The Bloodhound Club
Association Of Bloodhound Breeders
Education-Research-Health
There are several types of cancer that are often found in bloodhounds
Osteosarcoma
a primary bone tumour.
It usually occurs in the bones of the limbs but can also develop in the bones of the skull, spine or ribcage.
Osteosarcoma (OSA) is an aggressive neoplasm of the bone. Large breed (>40 kg) dogs that are middle-age and older are most affected, with a median age at diagnosis of 7 years . Most cases present in the appendicular skeleton, with the forelimb being more commonly impacted than the hindlimb.
There is an excellent website with further information on all types of canine cancer here
Lymphoma
A common cancer in bloodhounds is Lymphoma
Lymphoma is a cancer of the lymphocytes, or white blood cells. There are multiple different types of lymphoma in dogs,The different types of lymphoma arise from malignant transformation of different types of lymphocytes or as a consequence of different specific DNA aberrations acquired during the life of the individual patient.
What can we do to reduce the risk of cancers in Bloodhounds?
Initially we need to work with surveys and data.
Breeders and owners need to complete health surveys and also submit death reports to help correlate information.
It goes without saying that hounds who have themselves suffered from a life threatening cancer or who have come from a line of short-lived hounds where cancer is the common cause of death, really shouldn't be bred from.