xray opinions please--- results are in!!! - Page 1

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2 year old male. I'm sorry about the background behind the films. That was the best window I had and I have also cleaned up and made sharper the immages.

Thank You
Melissa

Positioning of all 3 is poor and if sent to OFA may well be returned.
Having said that, the hips (just from the above xray) might go fair.
--Mary

Yes, if you look at the wings of the pelvis (ileum), you can see that the dog isn't centered properly. The little divit in the middle of fhe femoral head on the left side (right side to the viewer) is just the place where the little Tere's ligament is attached. This is normal. I think the dog should go "good", but OFA is very picky. They would say that the femoral necks could be longer, perhaps, and angle more acute but this is typical for dogs with well muscled thighs, often found in some of the working lines (like DDR). They often go "fair", but to me, a dog is either dysplastic or it's not.. dysplasia is either an acute or chronic inflammatory / degenerative process, and if there is neither an acute or degenerative process ongoing, I don't see that the various small variations in hip joint structure are really of concern. I've OFA'd right at 100 dogs and x-rayed many more than that. I've had two dogs go OFA excellent, and one of those was an older dog who had been "a, noch zugelassen", in Germany!!!! So, go figure! Of the prettiest hips I've seen on film, these dogs either did not consistently reproduce themselves, or they also produced some disasterously bad hips in some of the offspring. The lines with the prettiest hips often did not produce good working dogs. So, I am not sure that OFA is correct in trying to encourage breeders to select only for the prettiest hip x-rays. Fact.. I have had some lines that produced a lot of "fair" ratings, and they produced a very high and consistent number of dysplasia free, functional working dogs. THIS is what I would prefer.. It's like anything else.. There's a give and take to it.

The elbows are very dark, but they look normal. I think you've got a good dog, there.

p.s.. If you can find a vet that doesn't use anaesthesia, you might get a bit better results.

Horrible positioning.  I wouldn't send these in to OFA.  Get your money back and take the dog to another vet, if you can.  Or have the vet re-do them and keep the dog on the table until they get it right.  have the vet refer to the ofa site for pictures of proper positioning, since it's obvious they don't know what they are doing without instruction and looking at pictures is the easiest way to do this.  Elbows are not positioned correctly either.

If I have to guess, I'd say moderate to Fair unless you get better positioning which may make the hips look better.

molly

honey, you've got bigger problems with this dog's spine.  when you take the dog in for re-do xrays, please please get the entire spine done as well.  hopefully, that area near the top of the pelvis is the only problem.  i would not even be concerned with the hips at this point.  get those vertabrae checked out.  best of luck and do let us know how you come out.
pjp

Wow!! I did not even look at the spine. What happened?
--Mary

there also appears to be a fisure in the pelvis itself that has partially healed over.  this dog has been seriously injured at some point.  accident with a car perhaps? 
pjp

I've had Nero since he was 12weeks old and he has never been in any accident. We purchased him through his breeder who was selling him for a puppy buyer who could not keep him. He has never showed any signs of pain and routinely pulls up whatever he can get his teeth on be it 12' long tree limbs, stall mats etc.... If he was injured, wouldn't there have been signs of some kind of discomfort or pain? We were out when we had a break in the cold a few weeks ago going over 4' hurdles and cat walk with ease.

Melissa

I didn't even notice that - does look like a problem with the spine, and a break in the pelvis as well right side.  Could be the positioning?  hope so.

molly

Oh wow. I looked at that as something through the window skewing the film; I hope that's all it is but it sure does look bad. Wouldn't the vet have said something if it was as bad as it looks? Gosh, I hope so. Crossing my fingers that it's as I first thought.