Vallhund Health

Genetic health concerns are uncommon in the Vallhund. Agria Insurance statistics demonstrate that Vallhunds have good health and vigor. The Swedish Vallhund Society in the UK (SVS) notes that the Swedish Vallhund is a hardy breed with few health problems .

Life expectancy

The Swedish Vallhund Society in the UK (SVS) Breed health Conservation Plan notes that many Vallhunds live into their teenage years.

The SVS conducted a longevity report in 2017, finding Vallhunds have an average lifespan of 14 years. In this study, the most common cause of death reported by far was old age with a mean average age of 15 for this category., which is an encouraging discovery. This is in line with the Finnish Kennel Clubs' statistics (detailed in their Breed-Specific Breeding Programme [JTO]) pointing to old age being the second most common cause of death after cancers.

Progressive Retinal Atrophy (Swedish Vallhund Type - SVR)

Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) describes the inherited degeneration of the retina, resulting in progressive vision loss culminating in blindness in dogs, which has an autosomal-recessive mode of inheritance. Swedish Vallhund Retinopathy (SVR) is specific to this breed as the Vallhunds only carry two markers and therefore the phenotype of this disease is rather different from most known forms of PRA, with a multifocal rather than diffuse distribution of retinal degeneration. 

Odindisa aims to produce puppies that are not affected by SVR by testing breeding dogs to minimise its occurrence in future litters. Such identification paves the way for the possibility of a therapeutic option with MERTK inhibitors. Meanwhile, a genetic marker test can be developed to revise breeding programs to reduce the frequency of this disease in the Swedish Vallhund breed (Source). 

Odindisa is mindful that the gene pool is smaller in this rare breed, and therefore carrier dogs should not be excluded from the breeding program and homozygous GG dogs cannot be avoided (Ahonen, Lohi & Komáromy, 2015). The Finnish Kennel Club JTO notes that while breed-specific retinal disease remains a major area requiring monitoring. However, the JTO found that 81% of dogs known or suspected to have the breed's retinal disease  had observed no change in their vision. These findings support the Swedish RAS which demonstrates that the SVR genetic retinal condition can exist in Vallhunds without obvious functional impairment for much of the dog's life.

There are three clinical stages of SVR (as described by Cooper et al. 2014):

1. Diffuse multifocal red/brown discoloration of the tapetal fundus without associated visual deficits (Stage 1).

2. Geographic retinal thinning/degeneration with mild to moderate signs of nightblindness (Stage 2),

3. More diffuse retinal thinning/degeneration affecting most of the tapetal fundus and associated with night-vision loss and severely impaired day-vision (Stage 3). 

While some affected dogs can progress to subsequent stages of disease, others do not progress beyond early stages despite advanced age. Further contemporary studies indicate that SVR may not manifest with night-vision loss. 

The SVS Breed Health and Conservation Plan states that "analysis [has] established a strong statistical association with retinopathy, with this later replicated in the original Finnish study set. Combining both studies the mutation was found to have a ~20-fold increased risk in developing retinopathy and an odds ratio of 23.41 (95% CI 10.99 – 49.86)."

This supports the findings that a dog that may be genetically affected is not guaranteed to develop SVR. The presence of the marker indicates a 20-fold increased risk of developing the disease, which may result in the dog only developing early stages of the disease, with the most severe of this disease resulting in night-vision loss and impaired day-vision, but not complete loss of vision.

Further reading:

A Novel Form of Progressive Retinal Atrophy in Swedish Vallhund Dogs

Increased Expression of MERTK is Associated with a Unique Form of Canine Retinopathy

2015 Research Update Letter: Retinopathy in the Swedish Vallhund is Associated with Dysfunction of the MERTK Gene

The Swedish Vallhund Club of America has further information on other studies conducted.

Hyperuricosuria (HUU)

Hyperuricosuria is an inherited disorder characterized by elevated levels of uric acid in the urine that can lead to the formation of bladder/kidney stones.  This is not a known issue for the breed, although Orivet genetic testing does test for markers.

Hip Dysplasia

The Swedish Vallhund Club of America has historically recognised that the breed's short-legged anatomy means the shape of the Vallhund hip cannot simply be compared with that of a large dog. The Swedish Vallhund's Swedish breed club, Specialklubben för Västgötaspets (SKV), states in its Breed-Specific Breeding Strategy for the Swedish Vallhund (RAS) that hip dysplasia occurs only to a mild extent in the breed and that affected individuals rarely show clinical symptoms. The Finnish JTO states that hip dysplasia in the Swedish Vallhund is generally mild, and that serious hip dysplasia occurs only rarely. Of note, “mild hip dysplasia generally does not cause symptoms in the dog.”

Hip dysplasia is a complex, polygenic trait. It is influenced by many genes, as well as environmental and developmental factors. A radiographic hip score tells us what an individual dog's hips look like at the time they are assessed, but it cannot tell us the complete genetic picture behind those hips or reliably predict the genetic health of its future offspring. While these measures provide useful information about hip shape at the time of the radiograph, an individual hip score is not a sufficiently useful measure of breeding value in a rare breed such as Vallhunds. Vallhunds have substantial genetic constraints, and the broader SKV RAS is explicitly concerned with maintaining genetic diversity while managing health. 

Both Swedish RAS and Finnish JTO produced through their respective Kennel Clubs have independently reached very similar conclusions about the Vallhund: preserve the breed, maintain genetic diversity, avoid excessive use of popular sires, and assess breeding animals in the context of their families and the wider population rather than relying on a single test result.

The Royal Kennel Club makes a similar distinction in its guidance in estimating the breeding value (EBV) of an individual dog, noting that the individual hip score describes the degree of dysplasia actually present in that dog, whereas an EBV estimates genetic risk for breeding purposes. Swedish research by Malm (2010) noted that while radiographic screening has value, the individual result alone is an imprecise estimate of breeding value.

Because of these factors, Odindisa is against strictly reductionist breeding, and does not consider an individual hip score to be a useful measure of a dog's overall breeding value.  At Odindisa, we consider the health and longevity of parents, siblings, grandparents and previous offspring, alongside structure, movement, function and genetic diversity. 

Short-tailed/bob tails

The natural bobtail in Swedish Vallhunds is caused by a mutation in the T-box transcription factor T gene (C189G). A study across 17 breeds, including Vallhunds, found that no living dogs are homozygous (T/T) for this mutation, meaning embryos with two copies do not survive. This study also found that breeding two short-tailed dogs can potentially result in a ~29% reduction in litter size (about one puppy), consistent with early embryonic loss before pregnancy is even confirmed, but surviving puppies DO NOT show malformations.

Importantly, heterozygous carriers (N/T) do NOT have an increased risk for spinal deformities, hemivertebrae, or intervertebral disc disease (Source). At this point, there are not thought to be health problems associated with the natural bobtail gene (Amanda Lowery - American Kennel Club 2009).

Tail length in Vallhunds is also polygenic, so phenotype alone cannot predict T-box carrier status. 

This is different from the FGF4 retrogene mutation seen in breeds like the two corgi types and dachshunds, which shortens legs and increases the risk of intervertebral disc disease. Vallhunds carry only the basic chondrodysplasia mutation for shorter legs but lack the second FGF4 mutation, which explains why they do not have the severe disc problems found in other breeds (Source).

The national breed club in the breed's home country of Sweden, Specialklubben För Västgötaspets, suggests that breeders should try to use at least one natural bobtail in each breeding to preserve the natural bobtail gene. SKV does not believe that there is any reliable evidence to ban mating stumps with stumps.

"The stump tail is one of the attributes of the SV. Approximately half of all SV are born with a natural stump tail. During the years 2012-2018, 727 stump-tailed and 711 long-tailed puppies were born. A SV can be born with anything from a complete lack of a tail to a full tail length. Even with a visible tail, the dog has 2-4 tail vertebrae. Total absence of tail vertebrae (anuria) does not occur in the SV. The short tail does not cause any obstacles for the dog in everyday life. It is sometimes said that these dogs have more difficulty communicating with other dogs, have poor balance, have back problems, swim poorly, etc. All of this is wrong! A SV with a short tail is just as functional as one with a tail. 

The stump tail trait is fatal in double sets. Fetuses with a double stump tail trait are not born because they are resorbed in the womb. Puppies with the stump tail trait in a single set are born with a stump tail. All puppies in litters where both parents are long-tailed are always born with a long tail.

SKV has produced statistics (1990-96) on how the stump tail trait affects litter size. Of all puppies born, 385 were from stump-tailed parents and 361 from parents where only one was stump-tailed. The only real difference found was that during the period stump-tailed parents gave birth to 1.38 fewer puppies per litter than parents where only one was stump-tailed. The reason is assumed to be that the fetus is resorbed or resorbed at the beginning of the gestation period when dogs with stump tails mate. The phenomenon is said to have been known since the 19th century and apparently does not affect animals born with a stump tail.

Several countries have banned mating stumps with stumps. SKV does not believe that there is any solid evidence that this is necessary." - SKV Committee

Swedish Vallhund Health Report 2025

The Swedish Vallhund 2025 Health Report has been officially published and the full report available to view on the Swedish Vallhund Society website. The primary goal was to assess the current health landscape of Swedish Vallhunds and compare the results to the previous survey the club carried out in 2018. The survey was conducted anonymously and received 103 responses, a significant increase from the 45 responses in 2018. The responses are below in the Big Vallhund Survey: