22/08/2025
Edit to add:
Samson's hips scored "Good" and his elbows both "Normal" through OFA screening!
I guess old habits die hard.
These are images taken today for Samson for his OFA certification for hips and elbows. His hip positioning is near perfect, as is the norm with my very experienced vet, and he should go "Good", if not "Excellent". His birthday was 2 days ago and these rads will only be given an OFA certifying number due to him being at least 24 months old. They have been forwarded to OFA and I will receive their result via email within a week or so.
At the same visit, I had his OFA Dental exam done (to show a full set of beautiful white teeth), his OFA Patella form was checked as normal, his OFA Basic Cardiac (auscultation only by my vet) was checked as normal, and his OFA Verification of Permanent Identification was completed. OFA is already in possession of his normal/normal CAER eye exam completed on June 21st of this year.
I will pay to have the certificates issued in his name and the results will be entered into the OFA database. Once I send them his PawPrint Genetics DNA certificate that I have already had done, that result (clear of all breed specific diseases, except one copy of the MDR1 gene) will also be accepted by OFA and when the dust settles, Samson will be CHIC certified. That means he has passed all testing for the breed through OFA and proves he is a healthy representation of the Australian Shepherd breed.
I'm not sure he'll ever be bred but he's ready if it does happen, and I know even without breeding him that he is in wonderful shape!
The cost of all of this is approximately $1,500 but peace of mind is priceless.
