What is CAER?

The purpose of the OFA Companion Animal Eye Registry (CAER) is to provide breeders with information regarding canine eye diseases so that they may make informed breeding decisions in an effort to produce healthier dogs. CAER certifications will be performed by board certified (ACVO) veterinary ophthalmologists. Regardless of whether owners submit their CAER exam forms to the OFA for “certification,” all CAER exam data is collected for aggregate statistical purposes to provide information on trends in eye disease and breed susceptibility. Clinicians and students of ophthalmology as well as interested breed clubs, individual breeders and owners of specific breeds will find this useful.

Eye Evaluation Criteria | What to Expect
OFA Eye Certification examinations are screening exams performed by board certified veterinary ophthalmologists. The exams can take place either in the veterinary office or at a special clinic held in conjunction with another event (such as a dog show).

Bring your dog’s information to the exam so the exam form may be completed properly. Required information includes: registration number, owner’s name and contact information, dog’s registered name, date of birth, sex, breed/variety, and if applicable, permanent identification (via microchip or tattoo).

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The exam is performed 30 to 40 minutes after pupil-dilating drops are placed in the eyes. The Eye Certification exam consists of indirect ophthalmoscopy and slit lamp biomicroscopy. It is not a comprehensive ocular health examination, but rather an eye screening exam.

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For example, Eye Certification exams do not entail measuring tear production, staining the eyes for the presence of corneal ulcers, or measuring intraocular pressures. Gonioscopy, tonometry, Schirmer tear test, electroretinography, and ultrasonography are not routinely performed; thus, dogs with goniodysgenesis, glaucoma, keratoconjunctivitis sicca, early lens luxation/subluxation or some early cases of progressive retinal atrophy might not be detected without further testing.

 

If a serious ocular health problem (such as glaucoma) is suspected during the Eye Certification exam, the examiner will recommend a more comprehensive ocular examination. The diagnoses obtained during an OFA Companion Animal Eye Registry exam refer only to the observable phenotype (clinical appearance) of an animal. Thus it is possible for a clinically normal animal to be a carrier (abnormal genotype) of genetic abnormalities.

 

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