Our Commitment to Health

When selecting a program to buy your new family member from, understanding how they prioritize health is a must. Most breeders mention some form of health screening, however very few have a universal and defined testing standard with publicly available results. It is the most inconsistent aspect we see across other breeding programs, when it should be a top priority. Whether you choose to buy your new puppy from us or another breeder, we highly recommend reading through this page to ensure you know what to look for!

Understanding Hip Dysplasia & How to Combat It

First and foremost with Bernedoodles, making sure their hips are healthy is of the utmost importance. If you’ve never dealt with Canine Hip Dysplasia (CHD) or Osteoarthritis (OA), you’re lucky. It’s a disease that completely destroys a dogs mobility, and, sadly, is very common in Bernedoodles. We believe in doing everything we can to ensure our pups have the ability to run, play and be physically independent. To that point, you will not find another program that takes CHD as seriously as us.

Assuming they have the integrity to screen at all, breeding programs have a choice between two tests to measure hip dysplasia risk: through the Orthopedic Foundation For Animals (OFA) or through the University of Pennsylvania Hip Improvement Program (PennHip). The OFA test is repeatedly shown in scientific literature to have ZERO correlation with CHD prevalence when utilized for generational breeding. PennHip, on the other hand, has thirty years of research validating its efficacy in assessing dysplasia risk. From our research, we are the only Bernedoodle program that uses PennHip as the standard for ALL of our breeding dogs. Even the American Veterinary Medical Association (see quotes below) finds that standards like ours are the only effective way to decrease the prevalence of hip dysplasia in future generations.

“Many studies have shown that mating dogs with normal (excellent, good, or fair) hip joints by OFA standards will not produce all normal offspring. Rather, 18.8% to 72.7% of the offspring would have hip dysplasia by 2 years of age.”
“Results suggested that OFA scoring of HE radiographs underestimated susceptibility to osteoarthritis in dogs, which may impede progress in reducing or eliminating hip dysplasia through breeding.”
“Interestingly, tight hip joints as identified by the PennHIP DI (< 0.30) always corresponded to passing OFA scores; however, the converse was not true: passing OFA hip joint scores were associated with a wide range of hip joint laxity as suggested by the DIs, with most dogs having DIs in the osteoarthritis-susceptible range.”
“In the United States, hip joint scoring by the OFA has received the widest use; however, definitive reduction of the incidence of hip dysplasia has not been demonstrated over the years of the scoring system's use.”
“Our results confirmed that OFA scoring of an HE radiograph does not reveal the critical occult, passive hip joint laxity associated with osteoarthritis susceptibility.”
“Despite the long-term and widespread acceptance of this paradigm (OFA), we could identify no reports of studies in which the precise relationship (positive and negative predictive values) was examined between radiographic hip joint subluxation and the ultimate development of OA-HD.”
“Reliance on subjective scoring of the ventrodorsal HE radiograph of the canine pelvis resulted in failure to appreciate osteoarthritis susceptibility in 80% of the dogs in our study that were judged phenotypically normal by OFA standards.”

The Superiority of PennHip Over OFA

Every dog is born with a different level of connective tissue “looseness” in their hips. Research has shown this laxity is related to the onset and prevalence of osteoarthritis throughout a dog’s life. The looser the hip, the more problems a dog will have. Both PennHip and OFA aim to discern a dog’s hip tightness and associated CHD risk. The important difference between the two tests is the process by which they determine hip joint laxity, as well as the amount of information conveyed by the results. Simply put, PennHip takes an objective measurement that is compared to a universal database of results while all OFA offers is a subjective guestimate that is not correlated to any other findings. Let us explain.

PennHip is a time-tested, research-validated assessment involving the use of 3 separate radiographs to measure hip joint laxity. Tests can only be performed by veterinarians who are certified in the PennHip protocol, and require the dog to be anesthetized to ensure every radiograph is taken in the appropriate, standardized way. While immobile, the certified veterinarian takes three radiographic images of both hips. The first image is of the hip in an extended position, meaning the legs are pulled behind the dog’s hips, similar to when they are running. The second and third radiographs are of the hip in a neutral position, meaning the leg is directly below the hip as if the dog were standing, with two different forces applied. In the second image, the vet introduces a compressive force similar to gravity. In the third, the vet introduces a distraction force, pulling the leg away from the socket at a completely safe intensity. It is worth noting that these forces to the joint are standardized so that all measures maintain consistency and significant conclusions from the data can be made.

OFA testing on the other hand, is a qualitative method that scores the dog’s hip as either excellent, good, fair, borderline, mild, moderate or severe. The results are derived from the subjective evaluation of a single radiograph. There is no standardized protocol Veterinarians must follow when taking the radiograph, so the position of the dog is completely variable and is capable of influencing the results. There is no objective measurement taken from the x-rays, and their classification scale has not a single piece of scientific evidence, let alone peer-reviewed literature, correlating to CHD or arthritis. Beyond their protocol lacking consistency and any scientific basis, OFA does not require test results to be submitted to their database, making it easy for breeders to not disclose their dogs poor results and continue breeding anyway. Beyond the dishonesty that enables, voluntary submission of radiographs makes the OFA database completely bias, given that most people only opt to share positive results.

All of this taken into account, you might be asking, “Why would a program use anything other than PennHip? It’s a simple answer really. First, PennHip’s standard is stringent and hard to pass. Second, PennHip costs $800 while an OFA submission is only $35, and very few customers understand the difference in results. We believe paying a premium for accurate, useful testing is the only honest way to know our dogs are healthy and protect our puppies from such a horrible disease.

These three images are then sent to PennHip’s lab where specialists analyze them. They measure (once again MEASURE, not guess) the distance between the ball and socket of the joint in extension, compression and distraction. The resulting distraction index (DI), a final number between 0 and 1, objectively demonstrates the looseness of your dog’s hips, with 0 being extremely healthy (tight hips) and 1 being extremely unhealthy (loose hips). Because submission of results to PennHip’s database is automatic and mandatory, they have a reliable data set to compare a dog’s individual result against. This allows PennHip to quantify exactly how your dog stacks up against the entirety of the breed data, which allows us breeders to continue working towards the goal of decreasing prevalence of dysplasia by only breeding dogs that score above the average.

Embark DNA Testing

A simple way to guarantee puppies are healthy is to ensure they don’t inherit preventable diseases in the first place. Embark is a research-grade DNA genotyping platform developed by industry-leading scientists at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine that screens for over 200 genetic diseases. Every single one of our parents is screened through Embark and are free of all breed-relevant diseases (listed below).

Degenerative Myelopathy (DM)

Degenerative Myelopathy is an inherited progressive disease that affects the myelin sheath covering nerves of the spinal cord. This interferes with nerve function resulting in a loss of coordination in the hind limbs. Onset is typically between 8 and 14 years and there is sadly no cure for the disease. Every one of our dogs is either cleared of DM or a recessive carrier, meaning that their puppies will not inherit the disease.
Osteochondrodysplasia (Skeletal Dwarfism)

As a fetus, most of the bones of the body actually start as cartilage models of themselves. Over time, the cartilage is replaced with the bones that you (and your dog) are born with. Dogs affected with osteochondrodysplasia have a mutation in the SLC13A1 gene, which codes for a protein that transports minerals into the developing bone. Defects in this gene disrupt the cartilage to bone transition, leading to inappropriate skeletal development. Signs are first recognized in puppies, and there is no treatment for the disease.
Von Willebrand’s Disease (vWD)

Von Willebrand’s Disease is the most common inherited blood disorder in dogs. The disease is caused by a deficiency in von Willebrand Factor (vWF), a protein that helps platelets stick together and form clots to seal broken blood vessels. Although many dogs with vWD will never show outward signs of having the disease, it can have serious effects on others. In severe cases, dogs may experience spontaneous hemorrhages or excessive bleeding and bruising.
Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA)

Progressive Retinal Atrophy is a general term referring to conditions that cause a deterioration of the retina of the eye, eventually leading to blindness. The disease affects photoreceptors (cells that collect information about light) in the eye, called rods and cones. Rods gather information about light intensity and are the major contributors to night vision, as opposed to cones which distinguish color and function in daytime vision. In nearly all forms of PRA, the rod cells are affected first so the disease begins with night blindness and progresses to daytime blindness over time. Currently, there is no definitive treatment for PRA.
GM2 Gangliosidosis

A lysosome is a structure within the cell that digests and removes waste. When the lysosome cannot recycle waste properly, the waste accumulates and causes the cell to die. This form of lysosomal storage disease (gangliosidosis) is caused by buildup of a fatty substance known as ganglioside, especially in cells of the nervous system. As a result, affected dogs begin to display neurologic signs as puppies or young adults. There is no treatment aside from supportive care.
Neonatal Encephalopathy/Ataxia (NE)

Neonatal Encephalopathy is a neurologic disease in puppies caused by a genetic mutation first described in Poodles. Affected puppies are typically underweight from birth and require intensive nursing care. They can develop cerebellar signs (uncoordinated, difficulty with movement) and seizures. Very sadly, these puppies do not survive to adulthood.
Type I Intervertebral Disc Disease (IVDD)

IVDD is a back/spine issue that refers to a health condition affecting the discs that act as cushions between vertebrae. With Type I IVDD, affected dogs can have a disc event where it ruptures or herniates towards the spinal cord. This pressure on the spinal cord causes neurologic signs which can range from a wobbly gait to impairment of movement.