Breeding without Hip Certificiation - Page 8

Yes, it always comes down to the bottom line: what is the actual hip status of the particular dog you want to acquire from the breeder. A few caveats pertain here. 1-make certain the dog is positively identified and identifiable by chip or tatoo. 2-make certain the dog is x-rayed by a vet who does a fair amount of OFA Xrays and has a track record for good positioning. Do not xray bitches within a couple months of her season (causes hip laxity in some cases when no HD exists). 3-make sure the dog's x-ray is labelled with its tatoo or chip number or cross referenced on the x-ray through a file number to the actual id. 4-the older the dog when you have it x-rayed the better (12 weeks old is a good absolute minimum, 6-12 months is much better). The older the dog is when you buy the mosre expensive it will be. A unx-rayed 8 week old pup from OFA clean parents is still a big crapshoot and one bet I would never take. If I wanted the dog and had to acquire it at 8 weeks or lose the option, I would x-ray it and require extremely clean x-rays to complete the deal. 5-have the x-ray read by an experienced vet who uses the Norberg angle and preferably has read for the OFA. 6-get a copy of the x-ray in digital form and e-mail it to knowledgeable breeders without identifying the actual dog or kennel of origin and get their opinion.