The Plight Of The Purebred

[southerngirl]

Well, what *i* think a bulldog should be like,
or what the AKC thinks a bulldog should be like?

What ya'll(DTA) think not the stupid AKC who doesn't care about the dogs well being.

 

[tigerlily46514]

//"What ya'll(DTA) think not the stupid AKC who doesn't care about the dogs well being."//

I'd like to see the exxxxtremes bred out of that dog,
a smaller head, and more proportionate hips.
Dogs should be able to give birth.
I'd like to see some of this breed's most problematic features softened out, less wrinkles, a less tightly wound tail, a more natural shaped body, and a snout he can actually breathe through,
for starters.

 

[GEORGE'SDAD]

I agree with TL. I would like to see the breed go back to more of a "natural" look. Not a breed that needs help with things like breathing, giving birth, and has to have it's wrinkles cleaned almost daily to prevent infection.

 

[tigerlily46514]

<----high fives George'sDad...

 

[GEORGE'SDAD]

We as humans have completely obliterated and permanently tainted the k9 species by all of the selective breeding and inbreeding more than any other species of domestic animal ever...and we claim to "love" our dogs...sad.

 

[tigerlily46514]

Yeah, we humans have ruined a lot of breeds, and taken so many breeds to exxxtremes, somehow overlooking how those extremes impact the dog's life...which is, just like you said, nothing but sad.


I dunno, though, look what we did to cows....we've turned them into helpless mishapen odd creatures.....similar to what we've done to many dog breeds.
Same for pigs, it's stunning,
how rapidly, domesticated pigs---when let loose in the wild----mutate BACK into a more boarlike creature, in mere generations!!

I once saw some show, which said the same is true for dogs,
that if set a bunch of dogs loose into the wild,
within MERE GENERATIONs, the dog evolves back into a more dingo like dog again!!

 

[GEORGE'SDAD]

the only other domestic animal I can think of that even comes close to this is horses. That's why my family goes to BLM wild horse auctions to get the "purest" form of horses. And by "purest" the only way to describe them is to call them BLM horses or Mustangs.

 

[tigerlily46514]

lol, i have terrible habit of editting my posts like 5 times after i hit send cuz i never ever ever say anything right the first time....read my last post again.
Horses seem not that far off from their wild form, imo, generally, still able to run and graze and escape predators, like they were designed to be, from even 1000s of years ago......or am i wrong?

oh, do you mean racehorses? with their fragile lil legs?

 

[southerngirl]

Here is an intersting article on bulldogs it's a long read. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/27/magazine/can-the-bulldog-be-saved.html?pagewanted=all
Horses still have their wild instincts and hopefully always will. They have not been messed up like other animals.

 

[tigerlily46514]

woah, that is a heckuva article you found there, SG!

from SouthernGirl's link:
//"

“Inbreeding and other reckless breeding practices may not be as bloody as dogfighting or as painful to look at as puppy mills, but they may ultimately cause even more harm to the well-being of dogs,” he said."//​

​

there is not a member of DTA, who wouldn't protest a puppy mill or a dog fighting ring,
yet, lots of us humans might not always put a lot of thought into what the AKC beauty standards ARE doing to our dogs...

 

[tigerlily46514]

also from SG's article, i did not know this, hope it IS true, my heart lept a little with joy to read it:

//"

The breed is a rare bit of good news for the A.K.C., which is suffering a long-term decline in registrations."//​

​

wait, the part i am smiling about, is not that the extreme dog of a bulldog is gaining in popularity,
but that the power of the AKC may be waning?
could it be?? YAY!!

 

[tigerlily46514]

still reading that article, SG, just mesmerized with it all, the way one can't stop staring at a car accident...I had no idea, it is the bulldogs short face is why the dog overheats so easily,
and never knew bulldogs have trouble eating? and so many bulldogs die in airplanes that some airlines refuse to fly brachiocephalic dogs??
wow, big in-depth look at the breathing problems the smush face dogs face...


bold highlights are mine, not in article...

//"

“But what if the bulldog’s cute, short face isn’t good for its health?” I asked.​

“If you change the look of this dog, it’s not going to look like a bulldog,” she countered.​

I heard that again and again from bulldog breeders. At Westminster, a breeder from Mexico even conceded that bulldogs would “probably be healthier” with a longer snout.​

“So why not breed them that way?” I asked.​

“Because if you elongate the face, it becomes a different dog,” he said. “It won’t look like a bulldog anymore.”//​

 

[tigerlily46514]

Another interesting point, when someone above suggested the only way to help a breed's health would involve further narrowing the gene pool, which made no sense at all to me, but, i let it go, but, there are other ways to help a breed that IS falling apart...

//"

​

Sargan made reference to the Dalmatian, which was beset with kidney stones until it was crossbred with a single pointer and then backcrossed to Dalmatians.//​

 

[tigerlily46514]

More from SG's link:

//"

“But the B.C.A. hasn’t shown leadership on this issue, and the A.K.C. has its head in the sand and is desperately hoping that the attention that purebred health problems have received in England doesn’t translate to America.”..........................​

While the British Kennel Club, in addition to changing its breed standards, has banned the registration of puppies from closely related parents, the A.K.C. has refused to follow suit. ​

Wayne Pacelle, the Humane Society C.E.O., told me that if the A.K.C. and breed clubs won’t act, it’s inevitable that animal welfare groups will push for legal standards addressing inbreeding and the physical soundness and genetic health of dogs.​

“Breeding certainly has a place in the world of dogs, but this mania about achieving what’s considered a ‘perfect’ or desirable outward appearance rather than focusing on the physical soundness of the animal is one of the biggest dog-welfare problems in this country,” he said. “And the emotional and financial cost of these sick dogs to their owners is enormous.”//​

 

[southerngirl]

Gosh that was a long article I just finished reading it. I thought it was very interesting and learned a lot about this breed. It seems that if the A.K.C would step up and demand a healthier bulldog than healthier bulldogs would be breed cause these people want their dog to win so if the A.k.C picks the healthier bulldogs as the winners surly breeders will realize if they want to win they must breed a healthier dog.

 

[tigerlily46514]

Yeah, it was a fascinating read,
but a similar article could be written about SO SO MANY MANY BREEDS, not just the bulldog.
but tons of breeds are also in desperate need of some interventions...yet, the AKC does nothing...and too too many of our purebreds are falling apart.

 

[Dlilly]

You should check out the Pedigree Dogs Exposed blog. (ill get the link later) There are some pictures of a bulldog that isn't bred for looks, it can run and breathe like a normal dog, it was amazing!

There are dog owners on other forums who don't believe the Pedigree Dogs Exposed documentary, ot that how we are breeding for looks is causing health problems in dogs, and is wron. It drives me nuts!

I don't do agility with the AKC because I dont agree with how they run thing, and Im not leting Shiloh take the CGC test. I don't want to support them until they make some major changes.

I do think the AKC has too much power, and some days I think of it as evil.

 

[tigerlily46514]

but you know,
sadly,
the bottom line is almost always MONEY....and as long as humans will shell out $1,000s of dollars to buy a dog,
there WILL be someone cranking out litters of dogs, regardless of the dog's health or how the beauty standards imposed by AKC whims impact the dog's lifestyle.....
and the AKC will continue to rake in millions selling those registration papers so ppl can show their dog DID come from a small gene pool....

 

[tigerlily46514]

but we should also be concerned about the
overly rounded head of the KC cavalier, and what THAT whim of ours has done to that dog
and the exagerated sloped hip of recent GSD trends set by AKC
and the cancer-ridden golden retrievers
and the pekingnese, and so many of the brachiocephalic dogs who've been bred to extremes,
the now exaggerated dachsund of modern days
the increasingly common rage syndromes in some spaniels
giant schnauzers that become incontinent by age 2 years old
just a long long list of breeds that need some intervention.

 

[Amateur]

To Amateur,
//"But technically arent all these crosses just mutts anyways ?"//

When you say that, it almost sounds like you think being a mutt is somehow inferior in some way?? wha??
Mutts tend to be healthier, and tend to come from larger gene pools, than most inbred purebreds.
SHOW ME A BREED you think is NOT a mix of other breeds when it was originally designed by humans. All breeds are some mix of other breeds, and then, selectively mutated to the current form..

You misinterpreted my thought ... I was basically saying what you wrote after wards.
Even the dogs people pay thousands for are technically "mutts" just like my guys. Hence the Hybrid vigor comment.