OFA Discount Programs for NCA Members

Announcement of OFA Discount Program

The NCA is promoting health testing on all Newfoundlands and the open reporting of results in the CHIC database that is administered by the OFA. To encourage NCA members to have their dogs' health status evaluated AND recorded, the NCA has entered into an agreement with the OFA to reduce the submission fee for cardiac, cystinuria and thyroid results IF the dog already has an OFA number. In most cases, this will be from a hip or elbow evaluation, but some members have submitted their early cardiac evaluations and received an OFA number. This would also qualify them for the discount on cystinuria and thyroid evaluations.

The goal of CHIC is to create a large database of dogs that have been tested or evaluated for a Parent-Club-determined group of health problems. For a Newfoundland to receive a CHIC number, the dog must have had hip, elbow, cardiac and cystinuria evaluations completed and submitted to the OFA for inclusion in their database. Clearance is not necessary to receive a CHIC number. This database is expected to be useful to breeders, buyers, parent clubs, researchers or anyone interested in monitoring the prevalence of certain canine diseases. Visit the CHIC website for more information on CHIC, its mission, goals, and benefits.

Because this is a benefit of membership in the Newfoundland Club of America, members must obtain a Submittal Form PRIOR to submitting their results to the OFA in order to obtain the discount. You can request your form by mail, phone, e-mail or fax. Please include your name and current address in your request to:

Beckie Stanevich
Rt 4, Box 238-AA
Grafton, WV 26354

(304) 265-4375
fax - (253) 322-2146

Upon receiving the Submittal Form, mail it, along with the forms required by the OFA and a check, to the OFA. Do NOT send OFA submissions to Ms. Stanevich. Each test result, if sent in individually, will be discounted half price, $7.50. If cystinuria and cardiac results are sent in together, it will be $7.50 for both. Thyroid results are sent directly to the OFA from the testing laboratory. To have these results recorded at the discount rate, the Submittal Form should be sent along with your OFA paperwork and blood sample to the OFA-approved testing lab of your choice. They will forward the results and the paperwork to the OFA.

Once you have submitted this information to the OFA, it will be accessible to the public via the OFA's website. If you have submitted hip and elbow X-rays or evaluations from other designated organizations, a cardiac clearance from a licensed veterinary cardiologist and the results of gene testing for cystinuria on an individual dog, this information will be transferred to the CHIC database and a CHIC number and certificate will be issued.

By using this program, you can save up to $30 per dog! We hope that you will utilize this program to help us add valuable Newfoundland health information to the OFA and CHIC databases!

DNA REBATE PROGRAM ANNOUNCED

The NCA Charitable Trust announces a rebate program to subsidize the submission of DNA to the DNA Repository.

The rebate of $20 per dog, which is the current cost, is for blood samples only; cheek swab submissions are not eligible. In addition, the program is limited to purebred Newfoundlands, registered with the AKC or any official registry recognized by the AKC, and to the first 500 rebate requests.

To apply for a rebate, duplicate the certificate sent by CHIC that verifies receipt of the blood sample. Send this copy, along with a self-addressed stamped envelope, to Kathy Paxton, 3101 Benjamin Drive, Taneytown, MD 21787-2755. Rebate checks will be issued to the owners listed on the certificates.

This program was proposed by the Health and Longevity Committee and is being funded by the Newfoundland Health Challenge.

DNA Submission to the CHIC Database

Instructions to submit DNA Samples

To update Health History on submitted dogs, email: chic@offa.org