Like Sherri, I want the facts (the actual cert number -- BMD-VW25/16M-PI), not the breeder storyline (OFA-Good). You can tell a lot from these numbers that are not revealed by a breeder's "good" statement -- e.g., the breed, the test, the age at which the test was done, whether the dog is permanently identified by a microchip/DNA, etc.). If the breeder appears disorganized (and not something worse), you can look these certification numbers for yourself. Potentially available online for Bernese are certification numbers (if they exist) for hip, elbow, cardiac, thyroid, vWD and eyes. Here is how to find these numbers on your own:
OFA -- If you know the full name of parents, you can look up the OFA certifications (e.g., hips, elbows, cardiac, Thyroid & vWD) at the OFA website. Unless they have been recorded within the last month, they SHOULD be there. You do not need to know the registration number to do this, but you do need to have enough of the sire and dam names to search on (it will take partial names -- at least some of which must be the kennel name). The search panel page of the OFA website is www.offa.org/ofasrch.html I have GDC numbers also on my dog and they are not yet on the OFA site (although the OFA H/E are), so not sure when or if GDC numbers will be merged with the online record. CERF -- One can also do online CERF certification inquiries at www.vmdb.org/inquiry.html. The CERF inquiry is not automated -- you effectively send a completed form via e-mail. I do not know if there is a cost or a suggested donation for this service. BERNER FAMILIES -- Finally, you can also find other information on families by using the Berner-Garde Foundation website search page at www.breedbrowsers.com/Berners/Dog?default. This site will also search on partial names. If contains photos and other information not contained in the previous databases. If you want to practice on a dog that exists in all these databases, use one of my dogs -- Lionhearts Caruso v Pioneer. (His GDCs are not there, but I will fire off a question to OFA to find out if and when they will be merged on the database record -- :-) I like his GDC 25 month hip rating (excellent) better than his OFA (good)). Nancy Melone, Ph.D. Mars, PA -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Wednesday, November 27, 2002 3:21 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Reading pedigrees (was: Understanding HD/ED Ratings) In a message dated 11/22/2002 10:33:55 AM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > This is just really more for my education and trying to make sure I have > been reading the HD/ED on the pedigrees correctly. I think I have, but > somehow when I saw "Normal" I realized maybe I missed something. For dogs in the US you should see either an OFA or a GDC *number* for hips and elbows....which you can verify online. Just putting "hips-normal or "elbows-normal" on the pedigree doesn't cut it in my book...show me the certification number <g>. Likewise for European and Canadian dogs, there should be either a number or a specific grade. As Mary said, the grading systems vary from one country to another and they have changed over time. You'll find a 'converter' on the OFA website: www.offa.org > For the benefit of some of the PPOs out there...what are your > recommendations to watch out for in terms of looking at HD/Ed on a pedigree. Personally, my first concern is that the dogs HAVE been evaluated. For a puppy born now, I'd expect pretty much all the dogs on a 4 generation pedigree to have been evaluated for BOTH hips & elbows. They may not all have passed on both, but I want to know that the breeders behind the dogs in the pedigree have been doing their 'due diligence'. If I look at a pedigree and see few elbow numbers, that tells me that either the dogs didn't clear elbows OR the breeders didn't bother to check them. Either way, I'd not be inclined to buy a puppy from that litter, nor to stand my dog for that bitch. Also, breeders should have started routine CERF exams of their breeding dogs in 1998. A generation in dogs is pretty much 2 years so when I look at the parents and grandparents of the puppy, I want to see CERF numbers. Raising the bar: Also look for an OFA Cardiac number and an OFA or VetGen vWD number. When you see dogs in the pedigree with a complete 'portfolio' like this (hips, elbows, eyes, heart, & vWD) it gives you an indication that the owner of that dog is doing everything they can do today in terms of screening their dog or bitch for the presence of hereditary disease. (Note that the fact a disease isn't present, doesn't mean the dog doesn't carry the gene for it. But it's one critical step in evaluating the dog/bitch for breeding purposes...if you don't go looking for these things, you may not know your dog is affected and therefore more likely to pass it on to his/her offspring.) Next, look for AKC DNA Profile numbers on the sire and dam of the litter. This indicates that a genetic 'fingerprint' of the parents is on file with the AKC so parentage of the puppy can be verified with 99.9% surity. Think that doesn't matter to you if you're looking for 'just-a-pet'? Think again <g>, all those hip & elbow certifications are MEANINGLESS unless ALL the dogs on the pedigree are really the ones that produced your puppy. Without DNA profiles, the only thing establishing who the sire and dam of the litter are is the breeder's signature on a piece of paper. The AKC automatically cross-checks for parentage every time a DNA Profile is submitted so doing it on our breeding dogs is making the statement that the parents are who the breeder says they are, they can prove it, and they've started the process that will lead to generations of certifiable parentage. > If there is in a pedigree, 1 dog with HD - Moderate and all other HD Good > and Fair, should they discount that dog because of the HD Moderate in the > pedigree? Should they look for pedigrees with all Excellent, Fair, and > Good? Since the risk really is with the PPO who is looking for a puppy, > what would you caution them against? My hunch is to say, in the US, HD > Excellent, Good, and in Europe HD A and B. And of course Elbows clear in > the US and ED 0/0 in Europe. This is hard to pinpoint...each of us has different priorities and tolerance for different risks. The age of the dogs in the pedigree also comes into play as both the extent of screening and the credibility of breeding mildly affected dogs changes over time. For example... when hip screening was first implemented, BMDs had an astronomical affected rate. If you eliminated from breeding every dog that didn't clear hips...either the breed would be extinct or you wouldn't recognize it. Selection decisions must be made within the context of the gene pool, not in a vacuum. Elbow screening has only been available since 1989-1990 and we still have a very high affected rate. So, some very credible breeders will breed a bitch who has a Grade 1 elbow. If they do, it should be with extensive research into the stud for elbow production and family history...and, the implication of that ED should be discussed with PPOs. I personally would not rule out a puppy because a couple of ancestors on a 4 gen.pedigree didn't clear elbows or one didn't clear hips. I would NOT buy a puppy with a pedigree showing nothing but hip numbers (no elbows) or with something fudgey like "Hips-normal". And lastly...I can't emphasize strongly enough that it's important to look at 'breadth' in a pedigree...not just depth. Look for clearances in the pup's half sibs, aunts, uncles, etc. The Berner Garde pedigree database is a good tool for this: www.bernergarde.org -Sherri Venditti
