Page 11 - Clinical Connections - Summer 2022

Research News

DESIGNER DOGS’ WELFARE awareness of these severe health problems, BULLDOG HEALTH
THREAT the full scale of the health crisis in pugs has
not been fully appreciated until now. RVC research has revealed that English
An RVC-led study has revealed rapidly To address this knowledge gap, the study, bulldogs have lower health overall and are
rising demand for designer crossbreed led by the RVC’s VetCompass programme, more likely to suffer from certain health
dogs in the UK and identified some key compared the health of random samples conditions, particularly those related to
factors driving popularity – including of 4,308 pugs with 21,835 non-pugs. being flat-faced, than other dogs. As such,
beliefs that they are more hypoallergenic, Information on all disorders recorded in the breed remains compromised by major
generally healthy, easy to train and each dog over a single year was extracted. health risks.
good with children, which could be Overall, pugs were 1.9 times more likely to English bulldogs have risen sharply in
misconceptions. The study suggests that have one or more disorders in a year than popularity in the UK over the past decade.
the increased demand poses a significant non-pugs. However, the breed’s distinctive and
risk to the health and welfare of these Compiling a list of the 40 most common exaggerated short muzzle, protruding lower
dogs due to high demand leading to poor disorders across pug and non-pug groups, jaw and stocky body is linked to several
breeding and to buyers unintentionally pugs had higher risk of 23 (57.5%) disorders serious health and welfare issues, including
supporting puppy farming and illegal compared with lower risk of only seven breathing problems, skin and ear diseases
importation of underage pups. (17.5%) disorders. BOAS was the disorder and eye disorders. Sadly, many of the
The team comprised of researchers from with the highest risk in pugs, with the breed’s problematic characteristics such as
the RVC, the University of Nottingham and breed almost 54 times more likely to have a flat face, deep facial skin folds and noisy
an independent consultant. They used the condition. This reflects the common breathing are often perceived as ‘normal’ or
the online Pandemic Puppies Survey to respiratory difficulties experienced by even ‘desirable’ novelties rather than major
canvas nearly 6,300 owners across the UK brachycephalic breeds. welfare issues.
who acquired a puppy between 2019 and The study findings indicate that urgent
2020, including 1,575 owners of designer Research paper: O’Neill et al. (2022) ‘Health of action is required to reduce the high rate of
crossbreeds. The five most common Pug Dogs in the UK: disorder predispositions and health issues related to the extreme body
designer crossbreeds purchased were protections’, Canine Medicine and Genetics shape typically seen in English bulldogs
the Cockapoo, Labradoodle, Cavapoo, if the breed’s future is to be protected.
Sprocker and Goldendoodle. It is hoped that these research findings
The team previously documented a will discourage purchasing of English
significant increase in designer crossbreed bulldogs overall as well as also promoting
ownership during the pandemic, rising from a shift towards public acceptance of more
fewer than one in five puppies in 2019 moderate conformation with improved
being a designer crossbreed (18.8%), to innate health.
over one in four puppies in 2020 (26.1%). The RVC’s VetCompass programme
compared the health of random samples
Research paper: Burnett, E., Brand, C.L., O’Neill, of 2,662 English bulldogs and 22,039 other
D.G. et al (2022) ‘How much is that doodle in the dogs to extract information on disorders
window? Exploring motivations and behaviours of UK recorded in each dog over a single year.
owners acquiring designer crossbreed dogs (2019-
2020)’, Canine Medicine and Genetics Overall, English bulldogs were more
than twice as likely to have one or more
PERVASIVE PUG PROBLEMS disorders annually than other dogs. From
a list of 43 common disorders across both
An RVC study suggests urgent action groups, English bulldogs were at a higher
is needed as the health of pugs in the risk of suffering from 24 out of the 43
UK is now significantly worse than non- disorders – and a lower risk of just six.
pugs. Pugs are almost twice as likely to
be diagnosed with one or more disorders O’Neill et al. (2021) ‘English Bulldogs in the UK: a
annually than other dogs. These findings VetCompass study of their disorder predispositions
suggest urgent action is required to reduce and protections’, Canine Medicine and Genetics
the breed’s high rate of health risks.
The pug has become extremely popular, Infographics related to news pieces
with a five-fold increase in Kennel Club on this page can be downloaded from
registrations from 2005 to 2017. However, the following link: https://www.rvc.ac.uk/
there is growing concern over health issues vetcompass/audio-visual-resources/
stemming from the breed’s flat face, bulging research-infographics.
eyes, wrinkled skin and tendency towards
obesity – characteristics often considered
‘cute’ by the public. While there is growing

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