The degree of Kidney damage caused by Renal Dysplasia (RD) varies from carrier to carrier. In much the same way as Hip Dysplasia (HD) varies from affected dog to affected dog. With hips scores ranging from 0 to 53 for each hip and any dog even with a low score and up to a high score IS AFFECTED BY HD, and has hip dysplasia to some degree.

RD can be very mild in some carriers and very severe in others and anywhere between. We should all realise that dogs can survive with around 50% kidney function or ONE kidney, in a similar way humans can survive with ONE kidney, which is clearly 50% of our normal TWO kidneys.

Any RD carrier with kidneys that are impaired by RD less than 50% will live quite normally into old age. Those around the 50% may have problems IF they contract an illness or another disease which places increased stress on their kidneys or impairs them further.

For these reasons MANY carriers survive without any signs of the RD disease and without their owners having any clue that they are indeed RD carriers. In a similar way to Hip Dysplasia where the majority of hip scores are below 50% of the maximum total of 106 score, it appears that the degree of kidney damage in the majority of RD carriers is below 50% of their kidneys function. Therefore, thankfully the majority will live normal lives.

The real problems arise for the breeders and owners of RD carriers is first of all with some RD affected puppies being still born, and then those puppies with RD kidney damage close to and over 50% RD kidney damage. These are very likely to die at various ages, from a few months of age up to a few years, and when they are dying through kidney failure (diagnosed or not), there is nothing that can be done to save them. The majority of these deaths will not have been RD DNA tested and will not have been diagnosed as RD carriers, even while they are dying, so therefore most deaths through Renal Dysplasia disease go unrecorded. 

However I am absolutely sure with the availability of the RD DNA Test and the much wider Veterinary and public knowledge of the RD DNA Test, this will change.

In the meantime I sincerely hope more breeders will seriously consider RD DNA testing their breeding stock. I also hope that our GSD breed can avoid the extremely high saturation levels of Renal Dysplasia that several other breeds are suffering with.

There is NO publicly available database of all RD results in GSD and it is unlikely there will be one in the foreseeable future.

RD DNA tests and results are confidential to the owner of the dog, just as it should be. There is NO requirement for the RD DNA test to be done through a GSD organisation with the requisite permission for the results to be published, as with the BVA/KC Hip & Elbow schemes and the SV Hip & Elbow schemes. 

There are GSD breeders who are RD DNA testing their dogs and the number is growing. What breeders who do not test should be aware of is that anyone who buys their puppies can have them tested, and they may publish carriers. If anyone uses their Stud Dog(s), the offspring may be tested by the breeder who used him and by the buyers of the resultant puppies, and carriers may be published. For many breeders it may be a case in the future of "trying to shut the stable door after the horse has bolted".

The mode of inheritance for RD is very clear and can be relatively easily traced, just as it can be relatively easily eliminated with the benefit of the test and in some cases patience.

THE ORTHOPEDIC FOUNDATION FOR ANIMALS (OFFA-USA)
CURRENTLY AVAILABLE DNA TESTS - INCLUDING RENAL DYSPLASIA

http://www.offa.org/dna_alltest.html

Renal Dysplasia in the following breeds

Bernese Mountain Dog, Bichon Frise, Boxer, Cairn Terrier, Collie, English Cocker Spaniel, 
German Shepherd, Golden Retriever, Gordon Setter, Havanese, Lhasa Apso, Miniature Schnauzer, Poodle, Portuguese Water Dog, Shetland Sheepdog, Shih Tzu, Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier, Tibetan Terrier, Weimeraner