HIPS CERTIFIED - Page 2

The SV hip rating system certifies at one year old and "a normal" is less diagnostic than OFA fair, good or excellent ratings at two years old. The ogfficial OFA website lists a detailed comparison between the various systems, OFA, SV and FCI, if I remember correctly. An SV rating of "a normal" could describe a dog who is able to obtain an OFA excellent hip rating or even an OFA fair, and occasionally the hips won't rate for even OFA fair. The OFA website has some articles on the latest reserach which is a bit startling. New studies suggest that a normal range screening hip Xray at 4-6 months old will predict that the dogs will never have disabling hip dysplasia 79-80% of the time. Thus, it may be preferable to wait to buy a puppy until it is at least 16 weeks old and gives a clean, normal hip Xray at that age. I have always previously used 6 months as the age to buy a puppie just Xrayed to have clean hips. Now, based on the new research, I would do so at 16 weeks. One caveat. Buying a puppy that grows up to live a normal life with no disabling hip dysplasia does not in my view make it necessarilly clean enough in the hips to use for breeding. I like to see OFA good at a minimum in most cases. However, if the animal is good enough and strategically important for desired blood and type, I would accept OFA fair, and in some cases "a normal" and "fast normal" are certainly permissible if the blood and type are strategically important or unavailable elsewhere and/or the dog has a good hip producing record. Alas, elbow diagnostics is a whole different story. One warning, make sure you always get regular elbow views, but include oblique and straight-on too, since some irregularities only show up that way. My experience has been that determining normal elbows is a much longer wait than hips since the anconeal process must unite (fuse) and because the OFA rejects elbows for minor inflamatory changes (which could be due to injury rather than problem genetics) as well as united anconeal process (which often first presents as a swollen and sore elbow at 6-9 months old).