Loading health guide
Health Testing Guide
Which tests are mandatory, how to spot responsible breeders — and what it costs when things go wrong.
For the Thai Ridgeback we've compiled 4 tests required by Club für Exotische Rassehunde e.V. and 1 additionally recommended test, drawn from breed-club regulations, the University of PEI (CIDD), and OMIA — weighted by severity and heritability.
View verified breedersWhat this grade means
In the Thai Ridgeback, breed-typical risks exist for congenital dermoid sinus as well as joint disorders such as hip dysplasia (HD) and elbow dysplasia (ED). The Club für Exotische Rassehunde e.V. prescribes for breeding approval that parent animals must be free of dermoid sinus, have an HD rating from A to C (C only mated with A or B), ED 0 to 2, and patellar luxation (PL) from 0 to 1, and undergo a dental and bite evaluation. Responsible breeders additionally test for progressive retinal atrophy, with carriers only permitted to be mated with clear partners. Before purchasing a puppy, insist on seeing the complete official certificates for dermoid sinus, HD, ED, and PL of the parent animals.
Every breed is susceptible to certain inherited conditions. Just like humans, dogs inherit predispositions from their parents. Responsible breeders screen their breeding dogs for these conditions and make informed mating decisions to reduce the risk passed on to puppies.
No — but it's the strongest tool we have. Diet, exercise, environment, and genetics all contribute to whether a dog develops a condition. When breeders use the right tests to identify risk in potential parents, the likelihood of many conditions appearing in the puppies drops significantly.
There's no one-size-fits-all here. For the Thai Ridgeback, Club für Exotische Rassehunde e.V. requires 4 tests for breeding approval, plus 1 additional recommended test. The specific tests and passing thresholds are detailed further below.
Keep in mind
Reliable screening tests still don't exist for many hereditary conditions, and tests for complex polygenic conditions don't always predict severity in the puppies. Even so, they're a powerful tool of responsible breeding.
There are two main types of health tests:
Screen the dog's DNA for known disease-causing mutations. Can be performed from puppyhood and give a binary result (clear / carrier / affected).
Clinical and imaging exams like X-ray, ultrasound, or ophthalmoscopy. They show how a predisposition actually manifests — usually only conclusive after 12–18 months.
We group breeding programs into three levels based on testing depth. Ask your breeder directly which level they meet.
A breeder at the Great level meets the Good level and performs 1 additional clinically recommended screening that reduces risk in this breed.
In addition to Good:
Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA)(PRA)
Augen
Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) is an inherited eye disease that affects the retina, which is the light-sensitive layer of tissue at the back of the eye. In this condition, the specialized cells responsible for detecting light, known as photoreceptors, gradually degenerate and die. Because these cells cannot recover or be replaced, the disease slowly but inevitably leads to complete blindness.
Passing: clear or carrier
Not health tests, but required for breeding: the club asks for these results too. They don't count toward the risks or the rating.
DNA-Identitätsnachweis
Required by Club für Exotische Rassehunde e.V.
Acceptable result: DNA-Profil eingereicht
Dental and bite evaluation
Required by Club für Exotische Rassehunde e.V.
Acceptable result: Bestimmung des Zahnstatus mittels CER-Zahnschema
These levels are a comparison framework, not an official certification. They help compare breeding programs at a glance.
A complete checklist with every core-standard and additionally recommended test, plus identity and rearing questions — take it with you.
Open the full checklistFor breeders
Machine-readable mating rules, minimum ages, scoring schemes, and what's required for HonestDog verification — as a printable guide.
Example rule — Elbow Dysplasia
Both parents must be ED 0–2 or better.
We take mandatory tests from official breed regulations, build the recommended health standard from veterinary databases — and cross-check every uploaded certificate against the dog's profile using AI.
L1 = core standard: the club's required tests where its rules set them, otherwise the recommended health standard for the breed. L2 = additionally recommended or clinically indicated. L3 = lower prevalence. Every assignment carries a source and confidence rating.
VDH breeding regulations, CIDD (University of PEI), OMIA (University of Sydney), curated veterinary input.
Uploaded certificates are read by AI and checked for date, result, and consistency with the dog's profile — our team reviews anything inconclusive.
Not every dog of this breed is affected to the same degree – but these extreme-breeding traits are part of the Thai Ridgeback's breed type: Ridge & dermoid sinus. How strongly an individual dog is affected depends on breeding choices. What to look out for is explained on the linked pages.
Self-check
Answer 6 quick questions about your everyday life and see how well the Thai Ridgeback fits you — including an honest cost estimate per month, per year, and across the dog's lifetime.
See breeders who have already uploaded their health test results for verification.
View verified breeders