many would consider this unethical or against their beliefs and it is evident through various studies that genetic disorders are more common within domestic dogs than within humans. You might ask, why does this concern me at all. Well, let’s try to envision that first Old English Sheepdogs arrived from UK and it is hard to track the full pedigree of dogs up to these days. If we assume that one dog has a genetic mutation and is bred to have puppies, this genetic information is passed to other generations. Many of these puppies would be carriers only and would not develop diseases. But somewhere down the road there will be a puppy that will develop sometimes quite devastating illnesses. The good news for the dogs is that most of the genetic mutations are autosomal recessive, which means that in order for a puppy to develop disorders, both parents have to have at least one copy of this particular allele. However, even if only one parent has genetic mutation, it would be inherited, and puppy would become a carrier until meeting a partner with the same allele that would then result in puppies with developed disorders. 

For these reasons, if we are testing parents, we are able to source genetic disorders in advance and then decide not to proceed with breeding. That is why inbreeding is strongly discouraged and why endeavors should be made to find non-relatives for breeding. Decision to stop breeding is the most effective way to avoid hereditary diseases. Given the fact that dogs outstrip any other domesticated animal in the number of recorded genetic disorders, American Kennel Club, as well as the FCI clubs, strongly recommend that a proper health checkup and genetic testing is done before a litter are registered. 

Most common genetic and hereditary diseases affecting Old English Sheepdogs are (you can find more about each condition by reading linked articles):

• Exercise Induced Collapse
• Autoimmune thyroiditis
• Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia
• Hip dysplasia
• Elbow Dysplasia
• Sebaceous Adentitis
• Dilated Cardiomyopathy
• Chronic inflammatory otitis
• Atrial Septal Defects
• Entropion
• Tricuspid Valve Dysplasia
• Congenital Deafness 
• Degenerative Myelopathy
• Inherited cataracts
• Hereditary cancers

Unfortunately, we can’t test for all these diseases beforehand, so for some conditions our only defense is to prevent breeding of the affected Old English Sheepdog and the immediate bloodline. 

The important thing to remember is that genetic testing is not mandatory but recommended. However, there are several organizations that worked with national breeding organizations that are part of AKC and FCI to include as many as possible ethical breeders with an aim of reducing hereditary diseases. As it is the case with other economic fields, market will adapt to the demand and in the case of breeding purebred puppies, we can notice that there is a strong demand for certified puppies, so the change in the market is driven by the potential puppy owners. Most of the information provided in this section is for owners who would like to breed their dogs, but it is also valuable for all potential OES owners to know which information to gather prior purchasing or adopting their puppy.

In the case of Old English Sheepdogs, AKC recognized Breed Parent Club is the Old English Sheepdog Club of America (OSCA). OSCA is the one providing guidance on how to get your puppies certified and how to test potential parents as well. OSCA has decided that the regulatory body for certification is Canine Health Information Center (CHIC), which was developed by the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) to research and maintain information on the heath issues. OFA provides the list of mandatory and strongly recommended tests if you wish that your chosen sire and dame get certified and registered. It is worth mentioning that if you do not plan to breed your dog, health screening and CHIC certification is not required, but you can still do it if you want to have a “peace of mind”. 

To get CHIC certification for your Old English Sheepdog breeding stock, following tests and conditions are required and recommended:

• Your dog must be at least 2 years old (Required)
• Your dog has to be permanently identified via microchip or tattoo (Required)
• Hip Dysplasia (Required) – OFA, OVC, or PennHIP
• Eye examination by board certified AVCO Ophthalmologist (Required) – OFA or CERF
• Autoimmune thyroiditis (Required) – OFA approved laboratory
• Exercise Induced Collapse (Required) – DNA test by OFA approved laboratory
• Cardiac evaluation (Recommended) – board certified cardiologist
• Congenital Deafness (Recommended) – OFA approved BAER test
• Multiple Drug Sensitivity (Recommended) – DNA test by OFA approved laboratory
• Cerebellar Degeneration (Recommended) – DNA test by OFA approved laboratory
• Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia (Recommended) – DNA test by OFA approved laboratory

You can find OFA approved laboratories and testing centers here. It can be overwhelming to do all of this on your own, but your primary veterinary care provider will be able to arrange all these tests for you and submit directly to OFA. Make sure to remind your veterinarian what is required, as it is possible that some veterinary clinics are not as informed as expected. Another very popular method among OES owners is to do a full genetic screening with Embark package of breed and health tests. Embark is good option if you want to know if your OES is pure OES, if you would like to know the family tree of your OES, and to screen your OES for more than 210 genetic health risks. As Embark is a partner of Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, all your results are admissible to OFA as well. There are various packages available with some focused packages for breeders and litters. To find out more about Embark packages, click here.

After you collect all necessary test results, your veterinarian submits the results to the OFA, after which OFA confirms if the results are NORMAL or ABNORMAL. If tests are NORMAL, results are published in CHIC database without special consent. If the results are ABNORMAL, then you have a choice to make the results available for public or not. If you are starting fresh, check with the breeder you have bought your dog from if they allow you to breed your dog. There is an option within AKC to have Limited Registration, and if your dog is part of the litter with limited registration, you will not be able to register your litter. The reason why your dog is certified limited is known to the litter owner, so you should ask them for more information. Also, the breeder of your OES might have tested your dog already, so it is always good to communicate with the breeder of your dog. If they have good standing with AKC, you could also benefit from their sponsorship so that your litter gets certified with the H.E.A.R.T. program (explained in the next paragraph).

You are welcome to register your litter with AKC with or without the health screening. The only requirement is that a litter is the result of a mating between AKC registered dogs of the same breed, and that the litter is whelped (born) in the USA. However, AKC has two established programs that would make your litter “pop” in the eyes of potential buyers. The first program is AKC Bred with H.E.A.R.T.program, which is free of charge, but you do commit that you will uphold the principles of Health (your breeding stock is health tested in accordance with OSCA and have CHIC certification), Education (you will pursue AKC-provided education on breeding practices), Accountability (you agree to comply with the AKC Care and Conditions Policy, which includes AKC inspections), Responsibility (you will accept responsibility for health and well-being of the puppies you produce), and Tradition (you will uphold AKC’s tradition of breeding happy and healthy purebred Old English Sheepdogs). Your litter will be advertised with Bred with H.E.A.R.T. logo, but you can also purchase an AKC Puppy Folder with the logo. This is beneficial for new owners and your breeding endeavor ha a professional appeal. The other AKC program is for well-established breeders and it is called AKC Breeder Of Merit Programin which AKC honors responsible breeders that go above and beyond in preserving heath and standards of the breed. In this way you can prove your dedication to preserving breed characteristics and produce well-socialized and healthy puppies.

Table 1: AKC H.E.A.R.T. program

Table 2: AKC Breeder of Merit program

Canadian Kennel Club (CKC) does not have regulations or tiers as AKC, but within its Code of Practice for Canadian kennel Club Member Breeders it mentions that responsible breeders should endeavor to test for health and genetic problems. The decision about the scope of health and genetic tests is left for the National Breed Club of the particular breed. National Breed Clubs for Old English Sheepdogs are Old English Sheepdog & Owners’ Club of Canada and Old English Sheepdog Fanciers Western Canada. Unfortunately, at the moment of writing this article their websites were unreachable. If you are interested in finding an OES puppy, follow the same inquiry technique as for USA and ask potential breeder for all heath and genetic tests as mentioned for the AKC registered breeders. Similarly, if you would like to breed your dog, you can consult the OFA standards and do the similar tests or purchase Embark testing kit that will give you the most comprehensive overview of your OES’s heritage and genetic health issues.

The UK’s Kennel Club has a similar approach as the AKC. Genetic tests are not mandatory, but if breeders want to become Assured Breeders, then the health and genetic screening is mandatory. Under certain conditions you are welcome to register litter without health screening of sire and dame. However, you must be an owner of the dame at the delivery date, both dame and sire have to be members of the Kennel club. If sire is from overseas, you will need to provide the Kennel club with certified three generations Pedigree from the overseas club. In general, dame has to be older than 1 year and younger than 8. When registered, your litter can be presented at the Kennel’s “Find Your puppy” service. This is a very good place to find puppies as it shows detailed information about the pedigree and several last generations. You also can see all health and genetic testing done with the date of test and the results of tests. Therefore, even though it is not mandatory, most of the buyers would be interested to see the health and genetic testing, so it would be beneficial to do testing for both dame and sire. 

You have to be aware that in the UK, breeding is certified by a Governmental Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). Certification is only applicable to breeders that want to breed their puppies for profit. In the eyes of DEFRA, this means that a breeder will have three or more litters in a 12-months period. Having less than three litters per year puts you in a category of a hobby breeder and DEFRA is not interested in licensing. Also, even if you have more than three litters but don’t sell any of the puppies, you would be exempt from licensing requirements. DEFRA also introduced a star rating system to reward high-performing breeders and to aid general public when buying puppies. All licensed breeders would be inspected without announcements. Breeders with good standings will receive 4 or 5 stars DEFRA’s rating, which certifies that the breeder achieved and follows higher welfare standards. More on UK’s dog breeding regulations here.

The Kennel club has “upper-tier” level for breeders who are willing to commit to safe and healthy breeding standards. The Kennel Club’s Assured Breeders scheme promotes breeders that are prioritizing health and welfare of their breeding stock and is well-integrated with DEFRA’s licensing and regulatory rules. Being an Assured breeder provides security to new puppy owners from your registered litter and maintains the breeding standards of Old English Sheepdogs. In order to be assured, you have to apply and pass The Kennel Club’s inspection of facilities and practices. All your breeding stock has to be tested for various health and genetic diseases. The annual cost of membership is £60, while there is also £25 submission fee. Similarly as with AKC’s H.E.A.R.T. program, The Kennel Club requires at least one litter prior joining, but you are welcome to apply and your status will be pending until you register first litter. 

In accordance with The Kennel Club’s health screening requirements, Old English Sheepdog breeding stock has to be tested for Hip scoring, eyes, while DNA test for Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia (PCD) is recommended. Even though DNA test is recommended, it is clear from The Kennel Club’s instructions that this will influence your Assured breeder status. The requirements and recommendations for Old English Sheepdogs is lower than AKC and the reason for that is that statistically there is lower incidence of hereditary diseases in the UK at the moment. In case that The Kennel Club notices increased occurrence of certain diseases, revisions would be made.

To check for you OES Hip health, you have to use Dysplasia screening scheme developed by the British Veterinary Association (BVA) and The Kennel Club (KC). Certified veterinary doctors would take an x-ray of your OES’s hips and then sent directly from veterinarian to the BVA/KC Hip Dysplasia Scheme for grading. After the BVA/KC assessment your dog gets a score and the results are shared with you. This score ranges from 0 to 106 (0 to 53 for each hip), with a score of 0 representing the least degree of hip dysplasia and 53 representing the most. The cost of the scheme is £70 for the single submission, or £59.5 if you are an Assured breeder. Eye tests are done according to The Kennel’s Cub eye scheme or European College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists (EVA) scheme. Testing costs are from £43 to £60 per dog, depending on the number of dogs that require testing. To schedule an appointment you can book the eye panelists or find clinic near you.

The DNA testing can be done through any of The Kennel Club’s recognized lab partners, or through The Kennel Club in cooperation with Weatherbys in their CombiBreed package. The CombiBreed package for Old English Sheepdog will cost you £135. It is done by you receiving the DNA collection package, taking the swab of your dog and sending it back to the laboratory. The CombiBreed package will contain Primary Cillary Dyskinesia and Multidrug Resistance Gene 1 (MDR1) DNA tests. If you would like to get more information about your OES heritage and get a full genetic screening, then you can use Embark package of breed and health tests. Embark is good option if you want to know if your OES is pure OES, if you would like to know the family tree of your OES, and to screen your OES for more than 210 genetic health risks. The Kennel Club accepts results from Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, which is Embark’s partner, so all your results are admissible to The Kennel Club. There are various packages available with some focused packages for breeders and litters. To find out more about Embark packages, click here.In case that the results show that you have an affected or carrier dog, you might still be allowed to mate, but you have to ensure that the partner is within a certain category. According to The Kennel Club’s instructions, you ought to follow this principle for Old English sheepdog, as the test for OES is considering autosomal-recessive conditions, where puppy has to inherit two copies of an abnormal gene, one from puppy’s mother and one from father.

So, if you have been convinced that you will strive better as The Kennel Club’s Assured breeder and you want to join the scheme, here are the benefits and requirements:

Table 3: The Kennel Club’s Assured Breeders scheme

Europe, Central and South America, South Africa, Mid and Far East, Australia, New Zealand are members of Federation Cynologique Internationale (FCI) that governs pedigree dog standards almost worldwide. This means that, with several exemptions, rest of the World can follow the FCI standards for their Old English Sheepdogs. Certainly, you should always check with your local country clubs, but as art of the FCI, standards are unified and same dog breeds recognized. It is not possible to present health testing requirements for each country, but we will cover just basics what is expected from the FCI member, and then you can verify with your local country clubs if they require specific laboratories and tests for your Old English Sheepdog. In order to safeguard breeding healthy dog with construction and mentality typical for that breed, FCI has issued three regulations that govern breeding and include health and genetic testing. These are FCI International Breeding Strategies, Criteria for Limited Registration, and International Breeding Rules of the FCI. All these documents are available here. These rules and guidelines are generic, but for our understanding it is worth mentioning few important policies. FCI believes that education is more important than strict breeding rules and breeding programs, as it can easily lead to reduced genetic diversity. All dogs must have microchips or tattoos. Only functionally and clinically healthy dogs, with breed typical conformation, should be used for breeding.

FCI requires that if a DNA test is available for the disease, the breeding stock should be tested in order to avoid mating two carriers. If there are no tests, but there is a confirmed disease, all relatives should be mated only with very distant bloodlines with low or no occurrence of the same disease. Results from DNA tests should be used to avoid breeding diseased dogs, but not necessarily to eradicate the disease. Dogs shown to be carriers (heterozygote) for a recessive inherited disease should only be bred to a dog that is proven not to carry the allele for the same disease.

National clubs have to be careful not to exclude more than 50% of the breed, so breeding stock should be selected from the best half of the breed population. FCI strictly forbids puppy mills and puppy farming, therefore if your OES does not have an FCI pedigree, it is better to think twice before committing, as there could be potential genetic issues with your pup. You still have to check the national clubs as they can have stringent rules, but not relaxed or conflictual against the FCI. Therefore, your national clubs should identify which are the common issues with OESs in your country, but in case that there is no information available, you can use the information available for the USA or UK, as they are detailed enough. If you would like to get complete information and cover all your grounds, you can use Embark package of breed and health tests. Embark is good option if you want to know if your OES is pure OES, if you would like to know the family tree of your OES, and to screen your OES for more than 210 genetic health risks. There are various packages available with some focused packages for breeders and litters. To find out more about Embark packages, click here.

Old English Sheepdogs and Cancer

Causes of some tumors and cancers are genetic, while others are environmental or spontaneous. There is not enough research data to get the statistics of the causes, and it is somewhat difficult to determine in some cases. However, from the OES owner’s perspective, we would like to know if there is anything that we can do to prevent or decrease likelihood of cancers in Old English Sheepdogs. Surveying Old English Sheepdog owners, it appears that genetic cause of cancer is more common, so it is again advisable to adhere to genetic health testing and prevent mating of affected breeding stock.

For example, if we consider an Old English Sheepdog with lymphoma, available treatments usually work well; however, the majority of lymphoma patients relapse as there are tumor clones that are more resistant to chemotherapy. It was discovered that Multi-Drug Resistance 1 (MDR-1) gene will enhance resistance to chemotherapy. Therefore, this is one of the additional reasons why it is advisable to do that DNA test, regardless how expensive it might be. It is also noted that with some cancers age plays a significant role. Even though causality is not yet confirmed, it is believed that genetic predisposition exists and when immune system of older OESs lowers in their advanced age, it becomes easier for the cancerous cells to generate and multiply. On the other side of the equation, we have environmental and spontaneous factors. Yes, it is true that sometimes your Old English Sheepdog can simply be unlucky, as it is the case with humans, but it is also known fact that environmental pollutants, cigarette smoke, herbicides, insecticides, pesticides, air pollutants near industrial sights, viruses, and other environmental factors could play a role in developing cancers. We can influence the quality of life and diet, so it is important that we feed our Old English Sheepdogs well with high quality and nutrient rich foods, as well as protecting them from various pollutants in our environment.

Cancer research, especially statistical overviews, are gaining in quality in recent years. The most probable reason for that is that the field of canine oncology is expanding, and that biologists and oncologists discovered that dogs and humans have much more in common and that human and canine physiology and genetics are more similar than human and mice. It has been found that human and dog genome share 80% similarity, while human and mouse 67%. That is the reason why comparative oncology has gained traction and why human oncologists are surveying canine studies. We hope to get more data about our puppies as well.

Because oncology statistical studies are rare, it is hard to determine how much are Old English Sheepdogs affected by cancer. But still, we do have several studies available, the only problem is that Old English Sheepdogs are under-represented and there is always a large potential for outliers in those cases. We have to understand that statistical analysis and requirements for humans and dogs are completely different and that with people we will have larger databases from all around the world with very precise pathological causes. When our beloved pooch dies, very often diagnosis will be missed, not classified properly and data not shared in systemic way. So, currently research is mostly coming from questionnaires that are sent to dog owners and then we get the information about the current situation. We have utilized two large studies (over 3000 dogs) with more than 12 years apart in order to get a clear picture of trends and representations.

In the 1999 study, 3,126 dogs were studied for cause of death. It was discovered that 15.7% of all deaths were attributed to cancer, while in 2012 study 15,881 dogs were studied and discovered that 27% of all deaths were attributed to cancer. The difference in number is believed to be due to the fact that more thorough research is done in recent years and that technological advances in canine pathology has attributed to correct classification of deaths. We take the 2012 study as a reference, as it has newer data and larger data set. In the 2012 study, the lowest incidence was recorded for Shih Tsu (14.5%), while the highest was for Irish Water Spaniel (55.8%). Breeds were separated in three groups: higher, mid, and lower probability of cancer. Old English Sheepdogs belong to the higher group with 32.4% recorded deaths due to cancer. This provides us with insight in how many Old English Sheepdogs are affected with various types of cancers. We can also see from the studies that the median for affected age is between 8 and 10, even though there are some younger bobtails affected. However, we can’t see from the conducted studies what was the cause (environmental or genetic) and we do not know which cancers affected Old English Sheepdogs the most. The cause of cancers is something we will not be able to determine easily, but as mentioned earlier, majority of cancers relate to genetic disorders, while environmental factors affect slightly smaller number of specimens. Therefore, we can notice again that genetic testing is beneficial for OES owners. On the other hand, at Quantarum Pets we were eager to find out which cancers affect Old English Sheepdogs. With that in mind, we have conducted a survey of OES owners and also checked Facebook group posts from 2011 until 2021 to find out which cancers affected Old English Sheepdogs the most. We have a sample of 242 bobtails affected with cancer. This is not representing the full number of dogs affected within that timeline, but rather cases where owners declared type of cancer for their bellowed sheepie. The results are presented in the following table. You can find out more about each type of cancer by clicking on the cancer type.

Table 4: Most common cancers affecting Old English Sheepdogs

As visible from the table above, most common Old English Sheepdog cancers are bone cancer and lymphoma. We can see that other types are reported as well, but it is obvious that sheepies bones are very sensitive to abnormalities. Also, it is evident that various types of cancers, that are collectively called lymphoma, affect Old English Sheepdogs more often than other cancer types. Lymphoma cancers are derived from white blood cells called lymphocites and they are usually in function of dog’s immune system to protect them from infections. In line with that, most commonly affected places in dog’s body are lymph nodes, spleen, or bone marrow. There are more than 30 types of lymphoma; some are very aggressive, while others are slower. Cause for lymphoma is still unclear. There is some evidence that mostly environmental factors are causing lymphomas, such are viruses, bacteria, chemical or magnetic field exposures, and similar. However, this is still researched and there is no sufficient evidence to establish undoubtful cause. We can only take hints from human lymphomas, which are usually caused by suppressed immune system due to HIV virus or some other systemic illness. As OES owners, we can only give our best to feed our dogs with good quality food and provide them with nutrition, minerals and vitamins that would sustain and boost their immune system to be healthy and happy dogs.

On the other hand, when we discuss bone cancer, most commonly osteosarcoma, it has a higher incidence in dogs than in humans. Osteosarcoma is very rare in humans and usually affects only children. In dogs, and as we can see Old English Sheepdogs are not excluded, we can notice that incidence is much higher. Osteosarcoma affects large and giant breeds more than smaller breeds, so oncologists believe that the reason why it affects larger dogs is because it occurs in the metaphysis (at the growth plates), so breeds that grow larger have higher chance of getting the disease. Major component of osteosarcoma appears to be genetic and heritable. We notice again that genetic testing of breeding stock is of upmost importance to preserve health of future generations. To find out more about canine lymphoma click here, and if you would like to read more about osteosarcoma, click here.

In conclusion, as Old English Sheepdogs are in the category of higher probability of cancer, owners should endeavor to take an active role in protecting their health. Consult with experienced veterinarians and follow their advice about regular health check, nutrition, supplements, exercise, and similar. We also suggest that you adopt or buy puppies from breeders that are ethical and follow recommendations and regulations of Kennel Clubs and if you decide to breed that you follow those recommendations as well.

Autoimmune disorders affecting Old English Sheepdogs

Even though some of the conditions that we mention under the autoimmune category, or immune-mediated as it is usually called in the canine world, there is a possibility that your veterinarian would inform you that this is hereditary or genetic disease. Cause of autoimmune conditions are proven to be sometimes genetic, sometimes environmental. Autoimmunity could be triggered by various conditions and what is unfortunate, one autoimmune disease can trigger another one. Autoimmune diseases result in body attacking healthy tissues by mistake as the immune system thinks that part of your body is an intruder or a disease and tries to fight it. Autoimmune diseases are challenging and can seriously threaten your Old English Sheepdog’s life. Therefore, it is necessary to learn how to recognize signs and bring your pooch to your veterinary as soon as you see the signs. Most of the autoimmune conditions require lifelong commitment to treatment and monitoring. Depending on the condition, your OES could require immunosuppressants to manage symptoms, which can make your sheepie prone to infections, so extra care has to be taken.

We have conducted a survey of OES owners and have noticed that the following conditions were most common among the Old English Sheepdogs. Unfortunately, we have noticed that majority of cases included young dogs (2-4 years) and that significant number of them deteriorated very quickly and some lost their battles. This is the reason why it is of upmost importance to contact veterinarian as soon as you notice symptoms and/or change in behavior. Mostly discussed conditions for Old English Sheepdog were (please click on the condition to find out more about them and what to expect):

• Hypoadrenocorticism (Addison’s)
• Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia
• Lupus
• Immune-mediated polyarthritis (IMPA)
• Autoimmune Hypothyroidism
• Immune-mediated thrombocytopenia
• Inflammatory bowel disease
• Myasthenia gravis

Common health issues impacting Old English Sheepdogs

We covered common genetic, malignant, and autoimmune diseases so far, but what about other illnesses? Are Old English Sheepdog prone to some other conditions more than other breeds? Well, some are quite common across the canine species, while some other conditions do appear to be more frequent with OES then other breeds. Each veterinary clinic will see some examples, but it would be hard to draw conclusions on a larger scale. There are some conditions that were not discussed above but do affect most of our canine friends and Old English Sheepdogs are not an exemption. We have once again surveyed OES owners to check which conditions OES owners experienced with their sheepies. We omitted some conditions for which dogs are usually vaccinated:

• Gastric Dilatation or Bloat
• Bacterial and fungal infections
• Hypothyroidism
• Kennel cough
• Kennel influenza 
• Hyperadrenocorticism or Cushing’s
• Alopecia
• Parasites and parasitic infections
• Heartworms
• Heat stroke
• Lipomas or cysts (lumps and bumps)
• Ringworm
• Lyme and other tick-borne diseases
• Demodex Mange
• Obesity
• Dental conditions
• Ear infections and itch
• Itchy skin and skin infections
• Urinary tract problems
• Bleeding disorders
• Diabetes
• Liver diseases
• Bladder or kidney stones
• Parvovirus

Clicking on the name of the condition will take you to pages where you can learn more about each illness. If you recognize any of the symptoms, please contact your veterinarian soonest and schedule a visit. Most of the conditions have better outlook if they are caught early and treatment starts immediately.

Allergies affecting Old English Sheepdogs

We have decided to do a separate section on allergies as we have noticed that our Old English Sheepdogs, but also many other sheepies have significant issues with allergies. Throughout our survey, many OES owners confirmed that they struggled, or are still struggling with allergies. 

If you notice that your sheepie often chews on his/her paws, sometimes franticly like they want to chew them off, or if you touch their body and the whole skin starts to move, or if you notice the dreaded ear scratching behavior and rubbing against the floor with the accompanying groan, then you probably have an OES that suffers from some kind of allergy. Unfortunately, there are many other conditions that mimic allergic reactions and diagnosing allergies can sometimes be very difficult. Also, we have noticed that many OES owners are unhappy with the support and treatment recommended by their veterinarians and often seek veterinarians that are specialized in allergology or trying to source a more holistic approach. There is a lot of frustration involved with allergies, so be ready for a marathon, not a quick solution.

Why is my Old English Sheepdog itchy and licking her paws?

There are several reasons why your OES could be itchy. It is very important to note that it is normal for your OES to lick/chew the paws, sneeze, rub the head against the furniture or floor, or shake the head, as long as it is done several times per week. It is not normal for them to repeat this pattern more than once or twice per day. Therefore, if you notice that your pup repeats this behavior more than once or twice per day, it is advisable to visit your vet to investigate further. Some OES owners are concerned that itching and licking is related to anxiety and boredom, but this is quite rare. They might be licking their paws because of the pain they feel, especially when they get older and feel helpless. However, it is always good to rule out other causes before diagnosing behavioral issues. If you notice hair thinning, that there is redness of the skin, or that hair is getting purple/red at the place where your pooch is licking, it is time to see the vet. Some Old English Sheepdogs will be self-barbering their hair by chewing and pulling out their hair as their way to itch the skin.

Itching, or pruritus, might be caused by the following:

• Bacterial infection, such is staphylococcus bacteria
• Fungal infection caused by Malassezia yeast or dermatophytes
• Autoimmune diseases such are pemphigus foliaceus
• Parasites like fleas, lice, mites, or ticks
• Epitheliotropic lymphoma
• Bad habits
• Atopic Dermatitis and allergies to environmental or food allergens

If your Old English Sheepdog is losing hair without itching, it could be sign of non-allergy related issues, such are Cushing’s, hypothyroidism, or some other type of infection. Regardless of the itch, if you notice hair loss, contact your veterinarian for a checkup.In this section we only cover atopic dermatitis and allergies, but if you would like to know more about other potential sources, you are welcome to follow the links by clicking on the condition of your interest.

Atopic dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis is a direct consequence of allergies, and it can be defined as an inflammatory chronic skin disease. There is strong evidence that genetics play a significant role in atopic dermatitis. Your dog’s skin barrier could be genetically defected and allows allergens to penetrate the skin and then triggers the allergic reaction. Your veterinarian will most probably suspect atopic dermatitis if you describe persistent itching and/or chewing issues your OES has, unless your sheepie spends time outside without flea and tick prevention. In that case, the first suspect would be dermatitis caused by flea or tick allergies and the approach would be different. Therefore, it is imperative to rule out parasites or other skin diseases prior diagnosing atopic dermatitis.

Considering the fact that the skin barrier is weakened by the condition, many allergens can find their way into the skin of your pooch which will trigger an allergic reaction. Symptoms could be evident at age as young as 1 or as old as 6 years. Some owners noticed symptoms appearing while their sheepies were puppies. Atopic dermatitis is a chronic condition with phases of intensive itching, rubbing, chewing, or licking of the paws, ears, armpits, anal area or abdomen. Some dogs could even sneeze or lick their paws and feet to create wounds. Therefore, it is important to remember that if your veterinarian gave you this diagnosis, it is a chronic condition, and you will have to agree on a long-term therapy that best fits your OES. It is often the case that you will have to experiment with several medical treatments before finding the best solution for your OES.

Food allergies

Even though solution for food allergies is as simple as avoiding food that triggers allergic reaction, finding the food that causes allergies is not an easy task. Unfortunately, there are many websites, products and marketing tricks to persuade you to take food allergy tests and buy “hypoallergenic” food for your dogs. We emphasize that the approach of Quantarum Pets is to provide you only with information and data that has verified sources and is based on peer-reviewed scientific articles. Therefore, all information provided in this article is backed up by leading veterinary research institutes. All information and references are at the bottom of the article. 

Food allergies occur when dog’s immune system mistakenly attacks proteins from the food your pooch has taken, as it thinks that it is invader rather than a food. Therefore, reaction to this food can be dermatological or gastroenterological, which is understandable, as the food is going through digestive tract. Food allergies are actually quite rare. Clinical data shows us that only 5-10% canine allergy cases are food related. There are no diagnostic tests for a food allergy. There are multiple studies conducted to test accuracy of various saliva, blood, and hair tests, and all of them showed that these tests are not helpful in diagnosing food allergies, despite their popularity. Most recently, this studyconfirmed the hypothesis that tests were unreliable. Some veterinarians would choose to use them, but the effectiveness of these tests is questionable, as research used plain water and stuffed animal material and got back results that there are some food groups for which allergy was noted. Therefore, the only reliable “test” that is available is dietary elimination trial. The exception to this rule are tests for food intolerance, but this should not be mistaken for food allergy, as food intolerance is much simpler condition and usually only affects digestive tract.

As mentioned above, symptoms could be dermatological, which we mentioned earlier in text and manifest through itching and rashes, but also your dog could have vomiting or diarrhea as a sign of food allergy. Diet elimination trial is the only reliable way to find the food that is affecting your OES. This process takes time and can be frustrating for both you and your sheepie. Until the food source causing allergies is found, your veterinarian will help your pooch by giving some medication and maybe even make a diet plan to have a systematic trial. This should ease the discomfort of your sheepie, but, as mentioned earlier, it can be a long journey filled with frustration until you finally find the food responsible for the allergy reaction. The most common approach is to start with a food that has only one protein source with carefully selected fats, minerals, and vitamins. Dogs are carnivores and don’t require carbohydrates. Unfortunately, commercial food is full of carbs, so this is also something that your veterinarian will discuss with you when making dietary plans. Once you determine dietary plan for your OES, you will have to feed her only this food. That is the only food allowed to go into your sheepie’s mouth. No exceptions! Yes, they will use their strongest weapon; tilted head and sad eyes, but you should not let up. This step could take several months. If you then see that your Old English Sheepdog is thriving well on this food and that there are no allergic episodes, this is a very good sign and then you will agree with your veterinarian to introduce some other foods, so that your sheepie can get some snacks again. Surveying OES owners, it seems that Old English Sheepdogs are mostly allergic to chicken as a source of protein. This is in line with recent research that shows that dogs are mainly allergic to chicken, beef, dairy, and eggs. 

One important take out of this section is that there is no such thing as “hypoallergenic” food. There is food that your pooch can tolerate well and the one that he should stay away from. This is something that you will need to find on your own in consultation with other OES owners who had similar experience and veterinarians. Food industry has good marketing campaigns, and it is sometimes difficult to navigate through the sea of information.

Environmental allergies

Environmental allergies are reactions to various allergens found in the environment around our living place. These are pollens, dusts, or molds. Same as with humans, dogs could be allergic to environmental allergens, and they can cause already described symptoms. Unlike food allergies which persist throughout the year, most of the external allergens are seasonal, but internal could be also year-round. As mentioned above, food allergies are difficult to diagnose, and as they are only evident in 5-10% of allergy cases, your veterinarian or dermatologist will concentrate on other sources first. The effective way to diagnose if any of the environmental allergens are affecting your sheepie’s allergies is by doing an allergy test. Tests are performed for indoor allergens, grasses, trees, weeds, and molds. You can find out more about type of allergens here. Allergy test can include skin prick test where various allergens are introduced to very small area on the skin of your pooch. Sometimes even 60 of different allergens can be tested. Prior injection, your OES would be under mild sedation, and a small area of her hair would be shaved off on one side of her chest to allow for injections to be administered. Testing lasts for about 30 minutes and dermatologists looks for a hive-type reaction to determine which allergens are acting up. Once the test is completed, dermatologist and veterinarian would agree on appropriate treatment. Alternatively, there is a blood test that can be done, but according to clinical data, it is not as effective as the skin test. Some dermatologists prefer to do both tests to confirm everything. If you would like to find out more on testing procedures and costs, please click here.

Flea or tick allergy dermatitis

One of the most common dermatological conditions that dogs can get is flea allergy dermatitis. Parasite caused allergies are equally uncomfortable as allergies we have covered so far, but the positive thing about this type of allergy is that the treatment is easier and straightforward. Flea saliva enters your sheepie’s skin when flea feeds which causes some dogs to have inflammatory reaction within the period from 15 minutes to 48 hours. Your dog’s biting, chewing and scratching only worsens the situation, as they mechanically damage top layers of their skin and allow for allergens to spread easily. In this case, veterinary doctors and dermatologists have stable way of testing against flea allergen through serological testing of your sheepie’s blood. There is also skin test that can be done. Once the cause is identified, veterinarian will give you detailed instruction on how to get rid of fleas from your dog and treat other household pets, humans, and household areas (including yards). Once you eradicate fleas, you and your pooch are safe and can return to normal life. You will get special shampoos and medicine to treat the allergy symptoms, but once the fleas are dead, your Old English Sheepdog will be back to the route of recovery. To learn more about flea allergy dermatitis and find out what is the cost of tests and treatments, please click here.

Atopic dermatitis and allergy treatments

As you now already know, treating atopic dermatitis will largely depend on the type of allergen causing your OES to have allergic reaction. If your Old English Sheepdog is allergic to food, the optimal course of action is to undertake dietary exclusion program. With your veterinarian you will agree which food to take and how to monitor progress of your pup. Remember, it is the protein source that causes immune system of your OES to act up and make allergic reactions; therefore, your veterinarian will most probably try to find the source of protein that your sheepie tolerates best. 

If the veterinarian confirms that your sheepie has allergy caused by any of the environmental allergens, your veterinarian has to determine which medication is the best for your pooch. As emphasized by OES owners in our survey, some of the Old English Sheepdogs do not tolerate well steroids and prefer medication that does not have steroids side effect. This is very possible today, as there are many solutions to treat atopic dermatitis caused by allergies. Your treatment could be for only a short period to verify which kind of treatment fits your dog the best, after which your veterinarian will determine for how long your sheepie will need to be treated. Unfortunately, there is no cure for atopic dermatitis with allergies, but there are some excellent treatments. Many OES owners have reported that their pooches reacted very well on Apoquel, so you can discuss about this and similar medication with your veterinarian. Depending on your sheepie’s personality, location of dermatitis, severity of infection, skin type, and similar, your veterinarian will prepare allergy shots to treat the allergy conditions. These shots do not have to be immunosuppressants, so have an open conversation with your veterinarian to find the best solution for your dog. It might take longer time for your OES to respond to the treatment, so in the meantime your veterinarian could give you additional medication to help your pooch with his symptoms and can even prescribe some antibiotics or anti-yeast medication to treat inflammation of the skin, after which the itching and scratching should subside.

In addition to treatments mentioned above, if your sheepie is having an allergic reaction to flee or tick bites, your veterinarian will prescribe medication to get rid of the parasites and something to reduce inflammation, after which your OE should get back to normal routine. Also, while getting medication for the atopic dermatitis, your veterinarian might suggest some shampoos, moisturizers, omega-3 fatty acids, or antihistamines. To learn more about treatments and costs, please check our in-depth article on treating atopic dermatitis in dogs.

5 Tips on Keeping your Old English Sheepdog Healthy

If you have passed through this lengthy article, you have seen how to deal with genetic diseases and conditions, how to handle cancer diagnosis, what to do in case of autoimmune disorder, which steps to take if your sheepie catches some of the other common diseases, and how to determine which allergies your pooch might have. Old English Sheepdogs are wonderful bouncy dogs that can make you and your family happy for many years ahead. If you invest some of your time and efforts in research and articles like these, you will be in a position to provide the best care for your OES and to be in the upper end of the life longevity curve.

In order to safeguard the quality of life of your OES and to have a healthy and happy life together, here are 5 recommendations to keep your Old English Sheepdog healthy:

1. Genetic testing – It is evident from all medical conditions that are presented in this article that most of the common medical conditions have a certain genetic involvement. One of the most responsible things you could do for your OES is to do a genetic test before you decide to mate in order to prevent incidence of some diseases for further generations. Always ask the breeder if your sheepie was tested; if not, test your OES. You can do the same for your litter and in this way many conditions and diseases could be eradicated, or incidence lowered. As reported earlier in the text, Old English Sheepdog belong to the category of high-risk breeds for cancer, and if we prevent affected or carrier dogs to transmit some of the genetic defects, we could mitigate health risks to more acceptable levels. Autoimmune conditions usually carry a part for which genetic degeneration can play significant role, so there is another benefit of genetic testing. Tests could be done following your national breed Club instructions, or by taking a very thorough Embark test.
2. Healthy food – Surveying OES owners we have noticed that many owners experienced issues with their Old English Sheepdogs after feeding them with food that was not suitable for them. How do you know if the food is any good? There are so many manufacturers, so how to pick? Well, unfortunately there is no easy answer here. What works for one pooch, doesn’t necessarily work for other. In this article we deliver a list of preferable dog foods according to the quality of product, not the brand. There are several categories we considered before recommending certain food. As it was evident from our allergies section in this article, it is evident that some Old English Sheepdogs do have food allergies and that most of them had issues with chicken and beef as their main protein source. Remember that it is protein that causes allergies, so even though there could be a recommendation for some food, there is a chance that your OES could be allergic to chicken, or beef, or salmon and the only way to see if they are ok or not is to test various foods. If you find something that works, stick with it. Always consult your veterinarians. You can also consult your fellow OES owners but note that they could be using amazing food that your sheepie can’t take due to allergies. There are many theories and opinions about what the best food is, but you will have to find which food works best for your OES. If you would like to prepare home-made meals for your Old English Sheepdog, we have a full dedicated section for dog food recipes. The main thing to remember is to ensure your pooch is getting enough proteins, minerals, vitamins, and fats. Please remember that dogs do not need carbohydrates in their diet. 
3. Exercise, mental challenge, and grooming – Being drovers and sheepdogs, Old English Sheepdogs enjoy times of activity, play, challenge, and exercise. Sure, there are many couch potatoes out there, but at least when they are young, they enjoy bouncing, herding you, other pets or toys, running in fields, swimming, etc. They enjoy their physical activity, so activity component is part of their health regiment. We have lived with our Old English Sheepdogs in both houses and apartments and in both instances, they were happy dogs. Surely, house with doggy doors when they can step outside and interact with the environment is a strong benefit, but even if they are in the apartments, they will be happy as long as you take them out for walkies. Sheepies belong to challenging grooming group, and it takes a good deal of commitment to keep them groomed. They are prone to dermatological issues if their coat is not taken care of for a long period of time, so grooming also becomes a part of their health maintenance.
4. Observant – One of the most important skills you will have to tackle or develop is to be observant. As it is the case with all diseases, as early as we can notice some changes and act, we can commit to finding the underlying cause of that change, and then, if necessary, treat any kind of illness that is affecting our beloved Old English Sheepdogs. As early as we can administer that therapy, it will be more effective for your pooch. In regards of getting treatment for cancer, OES owners reported that it was difficult to notice cancer early and that symptoms appeared when illness progressed to the point where medication had very limited success. This is, unfortunately, a trademark of malignant diseases and in some cases, symptoms will appear early, while in others your pooch will behave normally all the way until the illness is well advanced. However, if you ever notice a change in their routine and behavior, it is always advisable to contact your veterinarian to check if there are any underlying reasons for the change. If they don’t eat as usual, if their stool changes, potty schedule changes, behavior changes and your sheepie is not the same, etc. By acting early, you provide the best care to your bundle of joy.
5. Veterinary care – It is kind of obvious but give your best to have regular checkups with your veterinarian. If you do not have any specific veterinarian that you prefer, try the closest one to you and see if you can establish relationship. If you are not happy with the service, try somewhere else. Once you do find a clinic or veterinarian that is ready to bond with your OES, be open about your expectations and ask them to give you an overview of short-term, mid-term, and long-term plans for your pooch. Maybe you will not need help from veterinarian that often, but if you have a good relationship, you will feel open to ask any kind of questions to improve quality of life of your sheepie. This is the route to one happy and healthy Old English Sheepdog.