Vallhund Health

Life expectancy

The Swedish Vallhund is generally a healthy dog. Its small stature contributes to its longevity, with an average lifespan of 15 years.

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.

Long-haired and curly coats

Long-haired Vallhunds can have difficulty regulating their body temperature in both hot and cold conditions. 

Any curls in the coat are a fault of the breed and are not to standard. 

Odindisa breeding dogs are genetically tested to ensure puppies do not express these traits.

Hip Dysplasia

The Swedish Vallhund is a short legged dog, which is why the shape of the hip joint cannot be compared to a large dog, and therefore OFA and PennHip scores are not accurate for Vallhunds (Source). Regardless, some people apply these methods to Vallhunds. Swedish Vallhunds that have been recorded to have "hip dysplasia" through these evaluations rarely show clinical symptoms. 

Progressive Retinal Atrophy (Swedish Vallhund Type - SVR)

Progressive Retinal Atrophy 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 Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA), with a multifocal rather than diffuse distribution of retinal degeneration. 

Odindisa aims to produce puppies that are not affected by SVRby testing breeding dogs to minimise its occurrence in future litters.

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.

It is suspected over-expression of the MERTK gene (located on canine chromosome 17) causes expression and progression of SVR. In Vallhunds the identified marker leads to normal intronic A-nucleotide change to G-nucleotide, and so those with homozygous GG have an 18-fold risk of developing SVR. Homozygous AA dogs have two normal copies of MERTK marker, and those that are heterozygous (AG) carry 1 normal copy and 1 abnormal copy, having a minor risk for developing SVR.

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).

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.

Intervertebral Disc Degeneration (IVDD)

Vallhunds do not develop IVDD as they only carry one of the associated genes (CDPA), and do not carry the CDDY gene required to produce IVDD. IVDD is not an issue for Vallhunds, as noted by UC Davis.

IVDD is a genetic disorder that causes disc deterioration in the spinal cord. Type 1 IVDD is typically seen in dwarf breed dogs such as dachshunds, corgi varieties, beagles and basset hounds, and is thought to be caused by the CDDY gene which not only shortens limbs but rounds out ears. 

This article provides further information: https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.1709082114

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.