opinion

It's enough to make you wag your tail, Duffy | Anthony Westbury

This isn't some shaggy dog story.

Well, it is about a large, pretty shaggy dog, but it's all true.

Duffy, 7, a very friendly golden retriever, is a seasonal visitor from New Jersey currently residing at a beachside condo in Stuart (lucky dog). He may be one of the most observed canines in history.

Duffy is No. 366 out of 3,000 golden retrievers chosen to take part in the $32 million Golden Retriever Lifetime Study by researchers at Colorado State University. The study is being funded by donations to Colorado-based Morris Animal Foundation, which has financed animal studies since the 1940s.

It's the largest study of its type ever done in veterinary medicine and will identify the nutritional, environmental, lifestyle and genetic factors that may increase the risk of developing cancer and other diseases.

Golden retrievers, the nation's third most-popular breed of dog, are especially susceptible to several types of cancer.

Duffy's been on the team since 2012. He fits all the criteria researchers sought: dogs must be healthy, younger than 2 and have a proven three-generation pedigree. This is dubbed a "longitudinal, prospective observational study," which means researchers will observe and monitor the dogs throughout their entire 10- to 15-year lifetimes.

MORE: Missing cat reunited with owner after 14 years

Duffy's owner, Beverly Anderson, is certainly committed to the cause. She schedules annual three-hour visits to Duffy's veterinarian in New Jersey every October. Anderson also submits samples of Duffy's hair, nail clippings, blood and stools. She compiles 60 to 70 pages of data about Duffy online during the year.

Duffy, by the way, also sees specialist cardiologists both in Florida and New Jersey. And, in case you were wondering, they don't come cheap. Ah, the wonders of pet insurance, Anderson noted with a smile.

Duffy is Anderson's third golden. Her previous two dogs, Blarney (10 and a half), and Snuffy (14 and a half), both died of cancer.

As of this month, 2,920 of the 3,000 Goldens that began the study in 2012 are still living. Seventy-six dogs have died, 31 of them from cancer.

Snuffy contracted hemangiosarcoma, an incredibly rapid onset form of the disease that attacks the spleen and heart, Anderson said. Within hours, her apparently healthy dog was dead.

Two other cancers that afflict goldens, lymphoma and osteosarcoma, are dramatically similar to the same cancers in humans, scientists say.

Genetically, dogs are 95 percent similar to humans. So, the study may point to clues about how all types of cancer develop.

"Hopefully, with all the information they're gathering," Anderson said, "we can find a cure."

Among the lifestyle factors that could affect both dogs and humans, Anderson records the use of pesticides wherever Duffy exercises. Researchers also are interested in the incidence of chemicals commonly found in carpets and upholstery.

As they gather information, researchers hope to see trends they may want to explore further. For example, they may see a correlation between the use of lawn chemicals and bladder cancer, or certain activities may lead to orthopedic difficulties. Scientists readily admit they don't know very much about a lot of dog diseases.

Dogs get many of the diseases we do, including diabetes, arthritis and heart disease. As pet owners know, animals can also be prone to sedentary lifestyle-related ailments, such as obesity.

Duffy, at 76 pounds, is no lightweight, but he is on a diet — down from 82 pounds not so long ago, Anderson noted with pride.

Like other pets, he has a built-in timer that tells him exactly when it's time to eat. That just happens to be at 3:30 p.m., while I was interviewing his owner. A polite, but insistent, Duffy kept reminding us it was time for his afternoon meal, which lasted all of 10 seconds once the food hit the bowl.

It's too soon in the study to draw any long-term conclusions — the oldest participants like Duffy are only 7 years old and cancers strike mostly older animals — but some intriguing nuggets have emerged.

For example, one in five dogs sleeps with its owners (Duffy: check). Forty percent swim at least once a week (check), 22 percent drink or eat from a plastic bowl and about one in four eats grass.

Anderson belongs to the study group's own Facebook page, where much more detailed sharing of doggie information is a 24/7 proposition. From Facebook, she confirmed there are 172 goldens in Florida enrolled in the study, behind only California, Colorado and Pennsylvania in the national rankings.

"I'm very proud to be taking part in the study," Anderson said. "I believe it'll make a big difference. We may not be able to help this generation of dogs, but maybe their puppies will benefit."

As for Duffy, he's leading the good life. He has his favorite stuffed toy monkey, plenty of gourmet pet food and a comfy bed from where he can monitor exactly who's hanging out on his beach.

It's a dog's life, all right.

Anthony Westbury is a columnist for TCPalm. This column reflects his opinion. Contact him at 772-221-4220, anthony.westbury@tcpalm.com, or follow him @TCPalmWestbury on Twitter.