Happy New Year Miniature Bull Terriers and Mini lovers,

The MBTCA Health Committee has been actively working on some exciting
projects over the last few months and would like to share the news with you
all.

We have completed submission of the Parent Club Flyer to the AKC. This
insert will be sent to all who request registration information on mini
bulls. Information about choosing a mini bull, training, showing, breeding
and health are included. The AKC will be appraising us of the release date
in the early part of 2005.

We are in the process of establishing the MBTCA as a member of CHIC--Canine
Health Information Center, which is a centralized canine health database
sponsored by AKC Canine Health Foundation (AKC/CHF) and Orthopedic
Foundation for Animals (OFA). Please familiarize yourself with the benefits
and forward thinking of this organization by logging onto:

www.caninehealthinfo.org

We now have a beautiful health committee logo which Lorelei Craig has worked
very hard on which will debut at Kentuckiana in March. This show will
provide the location and time for a health seminar which features two
speakers. Lorelei will be giving us a glimpse of the health committee
projects which are unfolding and, most importantly, how mini owners (club
members or not) can participate in these projects. Then, Dr. Gary Johnson
of the University of Missouri will be speaking on the status of primary lens
luxation studies--his own and others and on the topic of DNA banking/storage
and perhaps on his proposed phenome project. We have had grants given to
Dr. Johnson on our behalf (and w/ our help, monetarily and blood samples) by
the AKC Canine Health Foundation. He has been an ethical researcher,
willing to share information with other researchers--which is not always the
case. In many institutions and research facilities once blood is deposited
with them, the blood/extracted DNA becomes a proprietary issue w/ the
research facility winning ownership most times. This is a loss for the
breed--so we have done due diligence in looking at working out an agreement
SOMEWHERE for DNA banking. The culmination of the effort is unfolding now
as we have come full circle and are in the final stages of an agreement with
Dr. Johnson's lab. This agreement will allow for ease of blood sample
submission and confidence in its' longevity, availability and co-ownership
which will lead, hopefully, to much genetic research and someday to tests
upon which we will rely to guide us in healthy breeding practices.

This being said, the AKC/CHF has previewed a research proposal from the
United Kingdom. This proposal is a direct result of ongoing interaction of
your health committee with Erika Werne @ the AKC and two researchers in the
United Kingdom. The two entities visited face-to-face in October and it
looks like ( not final as of this writing, but all indicators say it will
be) a $12,000.00 grant will be approved for the study of Primary Lens
Luxation in Minature Bull Terriers. Of course, more information will be
forthcoming on this topic once approval is (hopefully) granted.

We hope to provide blood draw locations at major shows which will expedite
the process of filling our blood bank ( we have less than 90 samples
currently) and providing quick access to the UK research project.
We seek to provide monies through the club to fund the first group of blood
submissions--hopefully incentivising donors. Blood submission will, as in
the past, require pedigree information and a completed questionaire.


The projects above have required hours of work on the committees' part. The
true test of our efforts will be in gaining support of the mini bull pet
owners and breeders--through donated time, ideas of how each of you can
help, blood and money donations.
Each of our supported shows this year will need volunteers (to help man a
table or booth) and input (a willing vet/vet tech in the area who will do a
blood draw). Yes, the club has chores that must be done in order to improve
ourselves and just a handful of people trying to accomplish a vast task as
improving mini health will burn out or achieve less than is possible. We
as a committee seek to push our breed's interest in the health of our
minis, into action--but
WE WANT YOU.

MBTCA Health Committee
Lisa Byrd
Lorelie Craig
Wanda Moriarty