A stamp - Page 1

I am not a bragger, but I have never sent my dogs hips to Germany for an A stamp and I did send my female (a Ghandi/Cash vom Wildsteigerland granddaughter)xrays there. She received her A stamp and I am thilled. Someone told me they are much harder on hips in Germany than the OFA. Any comments on that? Or experience with that? Pat

"Someone told me they are much harder on hips in Germany than the OFA. Any comments on that? Or experience with that?" Wow, I don't wish to start a fight here, so I will explain what I know, and how I feel. Anyone who wants to add more descriptive language and perhaps recent case studies-please do so as I am always willing to listen. Pat, there is not much difference in the system as far as what constitutes hip dysplasie-that is where the two (2) entities are close in agreement. The "a" Normal stamp can cover the range of O.F.A. "Excellent", O.F.A. "Good" and possibly drift close to O.F.A. "Fair". There is no exact correlation to O.F.A, scores, moreso it is a rather loose interpretation. And vice-versa I should add. The "a" fast Normal is usually very near an O.F.A. "Fair" and the "a" noch Zugellassen is usually thought to be an O.F.A. "Borderline" or "Light Dysplasie". That is why many feel the S.V. is a bit more forgiving on the hips of lesser quality. And, once in a while one hears of a dog who at one (1) year of age was judged "a" noch Zugellassen, then tested a year later and judged O.F.A. "Good". Incidents such as this are rare, but they do undermine the faith that one places in either or both scoring systems. Please note the way I worded these nest two (2) sentences, as I intend for them to be interpreted with some room for possibilities. Hips that fail the O.F.A.'s minimum passing standard will possibly fail that of the S.V.. Hips that fail the S.V.'s minimum passing standard will most likely fail that of the O.F.A.. But look at it this way-One could argue with a bit of certainty that since the S.V. evaluates only GSD's that they probably have a better eye for the accurate judging of GSD's than does an organization such as the O.F.A. which examines all breeds. My experience? I have been able to predict hips that were later scored by both agencies with an accuracy of 90%-95% on my initial guess. So, if you really want to get an idea of an answer to your question, use both agencies. Regards, Bob-O

I live in ireland and want to get my dogs hips done threw the german system, does any one know a vet in ireland thet does this, my local vet does not, Not interested in BVA,

You can go to the SV website...hopefully someone can read it and get all the information on how to submit the xrays.They are very picky about what you need on the xrays so read it carefully. Your vet should be able to do the xrays, but must have the proper information on them. Pat

Dude, I can only advise you what to do for Stateside or German matters. I know nothing about Ireland's kennel clubs so I cannot advise you there. Perhaps you should find some fellow GSD owners/clubs there and inquire of them. But I will say this. You can become a member of the S.V. and obtain the application forms from them. Membership is not cheap of course, but being a member allows you to send the radiographs directly to them. I think that Ireland is a participating country in the "a" Stamp programme, but I am not sure. The S.V. membership spplication can be found here: https://www.schaeferhunde.de/site/index.php?id=573 With membership you get the magazine and other perks. If you have several dogs to evaluate it is by far the least expensive way to do this. If you are not a member of the S.V. then you MUST use the interim services of a kennel club that is recognized by the S.V. For us living Stateside that is the U.S.c.A. or the G.S.D.C.A.-W.D.A.. Best Regards, Bob-O