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Talk to me about HCM.......

Inferno12

Inferno12

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I keep seeing you guys talk about HCM and I guess I have never heard of it? What is HCM and is it only a Sphynx thing? Sorry if im ignorant about this :Sad:
 
Mews2much

Mews2much

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The breeders try to keep it out of the lines but HCM pos cats can still happen.
They do HCM tests before they breed.
If a cat tests pos then it is altered and removed from the breeding program.
There are bad breeders that will breed anyway.
 
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EmbraceMonChat

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Inferno12 said:
Is it a risk you take as a breeder or is this something that is preventable? Thanks for you information by the way :BigSmile:
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It's a risk you take as a breeder and an owner. There is no genetic test for Sphynx (yet) so breeders can't send out a quick blood sample and know if they are HCM free or not prior to a mating. They can do echocardiograms on their breeders and monitor any changes, remove HCM + cats from their program and share the information so that other breedersk can avoid cultivating HCM+ branches in their own pedigrees. The problem is that sometimes a cat can scan clear for the first few years of it's life, the same time period it would be breeding...and then pop positive after it's been retired from breeding. Well, too late for all the other breeders and pets that were placed from those litters. That's why it's so important, if you are trying to stack the deck in your favor, to deal with a breeder that KNOWS pedigrees and HCM inside and out. Even then, you can't completely guarantee anything.
 
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tessblack

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I just got both my guys tested and they were negative. I knew nothing about it until I got on here. I was so scared when I took them in. I like your facebook page!! He is so cute!
 
Inferno12

Inferno12

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tessblack said:
I just got both my guys tested and they were negative. I knew nothing about it until I got on here. I was so scared when I took them in. I like your facebook page!! He is so cute!
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AWE......thanks, I love his facebook page too! I have never heard about HCM either until I have gotten on here. I plan on taking him in and having him tested now. It makes me nervous too
 
admin

admin

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Hi Inferno12 Embracemonchat said it very well. The only thing missing is that no it's not a "sphynx thing". Any animal including humans can get this heart disease.
 
Shauntay

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Both of my altered boys have HCM, and my smaller one has a murmur graded 5 out of 6. It's a horrible disease, and I am grateful for every day I have with them. When I got them 6 years ago, I did not do adequate research, and fell in love with their pictures and trusted the "breeder's" word that her breeding cats had been scanned negative. I later found out that both parents were positives, and being her only sphynx produced up to 4 litters a year. I love my boys more then anything in the world, and it breaks my heart we probably wont have the time we deserve with each other.

A note to everyone; Support HCM research in finding a genetic marker for Sphynx. With loving conscientious breeders, we can all keep up hope! :ThumbsUp:
 
Inferno12

Inferno12

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Shauntay said:
Both of my altered boys have HCM, and my smaller one has a murmur graded 5 out of 6. It's a horrible disease, and I am grateful for every day I have with them. When I got them 6 years ago, I did not do adequate research, and fell in love with their pictures and trusted the "breeder's" word that her breeding cats had been scanned negative. I later found out that both parents were positives, and being her only sphynx produced up to 4 litters a year. I love my boys more then anything in the world, and it breaks my heart we probably wont have the time we deserve with each other.

A note to everyone; Support HCM research in finding a genetic marker for Sphynx. With loving conscientious breeders, we can all keep up hope! :ThumbsUp:
Click to expand...

WOW...how sad. I cant imagine him going at a young age. I will make sure that I get him scanned and I hope that he is ok. This is so sad to me and I am sorry that both our boys have this.
 
ilovemysphynx

ilovemysphynx

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Hi Inferno12 and welcome! Also keep in mind that if you have your cat scanned and the result is negative he can be positive a week, month or year later so it is no guarantee.
 
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firehillqueen

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I lost my much beloved Singe to HCM. I had never owned a Sphynx before and had no idea that this would steal my darling at 2 years old.
Singe02.jpg
 
holly_savage

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Wish I could offer anything new, but it has all been covered by our resident HCM "experts" (and I am using the " " in a nice way, not sarcastic).
I am also a new sphynx owner, so I will have to go through the testing part in the next year!
 
Inferno12

Inferno12

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Thank you for the information. This is exactly what I was looking for. I will be having my little man tested and this is something that will monitor for the rest of his life and when I am looking for my next Shynx!

ckutkuhn7, I am so sorry for your loss :Cry:
 
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