The two required health tests are hip x-rays and MDR1.

Both the sire and dam are required to have a hip x-ray to screen for hip dysplasia, unless they have had an injury that makes such evaluation impossible. This x-ray must be submitted to a nationally or internationally recognized diagnostic service (such as OFA or PennHIP) and the results must be sent to the ESCR before the litter listing is posted. If such evaluation is impossible because of an injury, documentation of the injury by a veterinarian should be sent to ESCR instead. Information about canine hip dysplasia can be found at the English Shepherd Club Breed and Breeder website (http://www.escbreederinfo.com/) under the “Health Testing” option of the “Planning/Breeding” tab.

Information about MDR1 can be found at the Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine website (http://vcpl.vetmed.wsu.edu/). If your English Shepherd is not clear for the MDR1 mutation based on pedigree as recorded in the English Shepherd Club Registry, you will need to get your dog tested for the mutation and submit results to the ESCR. However, if official MDR1 test results are available for your dog’s sire and dam but have not been sent in to the ESCR, you may obtain those instead and send them in. Please note that this exemption only applies if both the sire and dam of your dog have been tested, not if one or both of them are clear by pedigree.