OFA vs. SV - Page 1

Can I please get some expert opinions on the pro and cons of OFA ratings vs. SV ratings.
Thank you in advance for your replies.

Assuming that you are in the US you will have to wait for the results from the SV longer than OFA (sometimes OFA time vary as well).  SV can rate and issue a stamp to a dog at 1 year vs. OFA which is 2 years of age (yes you can do prelims if you choose). 

if i want to sv my dog . what are the steps and who do you contact?

You need to be a member of UScA or GSDCA-WDA and they both participate in the "a" stamp program with the SV.  You will need to check out on their sites for the correct steps to take (as far as films, and such). 

There is good to say about both too bad you cant combine the best that the 2 bring to the table the worse thing about the SV is that since they accept dogs at only a year they can pass then, but  fail at 2 years for OFA and that is why many breeders wont get OFA in addition to already having an SV a stamp for fear they might fail the second go around

with OFA you get the results of the dog you submit. with SV you get the family history on hip production.

I know hips can change some from 1 to 2 y.o., but really I don't think its that big a deal. marginal hips at 1 might not OFA at 2, but good hips are not going to suddenly go bad.

With the OFA, most folks I know "prelimed" the hips at 12 or so months to determine if the dog was a keeper. I never had one prelim good and then fail at 2.  and I did quite a few.

IMO, the ZW system in place by the SV is the is the greastest aid to hip production that has come along. and I'm not saying it's perfect, but it's much better than anything else out there.

JMO,
Rik

Thank you for all the great replies so far-really learning alot.

According to my Vet i go to for Hip x-rays and he does around 2.000 hips and elbows a year, He told me if he x-rays a Pup at 5 to 8 months old prelims and the Hips are what he would call a1normal then they will more or less remain that way.
However if at the same age the Hips are not so good there is no chance that they will ever improve and according to what he tells me he is more than 98% correct in his valuations when the results come back from the SV or from Sint Burtus for Belgium
Steve1