Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/english-bulldogs-breeding-issues/

English bulldogs have been selectively bred for centuries, with the breed as we know it first being recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1886. This breeding has limited the dogs’ genetic pool and left them with increasing health problems. Now, veterinarians in the U.K. are urging people not to buy English bulldogs until more is done to mitigate these issues.

The Royal Veterinary College (RVC) recently investigated the prevalence of health issues among English bulldogs versus other dogs, finding that the breed had a higher incidence of more than half of common health issues, particularly those related to having a flat face. The RVC team says their study shows the importance of addressing an extreme body shape found in contemporary bulldogs. They’re encouraging people to keep these issues in mind and for breeders to favor a more moderate body shape that can help improve health.

Dr. Alison Skipper, study co-author and veterinary historian, says, “Around 1900, some bulldog breeders were already concerned that the exaggeration of ‘certain typical points’ was ‘intensifying predispositions to disease’ and producing ‘cripples and deformities’ with ‘a sadly shortened duration of life.’ This new research provides strong evidence that modern bulldogs remain troubled by many diseases linked to their body shapes, most of which have been recognized for more than a century. It confirms the need to follow the example of more responsible breeders who prioritize health in breeding decisions to improve the welfare of this popular and iconic breed in the future.”

To investigate the current health of the breed, the RVC team compared samples from 2,662 English bulldogs and 22,039 dogs of a different breed, focusing on each dog’s record of health issues over a one year period. With this information, the researchers found that English bulldogs were more than twice as apt to have had at least one issue. Of the 43 conditions found most commonly among all the dogs, the bulldogs were found to be at a higher risk of 24 of them, whereas there was only a lower risk of six of them.

The most common disorders found in the breed were skin fold dermatitis, cherry eye, protruding lower jaw, brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome, cysts between the toes, dry eye, and rolled inward eyelids. On the flip side, disorders less apt to be found among English bulldogs were retained baby teeth, fatty lumps, and dental disease.

It was also noted that the average age of the bulldogs skewed lower (2.7 years) than the other dogs (4.42 years). Additionally, only 9.7% of the bulldogs were over the age of 8, while 25.4% of the other dogs were.

The veterinarians say their findings demonstrate the need to address the higher incidence of health issues in these dogs by discouraging the type of breeding that contributes to them.

Dr. Dan O’Neill, the study’s lead author and associate professor in companion animal epidemiology at RVC, says, “Every dog deserves to be born with equal and good innate health by having a natural ability to breathe freely, blink fully, exercise easily, have healthy flat skin, mate and give birth. For breeds such as English bulldogs, where many dogs still have extreme conformations with poor innate health, the public have a huge role to play by demanding dogs with moderate and healthier conformations. Until then, prospective owners should ‘stop and think before buying a flat-faced dog.’”

The paper notes that if steps aren’t taken to address these breeding issues, the U.K. could join several other countries that have outright banned breeding English bulldogs.

The team says dogs with longer faces, smaller heads, and non-wrinkled skin would go a long way toward improving their health.

Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog