No. Although PKD appears to be more prevalent among Persians (including Himalayans) and Exotics, ultrasound results to date have also found PKD in American Curls, American Shorthairs, Siamese and Scottish Folds, as well as Household Pets, Domestic Shorthairs, and Feral cats. An Oriental Shorthair was also diagnosed with PKD as the result of a necropsy.

Why? Because PKD is a genetic disease, not a communicable disease. So any cattery lucky enough to have only PKD negative foundation stock AND never bring in a PKD positive cannot produce PKD positive cats, and thus will be a PKD free cattery.

Not necessarily, although I guess the answer depends in part on how each breeder defines "Problem". Some would say that producing any PKD positive cats is a problem. Others would argue that PKD is really only a problem if cats are dying from PKD. Of course, then the question becomes "How many have to die before it becomes a problem?" I'm not sure that question can be answered except by each individual. I'm not even sure I can answer that for myself.

PKD (Polycystic Kidney Disease) is a progressive, genetic disease of the kidneys. It occurs in humans, cats, dogs, and other animals. PKD is characterized by the presence of multiple cysts in each Kidney (i.e, bilateral). (See also Is a Single Cyst in One Kidney Conclusive for PKD? and Can Kidney Cysts be Caused by Something Other Than PKD?, below). Research at Ohio State University conducted by Dr.

In the U.S., there are countless (actually about 333 world-wide and climbing), from registered breeders to cat factories, to individuals that breed for a second income. Again, be certain you ask many questions of your breeder. I cannot emphasize enough the need for a written agreement.

In humans, there are two modes of inheritance: autosomal dominant and autosomal recessive (with at least two, and possibly three different autosomal dominant forms of PKD caused by different genes at different loci). To date, only the autosomal dominant form has been identified in cats. To quote Dr. DiBartola, Professor of Veterinary Clinical Sciences at The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, and Co-Editor of the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine (one of the Dr.

Currently, the best method to diagnose PKD in living cats is by ultrasounding the kidneys. Other radiological modalities have been used, but have proven to be generally less accurate and more costly. However, even the most skilled sonographer using the best equipment cannot be 100 percent accurate in diagnosing PKD via ultrasound, since the resolution afforded by ultrasound is not sufficient to detect very small cysts.

PKD itself has no symptoms. Only when PKD has progressed to the point of causing renal failure will symptoms occur, and those symptoms will be those associated with renal failure, and not PKD specific. quot;Many cats with PKD will never develop kidney failure so they will have no physical symptoms at all. Their routine blood tests will be normal. Other cats will develop kidney failure, depending on the severity of their disease and how rapidly the cysts grow.

Hell no! My own parents are breeders! ;) I've got nothing against parents who have a lot of love and want to share it with a child and raise it to be a responsible, conscientious and productive person. To raise a good person is nothing short of a public service.

To date, there is no proof whether PKD positive homozygotes (PP) exist or not. We may not know the answer to this question until a DNA test is available and that test has been used on a significant number of PKD positive cats. quot;In all likelihood, the homozygous state (PP) for ADPKD probably is not viable.

Based on Dr. Biller's research, and reports from more than 5,000 ultrasounds worldwide since April, 1998, PKD does not appear to be sex linked. Therefore, males and females can both have PKD, and can both pass PKD on to their offspring.

Although anyone with access to ultrasound equipment and minimal knowledge of ultrasound can do the testing, the quality and accuracy of the test results appear to be directly proportional to the skill, training, and experience of the sonographer doing the testing. Ultrasound testing can be expensive (as high as $275 US per cat in some private practices, and $25 to $50 US per cat in special PKD "Clinics").

Yes. However, cysts in non-Persian cats are relatively rare, regardless of the cause. So the current theory is that almost all cysts found in Persians and related breeds will be PKD cysts. Dr. Biller will be conducting research to help establish exactly how frequently cysts are found in non-persian cats. This study should help us understand the frequency of non-PKD kidney cysts in Persians, and possibly even provide clues about how they can be differentiated from PKD cysts using ultrasound.

No, at least not in Persians. PKD positives have been found in virtually all major lines of Persians. However, it is at least possible that a few lines with very small gene pools, particularly if they are not descended from the hand-full of pre-potent cats upon which many of today's Persians owe their lineage, may not have PKD in those lines. However, it is also important to note that virtually all major lines of Persians have PKD negative cats too.

No. All evidence to date suggests that there is no relationship between a cat's color and the presence or frequency of PKD.

If a normal cat lived forever, PKD cats would eventually progress to the point where renal failure occurs, and would eventually die of renal failure. However, in real life, it is believed that most PKD cats actually die from something other than renal failure due to PKD. So the practical answer to this question is no, most PKD positive cats will not die from PKD. However, as Dr. DiBartola notes in a private e-mail, in the Ohio study he and Dr.

There is currently no known cure for PKD, in cats or in humans. While a Kidney Transplant may eliminate the cysts and allow a particular individual to live symptom free, the underlying genetic makeup for that individual is still one of a PKD positive, and that individual can still pass the disease on to its offspring. Similarly, dialysis can replace the function of failed kidneys, but does not change the underlying disease state.

Based on all available information, not many Persian catteries of any size have zero positives, at least unless they've already tested and eliminated positives from their breeding program. So if "unscathed" means "no PKD positives", the answer is that not many catteries are unscathed. And because we've never been able to identify PKD positives before, the only reason any cattery would be unscathed is pure, blind luck.

PKD expresses itself differently in each cat. And, based on the best information available, it appears that most PKD positive cats die from other reasons -- not from End Stage Renal Failure resulting from PKD. So it is entirely possible to have PKD positives and never have a cat exhibit the signs of renal failure, much less die from PKD. PKD can only be detected by ultrasound or necropsy. Most if not all PKD cases would be picked up on necropsy with histopathology, if that were routinely done.

There's a useful web site which reports statistics on PKD testing to date. Although I'm sure there are many catteries who, for one reason or another, have chosen not to report their results, I find this the best source of information currently available. Taking the stats for US Catteries through 10/8/98 and using MS Excel to manipulate the data, I came up with the following information: Slightly less than one half of the US cats tested are included in the Cattery stats (1547 vs.

No, not in my opinion. Very rarely will you find a well-bred pedigreed cat in a shelter. I also don't think pedigreed cats fill up homes that would be available to stray or abandoned cats as is frequently said by those opposed to breeding pedigreed cats. Most folks who want a specific breed of cat will not have anything other than exactly the breed they have fallen in love with.

Scottish Folds are accepted in all the cat registry associations in the United States. Most of their central offices can give you names of breeders registered with them. Another option is to attend a cat show near you and talk to the breeders that are there. Get to know them and get on their waiting lists.

Most of the responses that follow were written by Mary M. Woodsen, a canine health writer. She reviewed queries coming to OptiGen about prcd-PRA testing. Then she talked with OptiGen scientists to get the information she needed for answers. These Q and A's were made into an article published in the ECSCA Review Winter 2000 and in the Labrador Quarterly Spring 2000.

That is all antique and beautiful rug from the country Iran, Which was named Persia 500 B.C. These days in rugs market they are called Persian Rugs.

Importing Persian CarpetMany people shy away from Persian carpet in the homes because they are afraid of the costs of such a 'luxury' item. With the newly networked world, these pieces of art and functional decoration are no longer so cost prohibitive. If you have an internet connection and a computer, you can now import Persian carpet for far less than you could historically purchase it for.