Can't we all just get along? The health testing and sharing of information is supposed to be for the betterment of the breeds we all love, but now two 'governing' bodies seem to be at war.
If you send your information to OFA, they won't send it to CERF so the fact that your dog had an eye exam, and the results, will not be posted on the CERF website. If you submit your info to CERF they will continue to process the information and send weekly updates to OFA to post to your dog's OFFA page.
Basically the bottom line for us is the new OFFA form. While it does not allow a lot of room for your information, there are no more of those darn circles to fill in. We just had 18 CERF exams completed at the Kansas City show yesterday. We have other forms from earlier CERFs that we still need to send in. So, next week when I send in 35+ CERF forms, I WILL BE INCLUDING A LETTER TO THE CERF PEOPLE, EXPLAINING THAT WE WILL BE LEAVING CERF AND GOING TO OFFA IF CERF DOES NOT ENTER THE 21ST CENTURY AND GET RID OF THESE RIDICULOUS FORMS!
From the OFFA website:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
OFA AND ACVO ESTABLISH NEW EYE CERTIFICATION REGISTRY
AND CLINICAL DATABASE FOR OPHTHALMIC DIAGNOSES
Columbia, Missouri, Friday, August 31, 2012 - The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA)
and the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists (ACVO) are pleased to announce the
establishment of a new joint Eye Certification Registry (ECR) and Clinical Database for
Ophthalmic Diagnoses (CDOD) effective November 1, 2012. Together, the ECR and CDOD
will be important tools to monitor canine inherited eye conditions and reduce their incidence.
OFA Eye Certification Registry exams are ophthalmic examinations, performed by ACVO
Diplomates, to assess dogs for the presence or absence of observable hereditary ocular disease.
Dogs with normal exam results will receive OFA eye certification numbers valid for one year.
Eye Certifications are an important part of the routine health screening practiced by responsible
dog breeders to produce healthy puppies. Recognizing that animals presenting for a Certification
Exam represent a biased population of primarily normal dogs, the CDOD will capture aggregate
statistics regarding disease prevalence for those animals presented to ACVO Diplomates in
private and institutional clinical practices.
The OFA currently maintains the world’s largest online database of canine health screening
results. The addition of eye exam results will enhance the value of this important toolset for
responsible breeders to make more informed breeding decisions to reduce the incidence of
inherited disease. For informed puppy buyers, the database provides documentation of a
breeder’s health screening efforts.
A portion of the proceeds from all OFA eye registrations will be donated to the ACVO Vision for
Animals Foundation to support research leading to the elimination of ocular diseases causing
vision loss and suffering in animals.
For more information please visit the OFA website at www.offa.org
CONTACT:
Eddie Dziuk
OFA, Columbia, MO
(573) 442-0418 x222
edziuk@offa.org
www.offa.org
Founded in 1966, the OFA is a not-for-profit foundation with the mission to promote the health and welfare of
companion animals through a reduction in the incidence of genetic disease. The ACVO promotes excellence in
veterinary ophthalmology through advanced training, certification, research and education.
###
FROM THE CERF WEBSITE:
October 25, 2012
If you send your information to OFA, they won't send it to CERF so the fact that your dog had an eye exam, and the results, will not be posted on the CERF website. If you submit your info to CERF they will continue to process the information and send weekly updates to OFA to post to your dog's OFFA page.
Basically the bottom line for us is the new OFFA form. While it does not allow a lot of room for your information, there are no more of those darn circles to fill in. We just had 18 CERF exams completed at the Kansas City show yesterday. We have other forms from earlier CERFs that we still need to send in. So, next week when I send in 35+ CERF forms, I WILL BE INCLUDING A LETTER TO THE CERF PEOPLE, EXPLAINING THAT WE WILL BE LEAVING CERF AND GOING TO OFFA IF CERF DOES NOT ENTER THE 21ST CENTURY AND GET RID OF THESE RIDICULOUS FORMS!
From the OFFA website:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
OFA AND ACVO ESTABLISH NEW EYE CERTIFICATION REGISTRY
AND CLINICAL DATABASE FOR OPHTHALMIC DIAGNOSES
Columbia, Missouri, Friday, August 31, 2012 - The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA)
and the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists (ACVO) are pleased to announce the
establishment of a new joint Eye Certification Registry (ECR) and Clinical Database for
Ophthalmic Diagnoses (CDOD) effective November 1, 2012. Together, the ECR and CDOD
will be important tools to monitor canine inherited eye conditions and reduce their incidence.
OFA Eye Certification Registry exams are ophthalmic examinations, performed by ACVO
Diplomates, to assess dogs for the presence or absence of observable hereditary ocular disease.
Dogs with normal exam results will receive OFA eye certification numbers valid for one year.
Eye Certifications are an important part of the routine health screening practiced by responsible
dog breeders to produce healthy puppies. Recognizing that animals presenting for a Certification
Exam represent a biased population of primarily normal dogs, the CDOD will capture aggregate
statistics regarding disease prevalence for those animals presented to ACVO Diplomates in
private and institutional clinical practices.
The OFA currently maintains the world’s largest online database of canine health screening
results. The addition of eye exam results will enhance the value of this important toolset for
responsible breeders to make more informed breeding decisions to reduce the incidence of
inherited disease. For informed puppy buyers, the database provides documentation of a
breeder’s health screening efforts.
A portion of the proceeds from all OFA eye registrations will be donated to the ACVO Vision for
Animals Foundation to support research leading to the elimination of ocular diseases causing
vision loss and suffering in animals.
For more information please visit the OFA website at www.offa.org
CONTACT:
Eddie Dziuk
OFA, Columbia, MO
(573) 442-0418 x222
edziuk@offa.org
www.offa.org
Founded in 1966, the OFA is a not-for-profit foundation with the mission to promote the health and welfare of
companion animals through a reduction in the incidence of genetic disease. The ACVO promotes excellence in
veterinary ophthalmology through advanced training, certification, research and education.
###
FROM THE CERF WEBSITE:
January 24, 2013
Dear valued CERF client,
As you may already know, OFA’s new registry went live on November 1st. CERF is NOT affiliated with their new system, nor have we partnered with them or been acquired by OFA. There is no “transition plan” in place. CERF and OFA are two different systems, and we are now competing for your valued business.
CERF will continue to operate independently as we have done in the past. We’re not planning on closing the doors anytime soon. We have the longest history and greatest experience with operating an established canine eye registration database.
You still have the right to use a CERF form and submit your data to CERF, if you so choose. I sincerely hope that you continue to do so. If you sign an OFA “release form”, they will attempt to add your information into the new, unproven OFA registry. It will NOT be added to CERF if you sign this form. There is no “combined registry” or “transition” from one registry to the other.
I urge you to request an original CERF form, make your check payable to CERF, and avoid signing any type of “release form” from OFA.
If you are given an OFA form in place of a CERF form and your intent is still to use CERF, you may still send in that form for registration into the CERF registration and statistical database. Please note on the form that you wish to add the registration paperwork to CERF’s database and make the payment payable to CERF. Any OFA forms received by CERF with payment to OFA will be returned back to the owner.
CERF has not changed any procedures on our part. We still continue to send a weekly submission to OFA so our breeders can qualify for their CHIC number.
CERF is now accepting forms via email and fax for your added convenience. Please contact CERF and let us know your email address to facilitate future communications.
If you have any suggestions for how we can serve you better, please feel free to contact me at any time. Thank you for your continued support of CERF.
Check us out on Face Book and visit our website often for any further updates.
Sincerely,
Robert Malinowski, DVM, PhDPresident, VMDB/CERF
October 25, 2012
Dear CERF Breeder,
I would like to take this opportunity to share with you some updates on CERF. There seems to be a lot of misinformation floating around out there, so I’m hoping this letter will clarify a few things.
Despite what you may be hearing, CERF is NOT going away, nor have we partnered with or been acquired by OFA. We are still an independent group, having the longest history and greatest experience with operating a canine eye registration database.
OFA is moving in their own direction, creating their own new registry that will be operational starting November 1st. CERF is not affiliated with this new system.
You still have a choice! You can continue to request CERF examinations when making appointments with your ACVO Ophthalmologist. Utilizing CERF will guarantee that your data will be added to the largest, most established registry currently available. We need your help to ensure that this valuable resource doesn’t disappear.
Beware of deceptive practices! Signing a “release form” and making your check payable to someone other than CERF will add your data to the OFA registry. It will not be added to the CERF registry if you sign their release form. There is no “combined registry”. CERF and OFA are two independent systems.
I would certainly like to continue working with everyone that has supported CERF in the past as we navigate this complicated situation. I greatly appreciate everyone that continues to support CERF. Only through your continued efforts is CERF able to collect data and provide these valuable services.
Please feel free to contact me at any time if you have any concerns or suggestions.
Thank you for your continued support,
Robert Malinowski, DVM, MA
President, VMDB/CERF
