What is “hip dysplasia” and how does it relate to OFA and Penn-hip?
This is an answer provided by a very experienced breeder of Standard Schnauzers who is not a veterinarian. It is an attempt to explain the issue in layman’s terms. Should you wish to seek an opinion that you can rely upon, please speak to your vet. Hip dysplasia is what is called a multi-factorial disease. In layman’s terms both genetics and environment contribute to the disease. The term OFA refers to the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals. The OFA was founded in 1966 as a not-for-profit organisation assisting breeders deal with hip dysplasia. It established a standard method for taking x-rays of dogs hips and scoring those x-rays to indicate the incidence of dysplasia. This is held in databases enabling comparison. See www.offa.org for information. If it was genetics alone that controlled hip dysplasia, the attempt of using an OFA clearance to direct breeding decisions should and would have decreased the incidence of the problem to a very low percentage. Unfortunately this has not bee
