Why do show dog people rely on the OFA when all they have done in the last 45 years is read xrays?

Question

Also collect fees and keep records. They cannot predict that any dog is suitible for breeding and guarentee pups will be free of HD

Proof that it is genetic or enviorment? I wonder if they can prevent as it is still a big problem after 45 years. Some of top dogs are HD carriers, so it cannot be stopped

Answer 1

I'm not sure all of them do rely on the OFA. Genetics is more suitable to determine whether or not a pup will be free from HD.

Answer 2

This is the dumbest thing I've heard in, well, at least the last few minutes.

The OFA uses board certified veterinary radiologists to examine a dog's hip xrays and determine whether that dog has any form of dysplasia. Of course the dog may not be suitable for breeding in other ways, but, hey, at least its hips aren't the problem.

And, no, they can't guarantee that the puppies will be free of HD -- but they do have a huge database linked by parentage (check it out at offa.org)...so if your sire and dam are rated "Excellent", and their parents and grandparents are rated "Excellent", it's a pretty damn safe bet that the puppies won't be dysplastic.

"Keeping Records" is kind of important, if you're looking to lower the incidence of HD in a breed. There are breeds out there whose incidence of HD has dropped dramatically in the years since their parent clubs began advocating OFA certification.

Want to know what they do with those fees?
http://www.offa.org/research.html

You sound a lot like someone who's griping as an excuse NOT to have their dogs certified. Well, never fear, you can use PennHip instead.

ADDED:
"Proof that it is genetic or enviorment? I wonder if they can prevent as it is still a big problem after 45 years. Some of top dogs are HD carriers, so it cannot be stopped."

Again, you're acting as if the OFA is responsible for preventing HD. They interpret x-rays for signs of the disease -- how can they even know whether it's environmental or genetic, when they know nothing about the dog beyond its age, sex, and breed?

It's up to the ethical breeder to use their findings in making his/her breeding decisions!

It's still a "big problem after 45 years" because a fraction of the population breeding dogs actually USES hip testing! This board is proof enough that most people don't even have a clue!! Thank Joe BYB and his poorly-bred Labs for the boost in HD incidence, not the OFA!

It can be stopped by ethical breeders -- unfortunately, again, we are the minority when it comes to the number of dogs produced in this country. I'd like to see your sources on these "Top Dogs", BTW.

Seriously...did someone from the OFA cut you off in traffic, or something?

Answer 3

Well, with what we HAVE what should we do???? Just breed and hope for the best????? "All they have done in the last 45 years is read x-rays." Isn't that WHY we send them there. Do we want someone that had only been reading them a week to make the rating???? That doesn't sound like a good idea. No one is making any "guarantee" about who will be free of CHD. That is NOT the purpose. The purpose is the eliminate dogs that CAN pass it on and hopefully stop that from happening. We have to do SOMETHING, and that is one of the tools. IF I had a dog that went excellent yet the rest of it's litter failed, I would not use that dog.
There is NO other way to have a dogs x-rays evaluated against soooo many others of the same breed. I do not want my Newf hip rated against Greyhounds. Apples need to be compared to apples.
You need to learn more about what is trying to be accomplished and what has already been accomplished.

Are you still disgruntled because you had a "mild"?????????? Did you think that because there was no CHD "in the pedigree" that the dog would pass?????
News Flash.....there is CHD in MOST dogs pedigrees!!!!

Answer 4

First off, there is no way to guarantee any aspect of breeding in dogs. Secondly, OFA does a great deal of research, not just looking at Xrays. They do testing for not only orthopedic issues (hip and elbow displaysia, patellar luxations, Legg-Calve-Perthes), organ issues (cardiac, thyroid, etc) and other genetic diseases/conditions. They are continually doing research and trying to determine to associations between lineage/parentage and certain issues. As some have said, it does have to do with genetics, but genetics code for everything that you see on the dog. In that way, looking at the Xrays is important. They can determine if a dog is suitable for breeding, especially if s/he or their whole line has shown a propensity for any genetic disorder.

Answer 5

We rely on OFA because looking at ancestry is (so far) the best way to predict and prevent genetically-linked HD.

No one can guarantee anything about a dog or a puppy---certainly not from one test. But breeding dogs with excellent hips (and ancestors with excellent hips) is a much less riskier thing than breeding dogs with unknown hips or hips known to be bad.

Answer 6

Try bringing up a subject that you actually know something about. How about Old Roy or ringworms.

Answer 7

Very well said Loki. :)