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AQHA’s 5 Panel Genetic Disease Testing Requirements

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NEW from AQHA for 2014 and 2015 . . . Five Panel Genetic Testing Required/Mandatory for all breeding stallions, including TBs approved for use in AQHA programs. The five genetic diseases tested for are HYPP, HERDA, PSSM 1, GBED, and MH. Here’s a quote from AQHA concerning the new requirements.

All stallions exposed to 25 or more mares during the 2014 breeding season will be required to have a genetic disease panel test on file with AQHA prior to the registration of their foals resulting from breedings occurring after January 1, 2014. Additionally, the Stud Book and Registration Committee recommended that all stallions will be required to have a genetic disease panel test on file with AQHA prior to the registration of their foals resulting from breedings occurring after January 1, 2015.

At this time, no restrictions on breeding horses that test positive for these diseases have been passed.

AQHA has confirmed to me that Thoroughbred stallions bred to Quarter Horse mares are included in the requirement.

Official testing to meet this requirement is currently only available by ordering it through the AQHA.  The testing kit is sent to the stallion owner and the test is performed at the University of California at Davis.  Further information is available in this press release from AQHA.  The cost is $85.

Screen clip of AQHA.comSome breeders are reporting several week turnaround times with the official AQHA testing.

Since mandatory testing for these genetic diseases is new to the Quarter Horse industry (other than HYPP testing which has been in existence for many years), what are your thoughts on it?  Let us know in the comments.

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Comments

  1. since the 5 panel test and the dna/parentage verification test both use mane and tail samples sent to the same lab, how about the option to do both at the same time for $100 instead of separately for $135? i’m all for improving and protecting the breed; which ostensibly should increase value – but the increased costs in all areas of the aqha registration requirements have not yet been matched with an increase in prices for aqha horses. if the goal is to reduce the number of foals registered; then it’s working.

    • Great point, Dennis. The good news is that option exists. Of course, it is slightly more expensive at $105 than you suggest. But I guess if we can save $30 that is nice. Of course that is only on young studs, we don’t save anything on the old ones that will need to be tested this year or next but already have their DNA on file for breeding.

      You bring up an excellent topic. We might have to do an article on registration numbers and registration costs over the last few years. I haven’t looked at that data lately and it is always interesting. Thanks for the idea!

      As far as my thoughts on this genetic testing requirement, I am for it. However, the AQHA seems to be running very behind getting kits out and getting the results from UC Davis reported. I think that needs to change promptly. If you are trying to buy a stallion or a prospect, you can’t do the testing with AQHA/Davis in a practical time frame. Animal Genetics does, I hear, offer quick turn around on testing but that is not an “official” test so the horse will have to be retested to meet this requirement. If the AQHA wants these tests done, as they should, they need to handle the paperwork very fast. If that means hiring people, so be it!

      I ordered a kit and it took a week to even process the charge on my credit card then another 3 weeks just to get the kit to the stallion owner. That did include mail time to Canada. I asked how long this would take when I ordered the kit and was told by AQHA customer service, in very vague language, that it would take a few weeks from start to finish.

      • I agree the AQHA is extremely slow and somewhat inefficient. It takes forever to get results back. I waited for months to receive acknowledgment on a DNA test for one of my Mares. I finally had to call

  2. I so think genetic testing will eventually improve the QH breed. In the mean time though, dealing with AQHA has been a huge pain! I have ordered test kits for our mares and our stallions, only to be left waiting…weeks, sometimes months for results. I call 3-4 times to get the test sent out, a lot of times it hasn’t been even mailed (and I am paying $85 a kit)! It should be mailed that day! Also, there are times when I call for the results and they say “Oh, yes here it is on my desk, we just haven’t gotten to it yet.” Unfortunately, you all are the only game in town and we really can’t go anywhere else for all of this stuff. I would expect by now a little more efficiency on this topic. Every time I call I wonder if I will get the test kit in a reasonable time, or like now, where I have waiting 4 weeks for a test kit to arrive (calling twice already, and about to call a 3rd time). Unprofessional on your end AQHA.

  3. Just a question i have 5 registered horses that im planning to use as stallions for the comming season, i already sent hair samples etc for the 5 pannel test of all of them. So my question is how oftena horse is possitive to any of the mentioned deseases? And what if none of my stallions is negative to this test? It means i can not use them or register their desendents?. Regards

    • Guillermo, please understand that I’m just another breeder and by no means an AQHA official.

      My understanding is that you can still use stallions regardless of their test results as far as the AQHA is concerned. Their foals are still registerable. There are some exceptions for HYPP horses I think but I’m not more than basically familiar with HYPP since I don’t raise Impressive breeding at all.

      That doesn’t mean you will want to use the studs. Diseases like HYPP and PSSM can be pretty devastating and a stallion with one affected gene will pass that on to 50% of his foals.

      In general, the odds that your stallions will test positive for something are low. However, the odds vary greatly by discipline. Halter horses and pleasure horses have higher incidence of HYPP and PSSM while running bred horses tend to have next to no HYPP and only about 2% chance of PSSM. HERDA is much more common in cutting bred horses than others. It is all about the pedigrees.

      Hope that helps while you wait. And good luck!

  4. I have a stud that only bred one more in 2015 n died a month later the mare took n we called and was told that we wouldn’t have any issues registering the colt now we get a letter stating that we can’t register my colt without this test my stud is dead. They actually told us that we could dig him up to get bone fragments to send in. I think there should be exceptions to this. He only bred 2 mares the year before n one this year so I wish they would make an exception

    • Had you ever had the horse DNA tested? Did you register foals by him before? I thought I’d read somewhere that you can use the old DNA results to test for genetic diseases on deceased stallions. Some breeders are testing famous, long dead studs that way and I hope more do.

      Now, if you bred him for two seasons without the DNA test, then I do think you have problem. I hate to say this, but it is a good practice to pull mane hair by the roots and put in a ziplock bag before you bury one. Don’t try to think about whether you need it at that stressful time, just pull the hair.

      • Unless they have changed the rule, they will not except hair from a deceased animal. I had to exhume my mare and practically butcher her to register her foal. Ridiculous. Not to mention how rude the AQHA associate was on the phone and $350 fee for testing bone. Guess that’s what I get for being honest. I hate dealing with AQHA and haven’t bred a mare since.

        • I hate AQHA too. They are just money hungry it seems to me. I know it is very important to preserve and better the breed but when a colt comes out of AQHA registered parents and the colt can’t be registered just because the breeder didn’t file a stallion report and the sire and dam weren’t tested. The babies out of this stud have been registered in the past before this testing came into play. I am going to register him with the National Quarter Horse Registry. They have been around just as long as AQHA but do not require all the testing and is no where near as expensive. I have an 8 month blue valentine/hancock colt and I sure wish I could have him registered AQHA like parents and for shows but…..

  5. UC Davis tells me that the conditions tested for in the five-panel genetic test do not occur in Thoroughbreds. AQHA requires that Thoroughbred stallions be tested. Perhaps they are hoping to discourage the use of TB stallions for breeding to AQHA mares?

    At least they aren’t requiring RFID chips in foals this year the way The Jockey Club is. I wonder what new registries will spring up for people who refuse to risk their horse’s health by chipping them. I will never register another of my horses (at least with them) because I am not going to chip them.

    Good to see you’re using the GrowMap anti-spambot plugin (GASP) named after my blog.