Pembroke Welsh Corgi: health-screening sources

Key facts

Statement date

5 November 2014 [source]

Hip routes

OFA or PennHIP [source]

Eye examiner

ACVO ophthalmologist [source]

What the published PWCCA statement says

The Pembroke Welsh Corgi Club of America’s November 2014 statement recommends hip assessment by OFA or PennHIP and examination by an ACVO ophthalmologist, with results registered through OFA or the historical CERF pathway. It identifies these as the CHIC requirements in that statement. This should be attributed to the named source and date. The Cardigan’s separate American club lists additional genetic topics, but its list cannot be substituted for the Pembroke statement simply because both breeds are Welsh Corgis.

A CHIC number means public completion, not universal normality

OFA explains that CHIC certification requires completion of the breed-specific tests and release of the results into the public database. The number itself does not mean every finding was normal. Requirements can also change without existing CHIC numbers being revoked, so the examination history behind a number remains important. When considering a litter, read the parents’ actual hip and eye results, the dates and permanent identification rather than treating the existence of a single CHIC identifier as a complete health guarantee.

Screening and wider veterinary decisions remain separate

The hip assessment is an imaging-based evaluation; it is not an observation that a dog happens to run comfortably. The eye examination records clinical findings at a particular time, and OFA eye certification has a twelve-month validity period. Other family history or test information can still be relevant even when it is not named in a short parent-club statement. For example, UC Davis identifies the Pembroke among breeds with clinically associated SOD1-related DM, while explaining incomplete penetrance. That does not rewrite PWCCA’s published list; it illustrates why a list of required scheme records and an individual dog’s wider veterinary discussion answer different questions.

Common questions

Sources & further reading

References for this guide. Rules and services can change; check the responsible organisation for current details.

• Pembroke Welsh Corgi parent-club health statement (opens in a new tab)
• OFA: CHIC certification and limits (opens in a new tab)
• OFA: Companion Animal Eye Registry scope (opens in a new tab)
• UC Davis VGL: degenerative myelopathy test scope (opens in a new tab)

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