Question about dysplasia?

It should throw up a red flag. Was the dog OFA'd for Elbow Dysplasia? At what age? How long ago was that?

There are several schools of thought on Elbow Dysplasia. The first is that it's even if the predisposition isn't really there, environmental factors can bring on the ED. Meaning if the dog is constantly on hard surfaces, worked on hard surfaces, is overweight, was fed the wrong food as a pup, or suffers repetitive trauma to the area.

The second is that even with environmental factors, the predisposition HAS to be there. Meaning that the dog must have some sort of structural anomaly, due to genetics, to set the ball rolling.

Of course, injury can override both of these schools of thought.

I'd ask to see OFA certification on the stud's parents and grand parents, and ask if any of them are showing signs. I'd also want to see certification on other litters that the stud has sired. Because I tend to lean towards the second school of thought in that most dysplasias stem from structural defect, even with all that information, I still don't know that I'd take a puppy from this stud. Genes mutate and change and this dog may have full blown heritable ED. No health guarantee on the pup makes it worth owning a dog that you have to watch suffer and put through surgeries. That's not why we use good breeders - it's to prevent problems like ED.

These are the OFA statistics on occurance of ED:

Normal Elbows x Normal Elbows = 12.2% offspring affected with ED

Normal Elbows x Dysplastic Elbows = 26.1% - 31.3% offspring affected with ED

Dysplastic Elbows x Dysplastic Elbows = 41.5% offspring affected with ED

So, yes, even if all the OFA scores on the sire's parents were Normal, he still has a 12% chance of developing it. If the sire ends up having it, there's a 1 in 3 chance that any give puppy will have it.

And another study shows that breeding dog that's affected with it increases the chance of the puppies not only inheriting it, but having more severe ED. http://www.offa.org/edanswers.html

This is why the OFA doesn't rate until the dogs are past their second birthday. By then the bones are knit together as well as they ever will be. What OFA grade does the stud have on his hips? Was he Borderline? Then, excess weight or over-stressing the joints could worsen the condition. The elbows are graded only if they are not considered to be normal. Did the stud get a grade on his elbows?

Yes. OFA is a rating based on what is seen of the structure in that picture, at that time. Injury, diet, stress, etc. can all impact bone changes. The point of OFA and researching the parents and grandparents is to stack the deck in your favor. Also following guidelines about feeding and excersize until the joints are fully formed helps.

You're right to see red flags there. Have any opf his previous pups developed joint problems? What about the dam? how about the sire's parents? What guarantee is the breeder offering? THese are all important things to think about.

I believe so. It's my understanding that OFA certification means there was no apparent predisposition to dysplasia. Repetitive stress on the joints before the dog is fully mature (too much exercise, excessive crating, stairs, etc) can create a predisposition to dysplasia. I'd imagine even stressing the joints after the dog fully matures around 2 years of age can aggravate a predisposition if it was there to begin with. OFA only checks for the predisposition, it is not a guarantee that the dog won't develop dysplasia later. I may be wrong because I don't breed, but I'd been told before that it's important to have the OFA recertified once in a while to make sure the joints are still good.

Although there will be some deterioration, wear, in hips and elbows over a life time?, if the dog has good hips and elbows, assuming he's been tested at the correct age and his growth is finished, I'd suggest that won't change. However I think this is one you might ask your vet about.

every medium-large dog has a higher chance for dysplasia than a small dog. no matter what type of certification a dog has, its notr going to be a sure fire prevention against diseases or dysplasia

NO.......the whole POINT is to view & rate the CORRECT assembly!

That's genetic,not environmental.