Nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate in boxer dogs: evidence of monogenic autosomal recessive inheritance.

Four newborn boxer dogs with bilateral cleft lip and palate were examined in search of further abnormalities, but no other type of congenital defect was found. These data, along with the pedigree inspection regarding the clinical phenotype, led to the conclusion that the affected dogs had a nonsyndromic monogenic autosomal recessive cleft lip and palate.