B.A.E.R.

Hearing deficiencies are of the most troubling and devistating problems we as Americans have inherited with this breed. An average of 50% of all dogos that have been B.A.E.R. tested show hearing loss. There is no bloodline that is exempt, but yet I would challenge any breeder, world-wide, of Argentine dogos, to document with (B.A.E.R. testing) a three generation pedigree where all the parents have normal hearing results. I am sure there are no more than a handful that could document two generations, if any.

As of 2004, if the pups are microchipped, a breeder can submit the veterinary signed B.A.E.R. results to OFA for offical recording in their data base for $30 per litter. These results can be placed on AKC-FSS permanent registration papers. Gladiator Dogos will be the one of the first, if not the first to do so.

It is very difficult to detect if a dog has unilateral hearing, (hearing in one ear) without B.A.E.R testing, even a veterinarian will tell you he can't be sure. A unilateral hearing dog may be a very very nice looking dog and neither you or him would ever know the difference, but he should be sold as a pet and not bred. (usually at about half the cost)

At the veterinary neurologist office, I have spoke to people who didn't know their dog was completely deaf for quite some time. Three out of four of my first dogos I purchased as show quality, from three different breeders, were B.A.E.R. tested after I got them as unilateral hearing had to be returned or placed as a pet. Please, consider owning a unilateral hearing dog as a pet from an ethical breeder that has been honest with you.

All white breeds of dogs have hearing dificiencies. There is strong evidence to suggest that deafness is caused by a lack of pigment in the inner ear which causes abnormality of the inner ear hair cells, which recieve about 95% of the innervations from the nerve fibers from the acoustic portion of the auditory nerve. When these cells that have the primary responsibility for producing the hearing sensation are lost or damaged severe hearing loss occurs. This hearing loss occurs very early in life and by five weeks of age the B.A.E.R testing results will be accurate for the life of the dog, unless damage is caused by infection or injury.