White boxers - what's wrong? - Page 6

**gmacleod** · #61 23rd February 2007, 04:14 PM

One list doesn't make it representative

At the other end of the scale, you've got polling that puts it well over 20%. And I think you'd probably recall that a long running poll of pet owners on this site came out very close to the 20% mark also (and zero identified unilaterals, of course).

It would be very suprising that a figure of 5% could be believed to be accurate. Given that the same genes are at work with white boxers and dalmations - and the latter commonly have more pigment than white boxers - one would have to expect an accurate deafness figure in whites of this breed to be at least as high.

Louie's Mom · #62 24th February 2007, 01:58 PM

I have a question -

If you were to take white boxers and keep breeding them to only white boxers - could they(the offspring) possibly end up being albino?? or are they completly different issues??

**gmacleod** · #63 24th February 2007, 02:32 PM

I don't believe so... Interesting theoretical question though!

Where a boxer is white, that's an area of little or no pigment. Whites aren't entirely unpigmented of course - we see pigment spots on the skin (that which isn't "strong" enough to also colour the hair, but appears as skin spots or "freckles") and we see pigment in the eyes and nose leather. And any areas that are coloured, of course. If you were to breed white to white, without exception, every single puppy would likewise be white (or mostly white) and pigment would be diminished with each successive generation. So - fewer coloured patches, fewer skin spots, and very likely also a vastly increasing incidence of blue eyes (which is also due to lack of pigment) and increasing incidence of deafness. But I don't think that this leads to zero pigment. If we could calculate it mathematically, I think we'd (eventually) see pigment approaching zero - but never quite getting there.

Albinoism is something else entirely. It is caused by gene defects that lead to an inability to produce melanin. Quite possibly the effects of near-zero pigment, even if by different cause, could have similar health effects though (eyesight loss, lung and bowel diseases, etc). Fortunately, white boxers aren't in that sort of extreme category.

ehayes21 · #64 26th February 2007, 12:57 PM

OMG - this thread is awesome! There is a woman that frequents the dog park that is a self proclaimed boxer expert - she has this new idea that there is a "responsible" way to breed a white as long as you breed it to a plain fawn.

She'll be getting a print out of this at our next meet-up. Thanks for the information!!!

**gmacleod** · #65 26th February 2007, 01:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ehayes21

Thanks for the information!!!

If you want educational - try this thread (its the sticky from the top of the genetics forum). In particular, note the information posted there by Marimat - it is somewhat more in-depth: White boxer breedings

ehayes21 · #66 26th February 2007, 02:00 PM

Absolutely! Thank you.

Louie's Mom · #67 26th February 2007, 08:02 PM

Ah - so it would be a "Mock" albinism instead of "True" albinism - I guess

sarah_bailey · #68 2nd March 2007, 11:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ehayes21

OMG - this thread is awesome!

Thankyou