Input for PennHIP article - Page 2

GSD2727, I understand what you're asking, and I would like to be able to produce such stats. However, based on the limited response that I've gotten so far I doubt that I will able to scrape together enough data to PROVE which method is a better predictor of what a dog will produce. Far fewer dogs have been PennHIP'ed than OFA'ed and there is currently no searchable on-line database for the results. Not for another year at least. The OFA database has thousands of GSD results, but these are biased as the hip Xrays look bad enough in the vet's office, folks aren't obligated to send them in and get a rating. I'll do my best to present my findings but I'm going to be realistic about what I can share and pass off as "truth". It's a good thing I have a strong background in statistics. Yvette

Sch Babe There is the perception that OFA is subject to prescreening and PennHip is not. I believe Penn hip claims that once the process starts their films must be submitted but what is to prevent the owner from doing a regular view "prescreen" before deciding to spend the xtra money on Penn Hip and what method does Penn Hip of enforcing the requirement that all films must be submitted?

TIG, A few months ago when we had our Mali's hips done by PennHIP, I had to sign a waiver documenting that I understood that ALL of my dog's Xrays would be submitted, regardless of how bad, or good, the hips might be. I never got to see the films before they were sent out because the digital images were already on the Information Superhighway before I got to see the print copies. So I could have raised holy heck after seeing the films and it would already be too late to stop them from being sent. I was told the only chance for a "do-over" is due to technical errors with the films - over or under exposure, etc. Every time I had Xrays done for OFA my regular vet handed the films along with the paperwork to submit to OFA and no one cared what happened to the prints after that - not their problem anymore. I could have chunked them in the trash right away. I cannot speak with personal experience about other PennHIP vets, as we have only been to one. Yvette

I still could use some more comparisons. If anyone has a dog that had its hips done by two methods, please share your results! I haven't received any info on dogs that were OFA'ed and a-stamped or PennHIP'ed and a-stamped. Thanks!

SchHBabe - you could go to a Vet that does alot of GSDs...the vet I went to didnt show me different percentials, but he did show me three dogs with different DI indexes - I imagine they keep the xrays and I am sure you can petition pennhip or the dogs owners or the vets to be able to use those scans...pennhip would probably love it because an article like this would probably bring more dogs into them. ~Cate