author(s)
S Bhargavi, TA Kannan, Geetha Ramesh, D Sumathi and A Arun Prasad

abstract
Chippiparai dog which is a unique medium-sized, sight hound breed of Tirunelveli district of southern Tamil Nadu. In the present study, Vertebral heart score (VHS) was measured by thoracic radiographs of left and right lateral recumbency. A total of 12 dogs (young -6 and adult-6) were used for the study. The mean VHS on right lateral radiographs was found to be 8.63 ± 0.23 and 8.95 ± 0.13 in young and adult dogs respectively. Whereas, the mean VHS on left lateral radiographs was found to be 8.67 ± 0.33 and 8.97 ± 0.1 in young and adult dogs respectively. No significant differences could be found between the VHS of both young and adult Chippiparai dogs.