Bull Terrier health testing
If you are buying a puppy, this is the list to arrive with. It covers what each parent club recommends, what each test actually tells you, and where results are recorded so you can verify them.
- For the English Bull Terrier the parent club recommends four: BAER hearing, kidney urine protein:creatinine ratio, cardiac exam and patella evaluation.
- For the Miniature, six: the same minus patella, plus DNA tests for primary lens luxation, lethal acrodermatitis and laryngeal paralysis.
- Ask for the certificates, not the answer. A breeder who tests has paperwork and produces it without being pushed.
- DNA tests are one-and-done; the others are not. Kidney and heart screening are repeated over a breeding dog's life.
- Thresholds change, so check the clubs. This page names the tests and links to the clubs rather than quoting numbers that may date.
The tests, by breed
Parent breed clubs set the recommendations and the AKC publishes them per breed. As published:
| Test | English Bull Terrier | Miniature Bull Terrier | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| BAER hearing test | Yes | Yes | One-off, from about five weeks |
| Kidney: urine protein:creatinine ratio | Yes | Yes | Repeated through life |
| Cardiac exam | Yes | Yes | Repeated |
| Patella evaluation | Yes | Not listed | Manual examination |
| Primary lens luxation (PLL) | Not listed | Yes | DNA, one-off |
| Lethal acrodermatitis (LAD) | Not listed | Yes | DNA, one-off |
| Laryngeal paralysis (Miniature type) | Not listed | Yes | DNA, one-off |
What each test actually tells you
BAER hearing test. Measures the brain's electrical response to sound in each ear separately, so it detects deafness in one ear as well as both. This matters because unilateral deafness is otherwise nearly invisible; a study of 1,060 puppies found 8.21% deaf in one ear and 1.98% in both. Done once, from around five weeks. See deafness and BAER testing.
Kidney, urine protein:creatinine ratio. A urine test measuring how much protein is leaking into the urine. The breed has two inherited kidney diseases, and this is the screen for one of them, hereditary nephritis. It matters because kidney damage is well advanced before a dog looks unwell. Repeated through a breeding dog's life rather than done once. The other, polycystic kidney disease (PKD), is screened by ultrasound, or the PKD1 DNA test. It is not a separate line on the AKC list, so ask about it by name. See kidney disease in Bull Terriers.
Cardiac exam. Screening for inherited heart disease, typically starting with auscultation and going to echocardiography where indicated. Ask which was done and by whom, because "heart checked" can mean either.
Patella evaluation. Manual examination of the kneecaps for luxation, graded by the examining vet. Quick, non-invasive, and listed for the standard breed.
The three Miniature DNA tests. Primary lens luxation, an inherited eye condition where the lens displaces and can lead to glaucoma; lethal acrodermatitis, a severe inherited skin and immune condition; and a Miniature-type laryngeal paralysis. Because these are DNA tests, a breeder knows each parent's status with certainty and can tell you before you travel.
How to actually check
The gap between "we health test" and a certificate is where most problems live.
- Ask to see the certificates for both parents, and for the BAER results for the litter. Photographs by email are normal and fine.
- Check the names match the registered names of the parents you were shown. This sounds paranoid and takes ten seconds.
- Check the dates. Kidney and heart screening are repeated; a certificate from six years ago is not current.
- Look the results up. In the US, results are held by the OFA and are searchable. In the UK, Kennel Club health test results are recorded against registered dogs. For the Bull Terrier the Royal Kennel Club points to the KC BAER Scheme for hearing and to the breed club health scheme for heart and kidney; none of the breed's tests is a BVA scheme.
- Ask what they do with a bad result. The answer tells you more about the breeder than any certificate does.
What testing does and does not buy you
Honest framing, because health testing is sometimes sold as a guarantee and it is not one.
What it does. DNA tests give certainty about that specific condition: a puppy from two clear parents will not develop that disease. Screening tests like kidney and heart reduce risk by removing affected dogs from breeding, generation after generation.
What it does not. It cannot cover conditions with no test. Atopic skin disease, the breed's commonest health complaint, has no breeding test at all, and compulsive tail chasing has none either despite a documented genetic component. A fully tested puppy can still develop both.
So the right question to a breeder is not only "have you tested?" but "what runs in your line?" A breeder who answers the second honestly is worth more than one who waves certificates at the first.
Frequently asked questions
What health tests should a Bull Terrier breeder have done?
For the English Bull Terrier, the parent club's recommended tests as published by the AKC are a BAER hearing test, a kidney urine protein:creatinine ratio, a cardiac exam and a patella evaluation. For the Miniature Bull Terrier they are BAER, kidney, cardiac, and DNA tests for primary lens luxation, lethal acrodermatitis and laryngeal paralysis.
What is a UPC test in dogs?
The urine protein:creatinine ratio, a urine test that measures how much protein is leaking into the urine. In Bull Terriers it is the screen for hereditary nephritis, one of the two inherited kidney diseases in the breed; the other, polycystic kidney disease, is screened by ultrasound or the PKD1 DNA test. It matters because kidney damage is typically well advanced before a dog appears unwell. It is repeated through a breeding dog's life rather than done once.
Can I check a breeder's health test results myself?
Often, yes. In the United States results are held by the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals and are searchable. In the UK, Kennel Club health test results are recorded against registered dogs. For the Bull Terrier the Royal Kennel Club points to the KC BAER Scheme for hearing and the breed club health scheme for heart and kidney; none of the breed tests is a British Veterinary Association scheme. Ask for the parents' registered names so you can look them up.
Does health testing guarantee a healthy puppy?
No. DNA tests do give certainty about that specific condition, and screening tests reduce risk across generations. But several things that affect this breed have no breeding test at all, including atopic skin disease, which is its commonest health complaint, and compulsive tail chasing. A fully tested puppy can still develop either.
Sources
- American Kennel Club. Terrier group health testing requirements (the tests each parent club recommends). www.akc.org
- Bull Terrier Club of America. Health. btca.com
- The Royal Kennel Club. Bull Terrier breed page: health testing and the breed club health scheme. www.royalkennelclub.com
- Miniature Bull Terrier Club. Kidney disease. miniaturebullterrierclub.org
- British Veterinary Association. Canine health schemes. www.bva.co.uk
- The Royal Kennel Club. Getting started with health testing and screening. www.royalkennelclub.com
- Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA), which holds US health test results. www.ofa.org
- De Risio L, Freeman J, Lewis T. "Prevalence, heritability and genetic correlations of congenital sensorineural deafness and coat pigmentation phenotype in the English bull terrier." BMC Veterinary Research. 2016;12:146. bmcvetres.biomedcentral.com
This is general information, not veterinary advice. It cannot account for your individual dog, and nothing here replaces an examination by a vet who can see him. Anything that looks urgent needs a vet now rather than a web page.
Related guides
- Finding a responsible breeder
- Deafness and BAER testing
- Kidney disease in Bull Terriers
- English vs Miniature Bull Terrier
The Bull Terrier Buddy app
Bringing a Bull Terrier home?
Bull Terrier Buddy is the care app built for this breed. Pick English or Miniature and the weight and exercise benchmarks follow, the care routine fits his age, and the logs cover what the breed is known for: skin, weight, hearing and tail chasing.
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