What should be done
Focusing my mind on what I think should be done to improve the health of pedigree dogs, I came up with the following list of measures that I would like to see implemented.
What the government needs to do
- Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, secondary legislation, provide protection for dogs from the suffering and premature death which is the result of inherited diseases and traits. This could be added to DEFRA's Code of Practice for the Welfare of Dogs - http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/pets/cruelty/documents/cop-dogs.pdf
- Incorporate the EU principle: 'No one should breed companion animals without careful regard to characteristics (anatomical, physiological and behavioural) that may put at risk the health and welfare of the offspring or female parent)' . Sign the European Convention for the Protection of Pet Animals.
- Set up an Independent Advisory Council on Dog Breeding according to Professor Bateson's recommendations
- Permanent identification of dogs (PI)
- Require veterinary profession to adopt an online surveillance system to provide anonymised data on breed specific diseases (such a system is being developed by Paul McGreevy, University of Sydney, in collaboration with the RSPCA and Royal Veterinary College)
- Support the implementation of the British Veterinary Association Animal Welfare Foundation (BVA AWF) Standard Puppy Contract, including website facility for delivery to the public, and legal protection insurance.
What the Kennel Club needs to do
- Make Kennel Club registration a mark of quality by only registering litters from dogs which have been health screened or DNA tested and found to be clear of breed specific hereditary disease. (This must include all schemes - not just the BVA/KC and other 'official' schemes)
- Actively promote the three welfare principles agreed at the BVA AWF stakeholder meeting 2009:
- Every dog should be born with the best possible chance of living a healthy and happy life, well suited to its intended lifestyle.
- All those who breed dogs should prioritise health, welfare and temperament over appearance when choosing which animals to breed, in order to protect the welfare of both the parents and offspring.
- All those who benefit from dogs have a collective responsibility to work together to protect dog welfare.
- Actively help to facilitate a long term project to collect DNA from all dog breeds to facilitate future DNA tests (as in Finland)
- Limit the use of stud dogs to no more than 12 litters (number would depend on existing genetic diversity and would therefore need to be breed specific)
- Create an on-line facility for breeders to calculate Coefficients of Inbreeding (COI). Encourage a lowering of COI in all breeds to ideally below 6% based on a ten generation pedigree. COIs to be recorded on pedigree certificates against the breed average.
- Where Estimated Breeding Values (EBV) or Genetic Breeding Values (GeBV) are available, record these on pedigree certificates
- Ban the mating of close relatives, such as mother to son, brother to sister, and any other mating whose offspring would have COI > 20%
- Allow outcrossing to a related breed to reinvigorate the gene pool if the Effective Population Size falls below 50, or where the incidence of a particular condition is high
- Require health testing certificates to be included in the documentation given to puppy buyers
- Require breed clubs to be open and transparent. Ordinary members of breed clubs should be entitled to see the Agenda and Minutes of Committee Meetings
- Require breed club committees to have at least one member to represent the interests of pet owners.
- Provide a publicly accessible online resource for all registered dogs, linked to pedigree, where owners can enter health records, including date of death.
- Provide compulsory training for judges where the priority is on health and soundness, and avoiding exaggerated traits.
Carol Fowler
May 2010