Questions- Health Testing

I can not offer specifics for Goldens but here is what I must have for Ridgebacks ( Both a pup I may buy or a dog I may breed to , all of my breeding stock undergoes the following)

Cerf... eye testing must be done yearly. It can only tell you how the dog is at the time of the test. Both Sire and Dam must be tested

Baer....Hearing testing, again a yearly test and for the same reasons.

OFA test and registered results for the following body parts...

Hips ,  elbows, patellas and thyroid with MSU 4 testing. 

Cardiac, (not ofa'ed), done and evaluated by a cardiac specialist.

we are doing the DNA for DM ( Degenerative Myelopathy) it is not the end of the world if your dog is a carrier or at risk, you simply need to know if it was a clear bred to a carrier or a carrier to an at risk there are a lot of different combinations and they all mean something slightly different but it can give you a better shot at predicting the furture of not simply your dog but any puppies it may have.

I also insist on at the minimum a CGC and prefer a Temperment Testing ( TT) the results are registered and show the dog's ability within the breed standard to deal with stressors that an overly shy or aggressive dog can not handle.

Best of Luck

Bonita of Bwana

So, what specifically would  make the dog "good" or "bad"...like, what would a "good" dogs tests look like. I just am not sure how they're graded.

Not familiar with those breeds, but GSD is also a large breed and I look for OFA elbows and hips (or the German equiv).  OFA elbows are either normal or not (I think).  OFA hips that are not dysplastic are fair, good, or excellent.  All three are fine for breeding.  What's actually more important is looking at the OFAs of the dogs previous progeny.  OFA fair dogs throwing dogs with fair or better hips is better than OFA excellent dogs throwing dogs with hip dysplasia.  So don't automatically write off a dog that's "fair" in favor of one that's "excellent".  OFA also does cardiac.  For GSDs I also want CERF because pannus is not rare and often shows up in the eyes.  Many GSDs also test for van Willenbrand's.  Other things that you can't necessarily test for but are good to know (at least with GSDs) are whether the lines have occurrences (or whether the parents have thrown) bloat, EPI, IBS, SIBO, bad allergies, mega-esophagus, etc.

One breeder list for Lab clearances : http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/clearances.html

Golden Retriever Club of America recommendations (tons of other info on the left): http://www.grca.org/health/health-concerns.html

Fair, Good Excellent all PASS. No evidence of HD at that time, along with many other factors.

THIS SITE will show you xrays in Clumbers,

The nuances are subtle and even a vet is not really skilled enough to "grade" only see HD or arthritic change, etc if present.

It doesn't mean a lot...Fair or Excellent, in a housepet most times...but in a breeding or working dog many times Good+ is preferred or a Fair might be bred to a better rating. Varies breed to breed...Fairs are SUPER common in Beagles for ex but might raise an eyebrow in another breed.

rwbeagles

The nuances are subtle and even a vet is not really skilled enough to "grade" only see HD or arthritic change, etc if present.

So true, too many people will take a dog to the vet and the vet will say "doesn't look dysplastic" etc but really only a specialist can make the call by examining the films, not just watching the dog walk and feeling it's back end.  Heck, it takes a skilled vet just to position the dog properly to get a good reading based on the flims!

I am learning a lot more about this recently, as my breeder's husband is basically a veterinary genius, probably the best veterinary radiologist ever and is/was hugely involved in OFFA, PennHIP, etc (he is just now retiring from MSU but still does consultations).  Last time, she showed me some x-ray examples of elbows, hips, baby skeletons in the belly, etc.  He has his own X-ray clinic at his house.  He is really the only vet whose opinion I trust on it's own (so if he x-rays my dog and says "good", I know it WILL OFA "good";).

 For Goldens you want parents with either Good or excellent hips from the OFA, elbows passed by the OFA (with a number), eyes with a CERF number, and a heart clearance (also with a number).  Many good breeders are also doing a thyroid test, and there you want a normal rating.

The OFFA has a database where you can find out what clearances the parents have. 

http://www.offa.org/search.html 

Thank you for all the great info. I'm going to take my time looking at it all.

BTW, what does OFA and CERF (and any others) stand for?

OFA/OFFA is Orthopedic Foundation For Animals, PennHIP is (U of) Pennsylvania Hip Improvement Program, CERF is Canine Eye Registration Foundation.

GoldenAC

The OFFA has a database where you can find out what clearances the parents have. 

http://www.offa.org/search.html 

Yeah and DO check!  I keep finding more and more breeders than insist their dogs have hip clearances and can't find any dogs of theirs in the database.  It does not lie...

It may not lie...but it is not infallible either. People can request that their dogs not be listed...Pennhips are only recently being added, as they absorb other registries mistakes WILL be made...ditto omissions. I do not use it like a Bible...only a reference. If I have questions about a specific dog I ask the BREEDER to see copies of the cert's relevant to my questions. I would never assume that because I could not find their dog at the database they've done nothing.

Just a cautionary note. Friendships and mentorships have been ended over less...needlessly IMO.

For two examples of excellent lab breeders, check out kelrobin.com (I think seh may be retiring, don't know, but her site is awesome) and google "Legasea Labradors"- she's a local reputable breeder. (Who might also be a good resource just to contact and talk to.)

 MDR1 is in collies, shelties, and BCs- I don't know why a lab person would be testing for it. But I'd expect to see OFA hips & elbows, CERF eyes, thyroid testing, and probably heart at a minimum. 

I just checked out kelrobin.com. Her dogs are beautiful!

In Afghan Hounds, many breeders do OFA for hips, CERF for eyes, and a 6-panel test for thyroid --most sighthounds have normally lower thyroid levels than BC, GSD and the more active working dogs--see Dr. Jean Dodds work on this.I will not breed any of my dogs unless they have normal range thyroid, "good" or better hips and JC-free CERF.