DNA Testing with Embark

Embark is one of the best DNA kits out there and every breeder needs to DNA test before breeding. Through DNA testing is the best way to make sure you are producing healthy dogs. Dogs either have 2 copies, 1 copy, or no copies of a genetic health condition.

If the dog has 2 copies they are affected by the condition and will pass one copy of the condition onto their children. If the dog has 1 copy they are not affected by the condition (normally) and are considered “carriers”, they have a 50% of passing on one copy of the condition onto their children. If the dog has no copies they are not affected by the conditions, and will not pass a copy of the condition onto their children.

If the dog has 2 copies of a genetic health condition they should not be bred. A dog that has 1 copy or “carriers” a condition can be bred safely, but only to dogs that have no copies of the condition. This breeding each pup has a 50% chance of being a carrier, but none will be affected by having 2 copies of the gene. A dog with no copies of a condition is your best bet for breeding!

PennHip Testing

Unlike the OFA test, PennHIP requires the dog to be anesthetized. Three radiographs are taken to measure the hip joint laxity. A score between 0-1 is assigned, with 0 being very tight hips and 1 being very loose. The test is not pass-fail, and the score is actually based on a measurement of the hip’s distraction index (DI). A study found that the PennHIP method was a more accurate indicator of dogs’ susceptibility to osteoarthritis. "Results suggested that OFA scoring of HE [hip joint-extended] radiographs underestimated susceptibility to osteoarthritis in dogs, which may impede progress in reducing or eliminating hip dysplasia through breeding," the study says. "Breeders know what Excellent, Good or Fair means when discussing hip scores," Hess said. "Breeders are typically not educated in distraction indices or in knowing how their dogs hips compared to the rest of the population can help them make objective breeding choices. OFA evaluation does not require heavy sedation or general anesthesia and requires only one view. For these reasons, OFA evaluation is significantly less expensive than PennHIP evaluation. OFA does not require films to be submitted so breeders can elect not to submit films with obviously poor joint conformation. Finally, OFA evaluations tend to be easier to ‘pass’ than PennHip evaluations and many breeders are unfortunately more interested in passing the test than having an objective evaluation in which the result may not be as good."

OFA Hips

The OFA classifies hips into seven different categories: Excellent, Good, Fair (all within Normal limits), Borderline, and then Mild, Moderate, or Severe (the last three considered Dysplastic). The hip grades of excellent, good and fair are within normal limits and are given OFA numbers. This information is accepted by AKC on dogs with permanent identification and is in the public domain. Radiographs of borderline, mild, moderate and severely dysplastic hip grades are reviewed by a team of consultant radiologists and a radiographic report is generated documenting the abnormal radiographic findings. Unless the owner has chosen the open database, dysplastic hip grades are closed to public information.

OFA Elbows

Elbow dysplasia in dogs has multiple inherited etiologies which may occur singularly or in combination. These etiologies include fragmented medial coronoid (FCP) of the ulna, osteochondritis of the medial humeral condyle, and ununited anconeal process (UAP).

Grade I Elbow Dysplasia: Minimal bone change along anconeal process of ulna (less than 2mm).
Grade II Elbow Dysplasia: Additional bone proliferation along anconeal process (2-5 mm) and subchondral bone changes (trochlear notch sclerosis).
Grade III Elbow Dysplasia: Well developed degenerative joint disease with bone proliferation along anconeal process being greater than 5 mm.