To know if your cat have the genetic hart (HCM) or kidney disease (PKD) it is very important to let make an echo of the hart and the kidney. This can be done at clinics with specialists in these diseases and may have the devices to work with.
Here you will find a List of specialists (Dutch) to determine the HCM or PKD by echography. This list is provided by the cat association of Neocat namely the cat club Neocat Britten. The website is in Dutch. At this website you will find more about the British shorthair. Also a lot of information is found about diseases, shows and extra columns about health and nice other stories.
In the present it is also possible to take some sludge from the inner cheek with a brush to have genetic information.
To take such a sample you can do it by your own an d the analysis of the sample should be carried out in a specialised laboratory.
Not all is assured 100% especially the HCM at the British Short- or Longhairs.However the more the owners will test their cats genetically the sooner the genetic place will be found for the HCM.
The different test HCM1, HCM3, PKD, Blood type, factor for longhair, disease in the metabolism, colour and a lot more can be determined.
The laboratory of Dr van Haeringen te Wageningen will carry out these genetic samples. Also some other laboratories can be found which are carrying out these analyses. You also can order swabs, filling-in lists and a form which test can be carried out. The swabs will be secured for at least 10 years and at a later stage supplementary test can be carried out.