# ofa's came back.



## selzer (May 7, 2005)

My vet said "Good" on all three of the the girls I tested last month. They came back and I got a "good" on two of them and a "fair" on one of them. Unfortunately, this was the one the vet said was the best. 

So I called over there and asked them to send me pdfs of the x-rays for the three stooges and asked for Babs and Jenna's as well. They are going to send me a CD. When I get them, I want to post them and see if we on the board can figure out which were the fair hips and what they are seeing. 

I know I should just be happy about it, but I am curious to figure out what exactly they are looking at when they are NOT looking at dysplasia.


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## WiscTiger (Sep 25, 2002)

Sue, with the OFA some times there is no rhyme or reason on the ratings. But I will be looking forward to the pics.

Val


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## angelaw (Dec 14, 2001)

and all it takes is 1 fair from one of the 3 vets looking at the xrays to get it. Vishnu had 1 good, 1 fair and a dysplastic. Guess which rating he got.


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## GranvilleGSD (Mar 28, 2007)

After they decide if they see any signs of dysplasia, then they rate the conformation of the hip joint itself. That is where the ratings of Excellent, Good, and Fair come in. If you read on the OFA certificate, all three ratings are listed as FREE of dysplasia. E, G, and F are based on how well the ball fits in the socket, if there is space left in the joint area, etc.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Ok, but these were the ones that Dr. Hutchison said they couldn't jam them in any tighter with a sledge hammer. That is why I asked for the x-rays and want to study them. I am hoping they come tomorrow. Waiting is not my strong suit.


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## JenM66 (Jul 28, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: Wisc.Tiger with the OFA some times there is no rhyme or reason on the ratings.
> 
> Val


I agree 100%. Gracie's prelims were mild HD. Her 2 year old finals came back OFA FAIR (when the radiologist who did them said they were mild to poor). Now due to her back problems, Gracie has seen 2 board certified orthopedists and one holistic vet (practicing for 35+ years) and ALL THREE are shocked that she passed OFA. It's the luck of the draw with the raters.


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## shepherdbydesign (Mar 7, 2007)

Sue, Sometimes we wonder if the person at OFA needed glasses or if they were wearing them when looking at the films.

I bet if you sent them in again they would be different and could be rated worse than the first time.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

But could they be rated better if I sent them in again? The vet said good to excellent on her. the other four females out of this set of parents are OFA good. 

Still no cd in the mailbox...


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## JenM66 (Jul 28, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: selzerBut could they be rated better if I sent them in again? The vet said good to excellent on her. the other four females out of this set of parents are OFA good.
> 
> Still no cd in the mailbox...


You never know. I'd wait a few months if you do, I had heard that raters change every 6 months or so (but I could be wrong as it was heresay).


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## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

You can also get another set of x-rays and do Penn-Hip.

In my opinion this is a MUCH better method. Actually numbers and measurements are taken. As well as comparing to other dogs measurement of the same breed.

http://www.workingdogs.com/ofa_penn.htm


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## JenM66 (Jul 28, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: JenM66
> 
> 
> > Originally Posted By: Wisc.Tiger with the OFA some times there is no rhyme or reason on the ratings.
> ...


Sue, please forgive me for using your thread as an outlet for this but a _BANNED_ member of this board contacted me via e-mail disputing what I wrote. My input and sharing of my experience was based on Val's comment of there being "no rhyme or reason on the ratings" and confirming what others have said about you never know what OFA is going to say. One day you can get one score, another day something different. Vets can interpret the x-rays one way and OFA a completely different way. 

Thank you for letting me get that vent off my chest.


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## Betty (Aug 11, 2002)

Well that's just not right Jen, but don't worry your post was perfectly clear to me so if there is a problem it's not with what you posted or how you posted it.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I am pretty oblivious to anything going on, and I do not understand what the problem might be with anything said here. 

The clinic sent Heidi, Whitney, and Tori's hips and elbows, but instead of Babs and Jenna's they sent Rushie and Dubya's. As they are males, I do not want to include them so I will just post the pictures from the girls they gave me, one of which is a fair, and we can look at them. They gave me two or three shots of each hips. 

First Tori:









Second of Tori:









First Whitney:









Second Whitney:









First Heidi:









Second Heidi:


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## gagsd (Apr 24, 2003)

They all look good! Congrats
The only thing I can say is the last dog (bitch) you have shows less coverage of the socket on the right side of my screen.


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## Andaka (Jun 29, 2003)

> Quote:The only thing I can say is the last dog (bitch) you have shows less coverage of the socket on the right side of my screen.


My thoughts exactly!!!!


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## BJDimock (Sep 14, 2008)

Positioning on the last 2 dogs isn't great. I would try to have a straighter film taken. Tori's second film is nice. Patella's are equal and there is no curvature in the spine. Whitney's first is passable, whoever is holding has a much stronger right arm though. (Whitney is a little more square in her sockets. My office would not have sent Heidi's x rays in; her spineand pelvis are too twisted, giving a false reading. The first film of Tori shows her R (my right) hip being slightly more luxated than the left. Hard to look at without being able to blow up the image!


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

So with better positioning, I could get a better reading or a worse reading?


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## GranvilleGSD (Mar 28, 2007)

Were the dogs sedated for their films? I'd have to say the positioning is poor on all of the films, and if I had taken those x-rays at the clinic I work at, the dr would have made me retake them. However, if they were not sedated, it is difficult to get the positioning any better than what you have. Tori's films are the straightest, the other two the pelvis is tilted like nobody bothered to line them up straight on the x-ray table.


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## K9mom (Jan 15, 2004)

I agree, the first two positions are, soso but the others are all bad positions. I would also question whether they were sedated well enough. I wouldn't grade any of them until I got better films as you will get a worse grade then with better positioning. If they have already been sent in, wait 6 months and resubmit. The dog needs to be centered and if you look at the two "holes" in the pelvis they should be mirrow images as well as the femurs she be the same coverage over the "pointy ends" of the pelvis. If they are not mirror images, the dog is too crooked.

Tina


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## djpohn (Jun 27, 2003)

I would wonder if these were "extra" shots or the ones actually submitted. I agree the positioning isn't that great on all of them, but since you got a passing grade on all of them I personally wouldn't worry. I don't know if they will upgrade a passing film and if they are sedated I wonder why you would risk sedating them again. Even with the positioning a bit off, you can see the conformation of the joint well enough, Heidi's sockets are not as deep as the other two. Because you sent them all in together they will take that in to consideration as well

BTW you can get straight x-rays without sedating the dogs. The vet needs to use a wedge and have good help in holding the dog still. It also helps if the vet himself takes the x-rays (unless you have very experienced techs)


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## BJDimock (Sep 14, 2008)

To answer your question, Selzer, you would probably get a better judgement if they were retaken straighter. I still think the second rad shows what it wants to show, but the last two dogs, the rads are horrible. Whoever is holding has a stronger left arm(MY right, I apologize for a comment made late night in an earlier post)


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

They do give the dog some anesthesia, but they bring them out of it quickly and I get the dog back within about 20 minutes. 

I am not going to retest at this point. I am going way far to get this done to one of the best guys around here according to a lot of different people, so I am a bit discouraged, first by finding out that this guy does not read these for the OFA, and secondly by hearing that these are not postitioned well. 

The good news is that I have two years to go before I need to do more hip x-rays.


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## wolfstraum (May 2, 2003)

I have had 2 OFA's done by (at) Hutchinsons - both had good positioning and he called them both correctly - Csabre he said *he* would call excellent, but the "neck" might be a bit short and put her into the "good" category, and Fenja, he called "good" - right on both. I am surprised to see the positioning on these being so 'off'. One Fair and 3 Goods in the same litter is a sucessful litter, and I would stand with it - the last dog is not as symmetrical as the other two in femoral head shape and coverage. The 2nd dog has smaller and somewhat squarer femoral heads as well. I would think she was the Fair???? 

Lee


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## Smithie86 (Jan 9, 2001)

Part of the reason we do not ask and our vet will not state what they think on the x-rays. We look ourselves before they are sent in. That is it. 

So many times, people are posting: my vet said this, but OFA said this. 

And you can have very clean hips, but if there is one abnormality to them on the film, it does not matter - it goes into that category.

You can call OFA and talk to them and ask why.

Not sure if it is the same as xrays for humans - the tech can not say what is wrong or right, only the specialist. Even my ortho vet (Randy Tyson uses him for the K9s), when he took my dog xrays in CA, will not say. He felt that it was not correct, as it was not his rating, but OFAs. 

He ensured the correct positioning, the clean shot and that was it.


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## Dean129 (Feb 12, 2009)

I have a question regarding OFA X-Rays and Genetic's Testing.

What do either of these tests cost on average????

Someone shoot me an email if you'd be so kind. I don't check this site often.

Thanks in advance.

[email protected]


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## wolfstraum (May 2, 2003)

I just had a dog done at this same vet on Tuesday....the x-rays, drugs, office visit and OFA fees ($52 instead of OFA's 40...sigh) totalled right in the $300 range - more than they cost at the old office - new place looks like a small hotel! Higher overhead now I guess...

Interesting to re-read this thread....Dr. H went over the x-rays point by point - spacing, coverage, anatomy of socket etc, digital x-ray on the screen. Said the hips were "perfect", could not be any better - LOL let's see what OFA says! 4 other pups in this litter were prelim'ed/final so far at Good, this girl and another one done a week or two ago at Tufts vet school with good reviews when shot, so I hope for the same on Furi and Firenze...

Dogs are lightly sedated with 2 drugs, just enough to relax, can't even tell they have anything on board by walking them...mine showed no effects of sedation other than lying down and dozing while I waited for the doctor to review the x-rays.

Lee


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