Bulldog breeding ban urged

[Edwin]

Quote:
"Males and females with the flattest faces, biggest shoulders and smallest hips are mated to produce the purest possible offspring.

But according to many vets this creates dogs with HEALTH DEFECTS THAT WOULD NEVER HAVE SURFACED THROUGH NATURAL SELECTION."

Link:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/real_story/3797783.stm

[mykee]

Ok, then lets stop breeding danes; years taken off their lives just to be big.
dalmations; deafness from inbreeding.
shar pei's; respiratory defects.
pugs; same as shar pei's.
dogue de bordeaux, most mastiffs; all of the above.
Sealyham Terriers; brittle bones and bad backs.
The list goes on. Inbreeding occurs in nature, plain and simple, and these problems would eventually occur, just over a longer period of time.

[meow_mix450]

not just dogs they should probly just stop breeding fish such as parrots(sp), birds, reptiles.....stop breeding all together! Its just really stupid i think.

Meow

[mykee]

Really, aside from health problems, most dogs are bred for look, as well as temperment. Do you really think that a Pembroke Welsh Corgi would have a big-dog body on 2 inch legs if it were up to them?

[Linds]

Originally posted by mykee
Inbreeding occurs in nature, plain and simple, and these problems would eventually occur, just over a longer period of time.

I'm gonna have to disagree on that one. The only reasons these problems surface in captivity are because natural selection has been taken away. In nature only the strongest specimens survive and breed, this is a complete impossibility in captivity. In nature, weak animals are weeded out continuously, whereas in captivity they are not. Even those that breed seemingly fit animals, cannot tell if there is any underlying problems with the animals, as well as many people do not even care. In nature the inbreeding evolves animals, in captivity it can be a volatile situation.

[mykee]

Touche.

[Pixie]

Not only have we gotten rid of the natural selection process that Linds pointed out. The different dog breeds we see today exist because we've been purposely selecting abnormal/faulty genes to create different looks and purposes in dogs.

I've had a bulldog growing up and absolutely LOVE the breed. Unfortunately, almost all of them suffer from defects or ailments due to their physical stature. My "Walter" had a weird and rare skin disorder, asthma and epilepsy. He couldn't run more than a few paces before running out of breath but I'm sure he would have wanted to.

I do understand why they are trying to stop this breed from continuing its line in this way. It's not fair to the animals to be produced and have to live with restrictions and ailments due to the deformities we have turned them into for our enjoyment.

When we speak of breeding reptiles, don't we strive to breed the healthy ones and avoid those with bad genes as to not pass them on any further? It's only fair that other animals be accorded the same respect.

It's hard for us to let go and not be selfish. I still love bulldogs and had always hoped to have another one day but this article opened my eyes and is definitely making me rethink that idea.

I doubt this would happen to other breeds like Mykee suggested. It's one thing to have a deformity that is more common in one breed and another to have breathing problems even if you don't have any other defects.

Pixie