Dogs and eye checks

A dog's eyes are examined under dilation by a veterinary ophthalmologist, and the findings are recorded on a form that goes to a registry. In the United States the registry is the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA), which took over the former CERF scheme. The record matters because several eye conditions in pedigree dogs are inherited, and a breeder who wants to reduce them needs results that can be compared across litters and generations.

What an eye examination for dogs actually records

The examination is not a general check of vision. A veterinary ophthalmologist examines the structures of the eye, usually after dilating the pupil, and notes anything abnormal on a standard form. The form is sent to the OFA, which issues a certificate and enters the result in its database. The owner receives a copy; the registry keeps the record.

Three things are worth separating. First, the examination itself: what the clinician sees on the day. Second, the registry entry: what the OFA holds, and what a buyer or another breeder can look up. Third, the interpretation: what the finding means for breeding. A result can be normal, or it can list a specific condition. Some findings are described as breeder option, which means the registry reports them but leaves the breeding decision to the owner and the clinician.

Dilation matters because several conditions sit behind the pupil or at the periphery of the retina and are missed without it. Gonioscopy, which examines the drainage angle of the eye, is a separate procedure used in breeds where glaucoma is a concern. A certificate can be replaced if it is lost, and the registry holds the underlying record.

For a breeder working in the United States, the practical detail of forms, codes and registries is set out in guides such as this overview of canine eye certification, which covers the OFA form, the move from CERF to OFA, and the codes used for conditions including PPM, PRA and CEA. The same source notes that ACVO and ECVO results are not automatically interchangeable, so a dog examined abroad may need a fresh examination for a United States registry entry.

Which inherited eye conditions are recorded?

Several conditions appear repeatedly in pedigree dogs, and each has its own pattern of inheritance and its own age of onset.

Cataract: an opacity in the lens. Some forms are inherited, some follow injury or diabetes, and the age at which it appears is part of the assessment. A dog can be clear at two years and affected at six, which is why retesting matters.

Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA): a group of conditions in which the retina degenerates over time. Different genes are involved in different breeds, and DNA tests exist for several of them. A DNA test and an eye examination answer different questions: the DNA test identifies a carrier or an affected genotype, while the examination records what is visible in the eye now.

Collie eye anomaly (CEA): a developmental condition affecting the choroid and retina, seen mainly in collie breeds and their crosses. Severity varies widely, from a mild change with no effect on vision to a detached retina.

Entropion and ectropion: the eyelid rolls inward or outward. Both can irritate the surface of the eye, and both have a breed predisposition. They are recorded at examination and can be corrected surgically, though the record of the finding remains.

Nuclear sclerosis: a hardening of the lens nucleus that comes with age. It is often confused with cataract by owners because both make the lens look cloudy, but nuclear sclerosis is a normal ageing change and does not usually affect vision in the same way.

How does a breeder plan retests across a dog's life?

A single clear result at one year does not cover a dog's whole breeding life, because several conditions develop later. Breeders commonly work to an annual cycle: examine breeding stock each year, and time the examination so that the certificate is current when a mating is planned. A dog used at stud repeatedly will accumulate a series of results, and the sequence is more informative than any single entry.

The annual cycle also has a practical side. Ophthalmologists are not available everywhere, and many work through clinics held at dog shows, where appointments are limited and booked in advance. A breeder who needs a result before a particular mating has to plan around that calendar rather than assume an appointment is available at short notice.

Cost is part of the planning. Examination fees vary by clinic and by region, and a breeder with several dogs is paying for each one, each year. Some breeders pass the cost through the price of a puppy; others treat it as a fixed overhead. Either way, it is a recurring cost rather than a one-off.

What should a buyer ask for?

A buyer of a pedigree puppy can ask to see the eye certificates of both parents, and the certificates should be current rather than several years old. The registry entry can be checked against the certificate, which matters because a certificate can be presented without its context.

It is reasonable to ask how many litters the dam has had, and whether the sire has been examined in the last year. A breeder who keeps records over several generations can show a pattern: which dogs were examined, what was found, and what was done about it. That pattern is more useful than a single clear result, because inherited eye disease can skip a generation or appear late.

A buyer should also understand what a certificate does not say. It records the state of the eye on the day of examination. It does not guarantee that a puppy will never develop an eye condition, and it does not replace a DNA test where one exists for the breed. The two kinds of information sit alongside each other.

Where the paperwork goes after the examination

The completed form goes to the OFA, which issues the certificate and holds the record. The owner keeps a copy. If the certificate is lost, the registry can supply a replacement, and the underlying result stays in the database.

For a breeder, the file is the working document. It holds the certificates, the dates, the codes recorded for each dog, and any DNA test results. When a stud dog is advertised, or a litter is offered, that file is what a buyer or another breeder will ask to see. Keeping it in order is not administrative decoration; it is the evidence that the breeding decisions were made on something more than assumption.

A note on scope

This article describes the position in the United States, where the OFA is the registry and the ACVO is the body of veterinary ophthalmologists. Other countries run their own schemes, and results are not automatically recognised across them. A breeder moving a dog between countries, or importing breeding stock, should check which registry the receiving country accepts before assuming an existing certificate will be entered.

Sources read for this page: ofa.org, read on 15 September 2026.