Intestinal lipid malabsorption (ILM) is a condition that sometimes occurs in Australian Kelpies (bench Kelpies).
Affected puppies are usually called Kelpie minipups. They are, the first few months, smaller than their unaffected littermates, have a somewhat duller and coarser coat, a thicker belly, a rounder head and rounder eyes at that time.
Dogs with ILM cannot absorb long-chain fatty acids from their food like normal dogs.
ILM is an autosomal recessive disorder. Autosomal disorders can affect male or female dogs, while “recessive” means that a dog must inherit the ILM mutation from both parents to be affected.
The puppies grow over this condition between the 4th and 6th month and, if fed correctly in the first few months, after some time, are indistinguishable from kelpies without ILM.
