A little clarity. A lot of love.
AI DiagAnimalsMADE FOR THE ONES YOU LOVE
English

Language and region

Understand their results
Menu
BREED · DOGS

Brittany: health and what the tests show

The Brittany is the smallest of the pointing breeds and the most numerous French pointing breed. Screening data point to the hips, with almost four in ten Swedish Brittanys dysplastic, and to the lower spine, where a transitional vertebra is common, especially in natural bobtails. Its elbows are prone to fractures, and its normal heart looks larger on X-rays than the general reference.

An orange and white Brittany standing on grass and looking back
Photo: Pharaoh Hound · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Written by the AI DiagAnimals editorial teamReviewed by the AI DiagAnimals TeamUpdated Our editorial policy

The essentials

A large UK study found a median lifespan of 11.1 years, with a higher risk of early death than crossbreeds. In Swedish screening X-rays, 39.3% of Brittanys had hip dysplasia, twice the rate of all screened dogs. A lumbosacral transitional vertebra was seen in 47.8% of Norwegian Brittanys, more often in natural bobtails. Brittanys were 21.5 times more likely than comparison breeds to break the elbow end of the humerus. Their normal vertebral heart score on X-rays averages 10.6 vertebrae. Complement C3 deficiency and spinal muscular atrophy were described in research colonies of the breed.

Have your Brittany’s results in front of you? Get every value explained in plain language. Upload the report

At a glance

TraitDetail
OriginFrance, from central Brittany [1]
Breed groupFCI group 7, section 1.2 (Continental Pointing Dogs, spaniel type) [1]; AKC Sporting Group [2]
Weight30–40 lb (14–18 kg) [2]
HeightMales 18.9–20.1 in (48–51 cm), females 18.5–19.7 in (47–50 cm), each with a tolerance of 1 cm (0.4 in) [1]
Life expectancyMedian 11.1 years in a large UK study, with a higher risk of early death than crossbreeds [3]
CoatFine, flat or slightly wavy, never curly; white and orange, white and black or white and liver, piebald or roan, sometimes tricolor; tail short or absent [1]

Origin

The Brittany comes from central Brittany, in France, and is probably one of the oldest spaniel-type dogs. It was improved in the early 20th century by various outcrosses and selection. A draft standard written in Nantes in 1907 was adopted at the first general assembly of the club in Loudéac on June 7, 1908, as the standard of the “Naturally Short-Tailed Brittany Spaniel Club”. It is the smallest of the pointing breeds and today the most numerous French pointing breed [1].

The American Kennel Club recognized the breed in 1934, under the name Brittany, in the Sporting Group [2].

Common health problems

  • Hip dysplasia: in Swedish screening X-rays of young adult dogs from 2007 to 2016, 39.3% of 229 Brittanys had hip dysplasia (grades C to E) and 12.2% had moderate or severe dysplasia (grades D and E), against 19.8% dysplasia across all screened dogs [4].
  • Lumbosacral transitional vertebra: on the hip screening X-rays of 744 Norwegian Brittanys, 47.8% had this congenital anomaly of the last lumbar vertebra. Dogs with a natural bobtail had about twice the odds of having it, and stump-tailed dogs the strongest link [5]. In a study of 32 Brittanys and Norwegian Elkhounds, the more marked forms (types 2 and 3) were linked to mild lower back pain [6].
  • Fractures of the elbow end of the humerus: at a US teaching hospital over ten years, Brittanys were 21.5 times more likely to have a humeral condylar fracture than comparison breeds; Cocker Spaniels had an even higher risk, at 42.8 times [7].
  • Heart valve disease: in a French study, 15 Brittanys with myxomatous mitral valve disease had a mean vertebral heart score of 11.9 on chest X-rays [8]. See heart failure in dogs.
  • Inherited disorders found in research colonies: an inherited deficiency of complement C3, with no detectable C3 in the serum, was identified in a colony of Brittany spaniels and is recessive [9]. It predisposes dogs to recurrent bacterial infections and to type 1 membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis [10]. Hereditary canine spinal muscular atrophy, a motor neuron disease, was also described in Brittany spaniels, with dominant inheritance [11].

What is special in the Brittany’s blood work

We found no breed-specific reference intervals for routine blood work in the Brittany. Three breed findings are useful when reading results.

Heart size on X-rays. In 28 healthy Brittanys, the mean vertebral heart score was 10.6 vertebrae, higher than the 9.7 of the original mixed-breed reference. A threshold of 11.1 vertebrae detected an enlarged heart with 90% sensitivity [8]. A heart that looks slightly large by general standards may be normal for the breed.

Complement C3 and the kidneys. Dogs with C3 deficiency have no detectable C3 in the serum [9] and can develop membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis, a disease of the kidney filters [10]. Our guide to protein in the urine explains how such kidney damage is looked for. We found no data on how common the deficiency is in pet Brittanys today.

Blood types. In an Italian study, 77.1% of 83 Brittanys were DEA 1-positive, one of the highest rates of all breeds tested [12]. Blood typing before a transfusion is explained in anemia in dogs.

Screening. The AKC lists hip evaluation and an eye examination by a veterinary ophthalmologist as the recommended health tests for the breed [2]. The hip X-ray also shows a transitional lumbosacral vertebra [5].

Related articles

Heart failure in dogs

NT-proBNP, kidney values and potassium on treatment, and the ACVIM stages.

Read the article

Protein in urine in dogs and cats

The dipstick, the UPC ratio and the IRIS cut-offs.

Read the article

CBC blood test for dogs

Red cells, white cells and platelets line by line.

Read the article

En français : Épagneul breton.

Questions to ask your veterinarian

  1. Have my dog’s hips been X-rayed and scored, and does the X-ray show a transitional vertebra?
  2. If my dog has back pain, could a transitional lumbosacral vertebra be involved?
  3. If my dog goes lame on a front leg, should the humeral condyle be checked?
  4. Is my dog’s vertebral heart score normal for a Brittany?
  5. Has my dog’s blood type been checked in case a transfusion is ever needed?
YOUR PET’S FULL REPORT

Get your Brittany’s blood work explained.

AI DiagAnimals reads the blood count, the kidney values, the urine protein and the other results together with your laboratory’s intervals, and explains them in plain language. The service opens soon: leave your email to be told first.

Explain my dog’s reportSee a sample report

Frequently asked questions

How long do Brittany spaniels live?

A large UK study found a median lifespan of 11.1 years, with a higher risk of early death than crossbreeds [3].

Do Brittanys have hip problems?

Yes. In Swedish screening, 39.3% of Brittanys had hip dysplasia, twice the rate of all screened dogs [4].

Why do some Brittanys have no tail, and does it matter?

Some are born with a short tail or none, as the standard allows [1]. In Norway, natural bobtails had about twice the odds of a lumbosacral transitional vertebra [5].

Do Brittanys have heart problems?

Myxomatous mitral valve disease occurs in the breed, and its normal heart score on X-rays is higher than the general reference, at about 10.6 vertebrae [8].

What health tests should a Brittany have?

The AKC recommends hip evaluation and an eye examination [2]. Hip screening X-rays also show the lower spine [5].

Sources

  1. FCI. Standard No. 95: Epagneul Breton (Brittany Spaniel). 2003. fci.be/Nomenclature/Standards/095g07-en.pdf
  2. American Kennel Club. Brittany: dog breed information. akc.org/dog-breeds/brittany
  3. McMillan KM et al. Longevity of companion dog breeds: those at risk from early death. Sci Rep. 2024;14:531 (supplementary table S3). doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-50458-w
  4. Engdahl K et al. Prevalence of hip and elbow dysplasia in young adult dogs in Sweden. Vet Rec. 2026;198(12):e560-e573. doi.org/10.1002/vetr.70224
  5. Berg JA et al. Association between the natural bobtail phenotype and lumbosacral transitional vertebra in Brittany dogs and Danish-Swedish Farmdogs. Can Vet J. 2026;67(8):882-888. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42544340
  6. Berg JA et al. Transitional lumbosacral vertebrae in black Norwegian elkhound and Brittany dogs: clinical findings and its association with degenerative lumbosacral stenosis. Acta Vet Scand. 2025;67:10. doi.org/10.1186/s13028-025-00797-7
  7. Schettler M et al. A prevalence study of canine humeral condylar fractures over a ten-year period at an academic teaching hospital. Vet Comp Orthop Traumatol. 2022;35(3):191-197. doi.org/10.1055/s-0042-1744445
  8. Kallassy A et al. Vertebral heart scale for the Brittany spaniel: breed-specific range and its correlation with heart disease assessed by clinical and echocardiographic findings. Vet Sci. 2021;8(12):300. doi.org/10.3390/vetsci8120300
  9. Winkelstein JA et al. Genetically determined deficiency of the third component of complement in the dog. Science. 1981;212(4499):1169-1170. doi.org/10.1126/science.7233211
  10. Ameratunga R et al. Molecular analysis of the third component of canine complement (C3) and identification of the mutation responsible for hereditary canine C3 deficiency. J Immunol. 1998;160(6):2824-2830. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9510185
  11. Sack GH Jr et al. Autosomal dominant inheritance of hereditary canine spinal muscular atrophy. Ann Neurol. 1984;15(4):369-373. doi.org/10.1002/ana.410150411
  12. Medina Valentin AA, Gavazza A, Lubas G. Prevalence of dog erythrocyte antigen 1 in 7,414 dogs in Italy. Vet Med Int. 2017;2017:5914629. doi.org/10.1155/2017/5914629

Laboratory methods and reference intervals vary. This article explains; it does not diagnose. For a decision about your pet, use the original report and talk to your veterinarian. Our editorial policy.

Cookie Policy