We say "true" dog lovers, because there are many types of people who have dogs and claim to love them but whose actions speak the opposite. It doesn't take the perception of a psychic to figure out who these people are, folks who are more interested in money or their own convenience or ego than the pet itself. But, fortunately, true dog lovers are not an endangered species... indeed, there are more of them than ever. And they will surely be needed as these "dog days" continue.
There are two gigantic problems, neither of which offer much hope of quick solution. First and foremost is that there are simply too many dogs in the world, and in almost every country. Secondly, despite wondrous advances in dietary products and veterinary knowledge, many dogs and entire breeds are in worse genetic condition and general health than they have ever been.
The first problem is definitely the toughest. As with cats, our love affair with dogs over the past few centuries has led to a canine population boom that is still mushrooming. Unlike their wild wolf forebears whose pack size and overall population were kept in balance by a host of ecological factors, dogs live in a completely artificial and mostly protected environment. In all they world they essentially have only one predatory nemesis, the automobile, and this dumb machine they are usually quick-witted and quick-footed enough to avoid. Indeed, dogs are keen survivors. Even if left to their own devises, dogs are extremely adept at finding food for themselves. In India, for instance, where starvation among people is endemic, most dogs find enough to eat.
And, of course, they are doing more than merely surviving and eating if there is a population boom. They are also mating like crazy. Or at least some of them are. Actually, it doesn't take many individual participants for dogs to boost their numbers exponentially. With litter sizes often reaching double digits, female dogs are among the most prolific producers of young in the mammal order. And unlike rabbits, rats and mice and other such large-litter producers, the attrition rate of puppies is extremely low. They aren't gobbled up by foxes, weasels or other predators. So, despite the fact that many family pooches never in their life get to experience the mating game, the number of dogs continues to escalate.
This is bad news. Dog-lovers hate the idea of there being millions of unowned and/or unwanted dogs in the world. The prospect of millions of dogs scrounging out a living or of being put to sleep simply because no one wants them is abhorrent to any animal person. But the facts are that in undeveloped countries perhaps millions of dogs wander aimlessly, and in more modern nations thousands of dogs are euthanized not because of old age and illness or because of dire temperamental characteristics, but simply because they don't have a home.
What can be done? An all-out, worldwide effort to better control dog breeding must be effected. Spay and neutering programs, along with rescue organizations, will have to redouble their efforts (as if they aren't working hard enough already). And most of all, dog owners must assume greater responsibility for their dogs and exercise much closer control over their pets, eliminating all possibility of producing puppies unless litters are really wanted and needed. "Accidental" litters and puppies brought into the world simply because pet-owners are too busy, too lazy or too ignorant to prevent them must be severely curtailed. "Recreational" litters... those allowed by dog-owners who just want to have puppies around for awhile, or because it might be "educational for the children", should be discouraged.
All easier said than done. Without some major, united effort -- much greater and more far-reaching than anything that exists today -- the prospect of the dog population explosion continuing and escalating seems certain.
While the pet population explosion may have more to do with human ignorance and non-commitment to dogs, the problem of faulty genetics swerves toward the realms of sheer human arrogance and greed. Dogs in the United States, Canada, western Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other countries where dog breeding is a serious business are in worse shape than they ever have been. The primary cause: extremely poor breeding practices.
Across the board, the dogs of just 50 years ago were much healthier than the dogs of today. If you go further back in time, say another 50 years, dogs were healthier still. The range of genetic maladies, and the startling frequency of affliction in many breeds, simply did not exist near the turn of the century. The dramatic change for the worse probably has been caused by many factors, but certainly one that bears careful scrutiny is the focus of dog breeders. A century ago most dogs were bred for a particular function, whether it was for hunting, working, guarding, or simply being a good, dependable companion. Following World War II, the focus of breeders began to shift radically toward producing dogs that simply looked great. Characteristics such as intelligence, disposition and overall genetic quality were deemphasized in favor of the all-important appearance of the dogs.
The results of this change in focus began to be felt in the 1950s as veterinarians noticed a higher percentage of dogs with genetically-inherited problems. That problem is virtually endemic today. Consider: according to a recent Time Magazine article, as many as 25% of the purebred dogs in the U.S. are afflicted with some genetic default. Within many breeds the percentage is far higher. Hip dysplasia is a potentially crippling malady that affects many breeds. Eye, heart and skin problems negatively impact many breeds. The list goes on and on. In all, over 300 genetic defects can affect dogs, and no breed is exempt from the litany of problems.
Mixed-breeds are generally healthier and longer-lived than purebreds, but even their ranks are tainted by the genetic problems of the purebreds. Though genetic maladies are usually caused by recessive genes (and the mating of two different breeds significantly lowers the chance of the same recessive gene being paired), with the sheer number of faulty genes increasing, the chances of mixed-breed dogs acquiring a genetic problem also increase.
Of course, all of these illnesses and structural problems have long existed in the canine world, but breeding practices such as "back-breeding" or "line-breeding" (the mating of a dog with one of its close relations), as well as "show champions" have caused problems to escalate significantly. Show champions sometimes become a severe detriment to their breed by passing along (sometimes to a very large number of litters) genetic faults that lie hidden in the physical structure beneath that lustrous coat, gleaming eyes and perfect stance. Show ribbons convey proof of a dog's winning outward appearance but do not mean diddley-squat when it comes to indicating how healthy the dog may be. Indeed, there can be no doubt that over the past few decades many, many so-called champions across the breed spectrum have been rife with serious internal afflictions that then were passed along to their progeny. Ironically, tragically, the unsuspecting owner of the litter likely paid a premium stud fee for the privilege of infecting a new generation of puppies with a defective bloodline.
Poor breeding practices have not only contributed to the physical-mechanical decline of purebred dogs, they have also prompted a definite deterioration in the disposition and temperament of virtually all breeds. Once affable breeds like the Cocker Spaniel are now often snappish and anti-social. Even that ultimate people-friendly big dog breed, the Newfoundland, is now plagued by an increasing number of ill-tempered dogs. Sometimes, even the most conscientious of breeders find that they have a social misfit on their hands, a dog that simply is a danger to the common good. The increasing number of ill-tempered dogs makes it harder for even good breeders to keep that unwanted propensity out of their stock.
This situation has been public knowledge for many years, but not much has been done to address the problem. Show-dog breeders are still obsessed with the "beauty is best" notion. Puppy mills are cranking out pups that are very poorly socialized and rife with potential genetic defects. The AKC recently reduced its grants for education and research into the health of dogs.
But there are some positive developments. Researchers at several institutions are making headway in identifying the genes responsible for many inherited illnesses and structural problems. If such genes can be isolated, there is hope that genetic "engineering" as a part of conscientious dog-breeding could help to eradicate or at least significantly decrease the problem. Only some two dozen or so of the 300 genetic separate genetic disorders that affect dogs can currently be detected by lab tests, but this number will surely increase as scientists learn more about the root-causes of these defects. On other fronts, several dog breed clubs are beginning to insist upon far stricter rules and regulations pertaining to the health of dogs to be bred. The Portuguese Water Dog Club, for instance, requires that breeders who advertise in their magazine submit proof of hip, eye and heart clearances. The club has also been very aggressive in fighting back against breed afflictions. In one program the Portuguese Water Dog Club helped fund research that developed a blood test for retinal atrophy, which causes blindness. After the blood test became available, club members voluntarily stopped breeding dogs which tested positive, and the incidence of the malady in the breed has dropped from 16% to 7% in just a few years.
Another development, which certainly does not sit well with many dog-breeders but is certainly to be expected with the escalation in production of defective dogs, has been the passage of dog "lemon laws" by a few states. These laws require the sellers of genetically-faulted or diseased dogs to replace the dog with a healthy pup or pay for the vet expenses to repair the damage. New York, California, Massachusetts and Florida currently have such laws, and other states are likely to pass similar statutes.
Some advertising venues are cutting off breeders or sellers who have demonstrated a propensity for merchandising defective dogs. PETSTATION, for instance, will not accept -- at any price -- advertisements from an individual or business that it has received chronic complaints about.
These efforts are all good, but the real answer to improving the general health of all dogs is for breeders themselves to take the bull by the horns and make the sacrifices necessary to ensure the repair of the particular breed that they work with. Breed clubs can be tremendously influential in this regard by instructing their members on how to go about repairing the breed, by broadening breed standards to encourage a wider range of physical acceptance, and by placing stringent health restrictions on show entrees and advertisements. All dog shows should absolutely require proof of health clearances from all entrees for the primary genetic problems which affect the breed, and titles should be stripped from any dog which is subsequently found to have any genetic or temperament problem which could be passed on to its progeny.
If breeders do not accept responsibility for repairing the dogs in their care, then a very radical recourse looms upon the not-to-distant horizon. If the trend toward higher and higher percentages of purebred dogs afflicted with genetic faults continues, a virtually unspeakable cure will institute itself. Some -- perhaps many -- dog breeds will simply pass out of existence, because they have been run to ruin by humans.
It is up to us, dog lovers, to ensure that this does not happen. It is high time for we humans, who claim that the dog is our best friend, to live up to the responsibility of protecting that best friend in its time of need.
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