# OFA X Rays and Ratings Collection



## Kylie (Feb 16, 2013)

I know I personally love seeing different OFA hip X rays and what rating they got and was hoping to start a thread where people can post hip X rays they have along with the rating.  Kylie :wavey:


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## Cari (Sep 19, 2012)

Oh yes, I would love this too!


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## OnMyWay2MyDreams (Feb 13, 2011)

I think its a great idea!  i will start then! Lol


Lilly got a Fair on these.


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## Kylie (Feb 16, 2013)

Thanks for posting Lilly's hips. Anyone else?


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## Goldensforme (Jun 30, 2013)

I zoomed in on the hips more so you can see the structure better. All have normal elbows, PRA 1 & 2 clear, PRCD clear, Thyroid clear and Cardiac normal. It looks like Sassy has bad positioning for the x ray. 

Xiva Good









Sassy Good









Molly Fair (she was in season)


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## Goldensforme (Jun 30, 2013)

Mollys


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## Brave (Oct 26, 2012)

May I post hips even if they weren't rated by OFA? Bear is slightly dysplastic in his hips. 


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## Kylie (Feb 16, 2013)

Brave said:


> May I post hips even if they weren't rated by OFA? Bear is slightly dysplastic in his hips.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


As long as you know he's dysplastic, sure.


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## Brave (Oct 26, 2012)

Kylie said:


> As long as you know he's dysplastic, sure.


Oh yea.. he was diagnosed by an orthopedic vet -- he is just a smidge dysplastic. I don't remember the full description. It shouldn't cause problems for him as he ages. But it is there. 

3/20/13








4/08/13


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Brave said:


> Oh yea.. he was diagnosed by an orthopedic vet -- he is just a smidge dysplastic. I don't remember the full description. It shouldn't cause problems for him as he ages. But it is there.


Thanks for posting these. Is it that flat/angular area on the inside of the ball that's the problem?


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## Roushbabe (Feb 20, 2011)

This is a great thread for people wanting to learn. Thanks for starting it! Subscribed!


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## Kenny (May 1, 2013)

*Puppy 10 weeks Xray*

Vet took this X-ray of our 10wk old puppy to locate ear-ring. Ear-ring has passed but vet was concerned about hips. He talked with a Ortho Dr. and they agreed it was too early ( lots of growing to do). They said to X-ray in 2 to 3 wks to get another look. Mentioned a procedure could be done to save hips, but had to be done before 20 wks, prefered done at 16 wks. Puppy seems normal at this time.
Any advice? Thanks


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## Tailer'sFolks (Feb 27, 2007)

Tailer, Born 10-3-05. Hips n Knees 2-7-08 

GR-94925G28M-PI HIPS Feb 7 2008 Mar 11 2008 28 GOOD GR-EL17427M28-PI ELBOW Feb 7 2008 Mar 11 2008 28 NORMAL
Now I can't find the Elbow X-Rays!!! Geeze!


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## Eowyn (Aug 29, 2013)

I have a girl going in this Monday. I will post the x rays when I get the results. 

I also thought people might be interested to know that if you call OFA they will typically tell you why a dog got the rating that they got (as long as you are an owner or co-owner).


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## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

tippykayak said:


> Thanks for posting these. Is it that flat/angular area on the inside of the ball that's the problem?


Old thread, but look at the remodeling on the acetabula, the thickened femoral necks, and the mild subluxation of the heads of the femurs.... I AM NOT an orthopedic specialist, but what I was taught in school is that the rads do not tell the whole picture. You can have ok rads with dogs with terrible hip pain and you can have awful hip rads and the dog has no hip pain. I am surprised that future issues RE arthritis etc can be predicted from a dog showing radiographic signs at a young age...


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## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

Kenny said:


> Vet took this X-ray of our 10wk old puppy to locate ear-ring. Ear-ring has passed but vet was concerned about hips. He talked with a Ortho Dr. and they agreed it was too early ( lots of growing to do). They said to X-ray in 2 to 3 wks to get another look. Mentioned a procedure could be done to save hips, but had to be done before 20 wks, prefered done at 16 wks. Puppy seems normal at this time.
> Any advice? Thanks


Too many open growth plates to diagnose anything... Me personally, I would have a hard time intervening on my dogs at any age if they were not showing clinical signs. This is my opinion as a dog owner, not as a vet. In fact, my husband, also a vet, agrees with this.


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## Eowyn (Aug 29, 2013)

Here are my girl's hips. She received an Excellent rating from OFA.


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## HiTideGoldens (Dec 29, 2009)

Congratulations!!!!! Those are few and far between!


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## OnMyWay2MyDreams (Feb 13, 2011)

Wow, an excellent! Nice!


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## Eowyn (Aug 29, 2013)

@Michelle and Allison, thanks for the congratulations. I was completely thrilled when I found out she was an Excellent!


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## Brave (Oct 26, 2012)

Congrats on the excellent. And may I just add, the positioning is superb!


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## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

Eowyn said:


> Here are my girl's hips. She received an Excellent rating from OFA.


Great films.. With anesthesia?


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## Eowyn (Aug 29, 2013)

Sally's Mom said:


> Great films.. With anesthesia?


We did not use an anesthetic. I had them done with Lonnie Davis as he seems to be the best in my area at positioning. He is convinced (as am I) that you get better results with them fully awake. Eowyn did amazing and was limp as a sock for it though, so I'm not sure she would have been any limper with an anesthetic lol!


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## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

Actually, I believe as Dr. Keller does that hips are more lax and more likely to show,dysplasia with anesthesia... That is why it is noted on the submissal form..


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## SterlingValleyGoldens (Jun 13, 2011)

My girl will be 2 in just 2 months. Went ahead and did prelims on her. I'll update this post with the OFA grade once I get them.


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## Eowyn (Aug 29, 2013)

SterlingValleyGoldens said:


> My girl will be 2 in just 2 months. Went ahead and did prelims on her. I'll update this post with the OFA grade once I get them.


Did Molly end up not passing? She still isn't listed in OFA and I would think they would be graded by now.


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## SterlingValleyGoldens (Jun 13, 2011)

Eowyn said:


> Did Molly end up not passing? She still isn't listed in OFA and I would think they would be graded by now.


We got the results. She prelim'd as Good.  She will have her finals done in April. Not sure how to edit the original post with the picture of her hips. It's not showing the edit button.


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## HiTideGoldens (Dec 29, 2009)

SterlingValleyGoldens said:


> We got the results. She prelim'd as Good.  She will have her finals done in April. Not sure how to edit the original post with the picture of her hips. It's not showing the edit button.


The Edit option only stays for 24 hours after you post


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## Vhuynh2 (Feb 13, 2012)

They're not online yet on OFFA.org, but yesterday I received the certificates for Molly's hips and elbows (normal). Her hips were rated good. And her registered name is not "Love Potion". 


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## LibertyME (Jan 6, 2007)

waiting for Rumors OFA results as we speak... ::tap::tap::tap::


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## Eowyn (Aug 29, 2013)

LibertyME said:


> waiting for Rumors OFA results as we speak... ::tap::tap::tap::


How did Rumor do? I hope she passed!


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## SheetsSM (Jan 17, 2008)

SterlingValleyGoldens said:


> We got the results. She prelim'd as Good.  She will have her finals done in April. Not sure how to edit the original post with the picture of her hips. It's not showing the edit button.


And in keeping with the other litters from Sterling Valley Goldens, Molly is set to have pups on 11 May (turned 2 on 4 April)--at least clearances are complete for her prior to the pups being whelped. Due have to wonder who the sire is as only his call name is being advertised--guess a lesson learned from the last 2 litters where the sire was under 2 & did not have full clearances.


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## LibertyME (Jan 6, 2007)

Eowyn said:


> How did Rumor do? I hope she passed!


Her OFA report came back Hips Good - Elbows normal


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

I like seeing the xrays of good hips. I see a few hip xrays on the rescues dogs and they are always done because the dog has mobility problems, they look horrible! These are pretty


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## OnMyWay2MyDreams (Feb 13, 2011)

LibertyME said:


> Her OFA report came back Hips Good - Elbows normal


Yay! Congrats! Good news!


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## Kylie (Feb 16, 2013)

This dog never had his hips sent into OFA but the vet who did them (Lonnie Davis) thought they were a fair or maybe good. He was a little over a year when he had them done. Anyways a 16 year old girl did a write up of what she thought of them for the dogs foster mom who was new to hip X-rays and didn't know what she was looking at. I found it really interesting and thought I would post it, but I blacked out the dogs name in respect to the owners/breeders. She put colored arrows on the X-rays so you could see what area she was talking about. What do you guys think of them and her assessment? 

"I think his left (the right on the X-ray) is good. I would agree with them on saying his right hip (left on the X-ray) is fair. I put arrows on the X-rays so I can hopefully explain what we are seeing better. See the black arrow on the right hip? The hip socket does not extend quite as far as we would like it to. Compare it to the arrow on the left hip. Now look at the red arrow. See the deep "shadowing" between the ball and the socket? That should not be there. Ideally it would be smooth, allowing the joint to move easily (you do not want a grinding motion). Again you can compare it with his left hip where it is smooth all around the ball. Now look at the green arrow. This part I am unsure about as I have not seen it before, but my mom and I do not like the little bit of a point there. Overall I would give him a "fair" which is still a passing grade. I am not an expert though and only recently I have done very limited studies on grading hips. I hope this helps."


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## Claudia M (Aug 8, 2012)

Excellent Hips and Normal Elbows


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## SterlingValleyGoldens (Jun 13, 2011)

Molly's final clearances are completed.

*Hip clearance: Good* OFA GR-110530G24F-VPI
*Eye clearance: Normal * OFA GR-EYE4192/23F-VPI
*Heart clearance: Normal* OFA GR-CA25674/23F/C-VPI-ECHO
*Elbow clearance: Norma*l OFA GR-EL30892F24-VPI

*CHIC #97085*


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## coaraujo (Nov 2, 2012)

Did not send out to OFFA, but got an report from a board certified radiologist:

Bernie - Mildly Dysplastic. Loose ball in socket and dark shading.








Oliver - Beginning stages of arthritis, most likely from Lyme Disease. My personal opinion (which does not count for much ) is he would be rated Fair if the osteophytes hadn't formed, nice tight fitting ball in socket, but slightly flat head. He had xrays done at 8 months and there were no osteophytes.








Both came back with normal elbows, Oliver came back with swollen knees, also most likely due to his lyme disease.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Copey Fair hips/ Penn hip better than 90th percentile.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Ljilly28 said:


> Copey Fair hips/ Penn hip better than 90th percentile.


 @Jill - I immediately thought about Copley when I read the follow bit on the OFA Hips and Elbows page on fb -




> Some breeders will only use Pennhip as OFA judges their breed unfairly compared to others, or in the case of some breeds who have horrible hips as a whole Pennhip is a better representation as it ranks your dog in percentiles judged against it's own breed. A dog that scores MILD with OFA for a certain breed might be pennhip'd and come back with high grade hips for it's breed.


 The first part - I don't really believe is exactly the case, because I know the OFA distinguishes between breeds first while looking at xrays. And if you go through that page and see xrays for other breeds.... other breeds have HIDEOUS hips pass for good - that would be moderate for goldens! 

The other thing though is really concerning to me when I consider those breeders who only do penn hip as opposed to both penn hip and OFA. 

Bertie just had his hips/elbows done yesterday. I'm pretty sure they will pass, but I'm too nervous and superstitious to post anywhere for discussion. So instead I've been going nuts looking at other xrays and posted results and trying to guess how his will be read by OFA. 

With all those hip xrays swimming in my head the big thing is....

1. I really can't always tell the difference between excellent graded hips and good ones. I think the types of hips with rounded balls fitting nicely in clean defined sockets and zero fuzziness or thickening should always be excellent.... but that's not always the case. I've seen a couple excellent grades where the sockets were fuzzy or looked more shallow. So I just don't get it.

2. I can definitely see a slight difference between good hips and fair ones. Generally is more flattening on the balls and more shallow/fuzzy sockets.

3. Fair and mild - generally BIG difference. There's usually clear signs of loose hips. My Jacks was a mild grade, so I have that in my head generally.

^^^^ But the thing that's concerning me is if a dog who has a high ranking as far as Penn Hip only gets a fair grade from OFA.... that's alarming depending on how breeders use that information. They could be breeding dogs who per OFA were dysplastic.


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## Laurie (Sep 20, 2009)

Megora said:


> So instead I've been going nuts looking at other xrays and posted results and trying to guess how his will be read by OFA.


I did this too after I had Lexx's hips and elbows done. I googled every hip grade there was to compare and looked at them side by side. To say I was somewhat obsessive is an understatement.

I figured Lexx's would be read as excellent or good. Like you, I saw some excellents that were (to me) not as nice as the goods, some goods that I thought may be dysplastic, etc. In any event, OFA came back with "good" hips and normal elbows. Needless to say, I was very relieved! 

I will post pictures of them when I get home from work.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Awesome Laurie! Congrats on the Goods!


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## Laurie (Sep 20, 2009)

Lexx's hips and elbows.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Gotta ask.... did you have the vet ID the visible mystery organs for you?


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## Laurie (Sep 20, 2009)

---duplicate post


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## Laurie (Sep 20, 2009)

Megora said:


> Gotta ask.... did you have the vet ID the visible mystery organs for you?



To be perfectly honest, I didn't notice anything but the hips and elbows!


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

I'm not used to seeing more than the usual just elbow shot - so I was staring at those 2 round items in front of the spine and trying to figure out what those were.


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## Laurie (Sep 20, 2009)

Megora said:


> I'm not used to seeing more than the usual just elbow shot - so I was staring at those 2 round items in front of the spine and trying to figure out what those were.


I see that now...hopefully they're supposed to be there!!!

In all fairness to the vet, I doubt very much if she gets a lot of requests for these types of x-rays (for OFA). I do recall seeing an instruction sheet in Lexx's file. At least they were accepted by OFA!!


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Oh - Laurie - no criticism meant! And not meaning to freak you out about the thingies showing up besides the elbows. I've seen enough dog xrays (Jacks' has already had his spleen checked a couple times thanks to me being neurotic) to know those "should" be there. I just am not up on my dog anatomy to figure out what they are. LOL.  And your vet obviously did a great job setting the xrays up. I don't see what I did with Jacks' first xray where his pelvis was crooked to the side and he was obviously fighting the techs while the pic was taken.


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## Laurie (Sep 20, 2009)

No criticism taken!!! As long as they should be there, I'm good!!!!!!


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## Alaska7133 (May 26, 2011)

Lucy's hips and elbows taken 10/3/14. Vet thinks one hip is excellent, one hip good, so over all good. Both elbows pass. What do you all think? Bitch is 27 months at time of xrays. Last heat cycle was 17 weeks ago. She weighs 54# and is 20-1/4" high and from very slow maturing lines. Both parents have good hips and passing elbows. 2 sisters so far have fair hips. I'm still waiting on OFA results. It will be interesting to compare to what the vet thinks.


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## OnMyWay2MyDreams (Feb 13, 2011)

Wow..those are really nice hips. I would def say good..maybe even excellent. Right one does look better than left. But not by much of a difference.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

I saw these elsewhere and just about fell over....

I guess long schpeel short... after our Danny died, the vet apparently disposed of his file within a certain period after. I just recently wanted to go back and get his xrays just to have and show people whenever they talk about breeding dogs without checking those elbows... 

These elbows are from a different breed, but elbow dysplasia is defined the same way. If you see the "fuzz" where the red arrows point, these would get Grade 1-2 (right side) and definitely Grade 3 (left side). Might add, the fuzz is not the only thing going on with these elbows. Unless I'm seeing things, I think there might be a slight fracture with the left side elbow. Compare to the elbow xrays up above that Stacey shared for her dog which will probably get a normal grade.

I don't have Danny's elbows to show, but the worse elbow in the pic I'm sharing... was not as bad as his worse elbow. If you see that "fuzz" part? With Danny is was so excessive that you could not see where the bones were.


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## Alaska7133 (May 26, 2011)

These are Reilly's elbows. I was at the vet today and thought I'd get a copy. They were taken 2-3 years ago. I never saw them until now, I had only read the report from the radiologist. As you can see one x-ray is horrible and extremely hard to read. But it is also his very bad elbow. The other x-ray that is much easier to read is his left. It's better, but just from horrible to nasty. He shouldn't be walking on either. He was only reviewed by a radiologist, never had these sent to OFA, since we only took them to see what was wrong with him. He's a great dog.


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## Alaska7133 (May 26, 2011)

After looking at the above x-rays I'm really mad at myself for not reviewing them with the vet. It would have been obvious that these x-rays are just about unreadable. I paid good money for them. Had I seen them then, I would have said no. I did not use this same vet for Lucy's x-rays. You can see hers, and they are far better. The other thing to consider is how the x-rays are taken. Are they digital or analog. Lucy's are digital and are clear. Reilly's are analog and very fuzzy because they had to be scanned in. Whoever you use for your x-rays, make sure you know what you are paying for. Looking back now, I should have said I'm not paying for x-rays no one can read.


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## Alaska7133 (May 26, 2011)

So Lucy's rating came back - FAIR! I'm so disappointed. Got the results last night. The vet won't be in until Monday morning. I'm sure he will be very surprised. So my thoughts are, just when you think you have it figured out, you really don't. My vet obviously didn't know what he was talking about. So now I have to decide whether to redo them and take a chance on a better rating or give up and settle for Fair.


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## Eowyn (Aug 29, 2013)

Alaska7133 said:


> So Lucy's rating came back - FAIR! I'm so disappointed. Got the results last night. The vet won't be in until Monday morning. I'm sure he will be very surprised. So my thoughts are, just when you think you have it figured out, you really don't. My vet obviously didn't know what he was talking about. So now I have to decide whether to redo them and take a chance on a better rating or give up and settle for Fair.


What were the three individual ratings? That would give you a better idea on whether or not to redo them. The positioning is close to perfect already, and I am by no means an expert, but I am seeing fair too. Fair is still and acceptable rating though.


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## OnMyWay2MyDreams (Feb 13, 2011)

Fair is passing but. I agree to call and see what the ratings were.


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## Swampcollie (Sep 6, 2007)

Alaska7133 said:


> So Lucy's rating came back - FAIR! I'm so disappointed. Got the results last night. The vet won't be in until Monday morning. I'm sure he will be very surprised. So my thoughts are, just when you think you have it figured out, you really don't. My vet obviously didn't know what he was talking about. So now I have to decide whether to redo them and take a chance on a better rating or give up and settle for Fair.


I suspect the rating isn't going to change. 

The right hip fits together nice but there just isn't a whole lot of coverage. Re-positioning and Re-shooting the picture might help but I'm not sure you're going to see a lot of improvement in the outcome.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

I'd call OFA up anyway. They were really nice explaining where Bertie's grade came from. Me personally, I would not redo xrays unless my dog failed hips. 

Looking at the pic above.... I was looking at the left hip which showed some flattening compared to the right hip. And both hips looked a little shallow. I didn't want to say anything though because I've seen excellent graded hips that looked shallow to me, and the flattening could be related to positioning of that leg vs the other. <- Basically, you never know.

Congrats though! Fair is a passing grade! It's always a huge relief getting that out of the way so you don't have to worry about it anymore.


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## goodog (May 6, 2013)

*Does anyone have recommendations for vets that do OFA XRAYS for reproductive clearances in the DC-Baltimore area. Im willing to drive for a vet who does a good job*


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