The health of pedigree dogs is being put at risk by breeders seeking “fashionable” characteristics, an independent report said on Thursday, calling for widespread changes to breeding practices.
The report, the conclusion of a 10 month-inquiry into dog breeding, also said dangerous dog laws should be changed to apply to all dogs shown to be dangerous rather than just specified breeds and to tackle the problem of dogs being bred and reared as weapons for fighting.
“Many breeders exercise high standards of welfare, but negligent management on puppy farms is a major welfare issue as is inbreeding in pure-bred dogs,” said the Zoological Society of London’s president, Patrick Bateson, who carried out the inquiry.
“Fashions for extreme conformations are also a cause of welfare problems,” he said.
Bateson said the practices of using small numbers of successful show dogs for breeding purposes and selective breeding of close relatives to achieve desired characteristics was having a negative impact on the welfare of pedigree dogs.
More than 85 percent of bulldogs cannot give birth naturally as their puppies’ heads are too large, he said, while a fashion for small heads in King Charles spaniels mean many suffer from a disorder in which their brain grows beyond the size of their skull, causing pain and fits.
The report recommended an advisory panel be set up to develop breeding strategies that tackle such problems of inherited disease and inbreeding, while scientific advice should be made available to breeders and owners, with rewards for breeders who deliver high welfare standards.
The inquiry was commissioned by the Kennel Club, which runs the Crufts dog show, and the Dogs Trust charity last year following a BBC documentary that highlighted concerns about pedigree breeding practices.
, after which BBC pulled out of a long-standing arrangement to televise the annual Crufts show.
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), an animal charity that also withdrew support for Crufts, welcomed the report’s recommendations and said it hoped urgent action would now be taken to ensure changes are enforced.
“The world has woken up to the extremely unpalatable truth that the health and welfare of many pedigree dogs is seriously compromised as a result of the way they are bred,” RSPCA veterinary adviser Mark Evans said. “Pedigree dogs need our help.”
The report also raised concerns about large commercial breeding centers or “puppy farms,” recommending greater regulation of breeders and more information for the public about what questions to ask and what to look for when buying a dog.
In a joint statement, the Kennel Club and the Dogs Trust said they broadly welcomed the report and its recommendations to tackle irresponsible breeders.
MINERAL DEPOSITS: The Pacific nation is looking for new foreign partners after its agreement with Canada’s Metals Co was terminated ‘mutually’ at the end of last year Pacific nation Kiribati says it is exploring a deep-sea mining partnership with China, dangling access to a vast patch of Pacific Ocean harboring coveted metals and minerals. Beijing has been ramping up efforts to court Pacific nations sitting on lucrative seafloor deposits of cobalt, nickel and copper — recently inking a cooperation deal with Cook Islands. Kiribati opened discussions with Chinese Ambassador Zhou Limin (周立民) after a longstanding agreement with leading deep-sea mining outfit The Metals Co fell through. “The talk provides an exciting opportunity to explore potential collaboration for the sustainable exploration of the deep-ocean resources in Kiribati,” the government said
Romania’s electoral commission on Saturday excluded a second far-right hopeful, Diana Sosoaca, from May’s presidential election, amid rising tension in the run-up to the May rerun of the poll. Earlier this month, Romania’s Central Electoral Bureau barred Calin Georgescu, an independent who was polling at about 40 percent ahead of the rerun election. Georgescu, a fierce EU and NATO critic, shot to prominence in November last year when he unexpectedly topped a first round of presidential voting. However, Romania’s constitutional court annulled the election after claims of Russian interference and a “massive” social media promotion in his favor. On Saturday, an electoral commission statement
Chinese authorities increased pressure on CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd over its plan to sell its Panama ports stake by sharing a second newspaper commentary attacking the deal. The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office on Saturday reposted a commentary originally published in Ta Kung Pao, saying the planned sale of the ports by the Hong Kong company had triggered deep concerns among Chinese people and questioned whether the deal was harming China and aiding evil. “Why were so many important ports transferred to ill-intentioned US forces so easily? What kind of political calculations are hidden in the so-called commercial behavior on the
The head of Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic intelligence agency, was sacked yesterday, days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he no longer trusts him, and fallout from a report on the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack. “The Government unanimously approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal to end ISA Director Ronen Bar’s term of office,” a statement said. He is to leave his post when his successor is appointed by April 10 at the latest, the statement said. Netanyahu on Sunday cited an “ongoing lack of trust” as the reason for moving to dismiss Bar, who joined the agency in 1993. Bar, meant to
RSS