How a century of breeding 'improvement' has turned once-healthy dogs into deformed animals
- Blogger Mus Musculus published old and modern dog photos side by side
- They show how breeding has transformed the shape of hounds
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The common perception of purebred dogs is that they are more striking, beautiful animals than they would be without human intervention.
However, that notion has been thrown to the dogs.
Strong photographic evidence has emerged that shows how 100 years of breeding has actually warped the good looks of the original hounds.
Ear we go: The basset hound has been transformed
Dog blogger Mus Musculus has published photographs of breeds taken in 1915, from Breeds Of All Nations by W E Mason, alongside photographs of the same variety taken recently to illustrate how their physical forms have been altered – and not necessarily for the better.
He explained: ‘To be able to make an honest comparison, I’ve chosen pictures with similar poses and in a couple of cases flipped the picture to get them both aligned in the same direction. I had to skip some breeds I wanted to include because of the lack of detail in the older photographs.’
The modern boxer now has a shorter face and slightly upturned nose
His comparison shows how the Basset Hound has become lower and now has ‘excessively large ears’.
The modern Boxer, he says, now has even more difficulty controlling temperature because its face is shorter and the muzzle is now slightly upturned.
Size matters? The English bulldog is now a hefty animal compared to 100 years ago
The English bulldog – the star of the Churchill insurance ads – has become a real brute thanks to breeding.
Musculus said: ‘The bulldog’s monstrous proportions make them virtually incapable of mating or birthing without medical intervention.’
How low can you go? The dachshund's legs are now much shorter
The Bull Terrier, meanwhile, now has a ‘mutated skull’ and is nowhere near as handsome as it used to be, according to Musculus.
Photographs of the Dachshund show how its legs and body are no longer in proportion, meaning that it’s now more prone to intervertebral disc disease.
Bigger and better? The St Bernard is now much stockier
The German Shepherd Dog has also gone downhill, according to the blogger.
He says that they used to be able to clear an 8.5ft wall, but are now ‘angulated and barrel-chested’, meaning that such a feat would no longer be possible.
Verdict: The dog blogger claims that the modern-day German shepherd would not be able to match its predecessor's athletic ability
Pugs have had a double-curl tail bred into them, but Musculus says that this can lead to paralysis. And its folded skin can lead to overheating.
One of the most striking transformations is the St Bernard, which used to be a sturdy athletic breed but now have lots of overheating problems and are more prone to disease.
Face facts: The bull terrier now has a different-shaped skull
Curly: The pug now has a tail that can lead to paralysis, the dog blogger explained
Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club Secretary, points out that there are both good and bad examples of dog breeding, partly because of the way it's organised.
She told MailOnline: 'Dog breeding is a relatively unregulated industry, and for every responsible breeder producing healthy animals there is somebody breeding dogs for money and to achieve a certain fashionable look, who has no need to adhere to the health rules in the Breed Standards or to any other criteria.
'There are clear rules and vet checks in place at dog shows to ensure unhealthy and exaggerated dogs do not win prizes and the Kennel Club Assured Breeder Scheme is the only scheme in the country that sets standards for and monitors breeders, but outside of this there is no regulation to protect dogs or guide puppy buyers.
'Puppy buyers should always see the pup with its mother and avoid any puppies that come from parents with overly exaggerated features, which might include excessive wrinkling, overly short snouts or being overweight.'
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Tsss. Chep naturalism. "We must leave the animals to evolve on theyr own" First, there is no such goal as to get better in evolution, only to survive. Second, the animal's creators try very hard to keep the race "pure", i.e, to keep it from changing. There is no way today animals could be "better" without being different from yesterday animals, if you want them to stay the same, this is hard and unatural. Third, there is nothing wrong with unnatural things, we are humans, we are tools makers, we change what is natural by our very definition of what we are. its our principal characteristic.
gal511,Darlene Vegan, Isabel Jordan & others THANK-YOU.Get pets from shelters or rescue organizations. Would have to research reddog's point. Don't have to research that millions of dogs/cats live on streets worldwide or live caged at shelters or are euthanized(even if shelters are well-intentioned).Why "more perfect" breeds when there are millions of pets--enough purebred for shows.My best friend, a Shih Tzu, matted hungry desperate found at forlorn gas station(not micro chipped or claimed).Now a much loved, spoiled (& very loyal) family member which includes 3 kitty companions. Our Shih Tzu could probably be show material (yep, he doesn't have the "papers") but that is not at all our thing. When able he will have dog companions coming from shelters /rescue organizations. A pet from a breeder would defeat one of the reasons for increasing our family which is to help more abandoned animals have good homes. Next stop is the "I hate dog breeders" on FB as suggested by Darlene above.
All the dogs from 100 years ago look much nicer than the ugly animals they have been bred into. Regulation is well overdue in the Frankenstein world of animal breeding.
Such a misleading article.One can find a nicely bred dogs today and you can find a very badly bred dogs with a lot of physical deformities.also the structure of some of the "old type" dogs is completely hindering- I see a lot of straight rear angles, roach backs ,flat fronts- none of this is a healthy structure for a dog and will cause it pain at one point or another. There has been always breeders that are breeding for the extremes, but also the general direction of the breeds has been towards the elimination of the genetic defects and improvement of the breeds. Noone wants to shoot themselves in the foot, and most of the good breeders out there are in it for the improvement of the breed, because they love it. There has always been bad apples, and always will be. It is wrong to say that ALL human involvement in dog breeding is bad.dogs are the product of human involvement. Eliminating it would mean the end of the domestic dogs as we know them, and is the exact thing that AR wants.
Its quite horrible how dogs are bread to look a certain way just for looks what ever happened to dogs being owned for companionship? People don't think of the dogs health it's all about looks!
Yes, we need to regulate the unscrupulous breeding or animals for both cosmetic and monetary gains. Shouldn't animals be allowed to evolve naturally? We are doing these things everywhere and is it such a good thing? We must all think about adopting animals from the shelters and rescue these poor creatures from our stupidity. Our pets should be a part of our family and treated as such...or no have them at all!
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carole, Bormes les Mimosas, France, 2 hours ago
A dog is your pet NOT your fashion accessory. When I lived on the UK I was an advisor for Dogs Today for the Dachshund breed, I was NOT a breeder, I always advised people to get an animal from a rescue if possible and told them up front that Dachshunds can have many back problems, most of which are attributable to too much interbreeding. Generally speaking a mongrel is the healthier option, but if you want a specific breed then make sure you see the pup with it's parents. NEVER buy from an advert on the net or a pet shop, garden centre or etc.