OFA Certification can be done for hip dysplasia – x-rays are taken by Animal Medical Center of Brooksville and sent to OFA for grading and certification. OFA grades the hips in seven categories: Normal limits (Excellent, Good, Fair), Borderline, and Dysplasic (Mild, Moderate, Severe). It is hard to know what animal will have hip problems. Hip X-rays and OFA Certification help to see conformation of the hips and determine if this conformation may lead to osteoarthritis or hip dysplasia. Certification is performed on dogs 2 years of age and older. Screening procedures can be done on dogs less than 2 years of age.
Elbow Displaysia
Elbow dysplasia is osteoarthritis of the elbow joints of dogs. Elbow dysplasia can be inherited and also caused by environment factors. Eventually the dog will show prolonged lameness of the front legs once the osteoarthritis becomes severe enough. X-rays of the elbows can be taken to evaluate for this problem. Dogs 2 years of age and older can have their elbows certified normal if no signs of osteoarthritis are evident.
Patellar Luxation
The patella or knee cap can be evaluated for stability. If the patella doesn’t luxate or move out of the joint then the patellas can be certified through OFA on dogs 1 year of age and older. This certification is done in the exam room by one of the doctors at Animal Medical Center of Brooksville. A form is then submitted for the Certification at OFA.
Thyroid Certification
Animal Medical Center of Brooksville is able to submit the necessary testing on dogs for Thyroid Certification. We submit samples to Michigan State Diagnostic Lab for Free T4, cTSH, TgAA. These assays are required for certification of thyroid status of a breeding animal. This testing is done on dogs 1 year of age and older.
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