Thread: HCM testing??

If both parents bin negative a kittens also negative for the gen. But you must have seen the test from the parrents then..otherwise you never know for sure.
I have tested most of my cats on both the gen's.
But I stopt, there is no guarantee that the cats don't get HCM,
The only thing you know now is that the cat is negative for that part..and possible there bin a other 20 parts. But they not found yet.
I think its a false test...

If you want to breed good, you alway's must do the screening. Our mainecoon club give the advice every 2 ore 2,5 year.
I must drive also a long end for the test. But its worth it.
THe screening is the only way that you can see if your cat get HCM ore not.
And all is the cat for 4 years negative...with 5 years he can be positive.
Not every HCM are hereditary.
It also can come , when the cat is very sick a infection, pneumonia ore something else...the heart must work hard then.
And sometime's it can damage the heart muscle.
But its very hard to find out if its from Illnes ore if its hereditary.

I believe strongly in the DNA testing & think that if a breeder is going to use a cat for breeding that has come from negative stock that cat should also be swabbed for proof before being used.The genetic test is something that can be done from birth,is never going to alter unlike the ultrasound,yes I know the MYBC3 gene is the only one identified at the moment & yes there most probaly are more waiting to be found but if it is strongly linked it must be in the interest of the breeding programs to have all those carrying the homozygous mutant gene taken out,with the ultrasound alone a male/female could have already been bred more than once producing kittens with that gene before any problem shows up,what if at worst both a stud cat & one female both show signs of HCM at a check up that in previous years had shown no signs,how many homozygous babes could be out there,some that could also have become breeding lines. Like everything it is time,history taking & more research that hopefully will get perhaps a step even closer to finding out more, the same as genetic testing in the humans,we don't discount that if something is found that helps you think thank goodness for that may they soon find more, at the moment this is the closest we can get to helping our MC's line become even stronger,nothing is going to stop anything 100% because you can never wipe out all the causes that could lead to it but....!

PS : Just for my interest alone I had four of mine swabbed even though they are neutered pets,was ready to take the results on the chin but also you never know what it could throw out to help especially from the older ones where the genetic test was not available when they were born.