ARE YOU FINANCIALLY WORRIED?
Dogs are probably the descendants of the gray wolf. The first demonstrable signs of relationships between man and wolves date back to 10.000 to 15.000 years ago.
Dogs are probably the descendants of the gray wolf. The first demonstrable signs of relationships between man and wolves date back to 10.000 to 15.000 years ago.
The gray wolf, the most probable ancestor
of all current dog breeds
It's not certain whether man approached the wolf,
or vice versa. Both profited from the new situation: people used
wolves during the hunt, for keeping flocks together and to warn
against approaching enemies. Man in turn, made sure his wolves
were fed.
Wolves are very social animals. Like humans, they
live in groups (called packs) with social ranks, in which some
wolves claim leadership. This made this animal suitable and attractive
as a companion, because wolves accepted man as their leader. Requirements
with regard to behavior and appearance of wolves started to change.
Modern days dogs
Today's dogs come in all shapes and sizes. There are now over
400 dog breeds. They still all belong to the same species, which
means that all breeds can be crossbred and still have fertile
offspring.All of them have been bred by humans. This means that we decide which dog breeds with which dog, depending on which characteristics are desirable. Man is playing God, as it were: "A slightly smaller head, shorter legs and cute floppy ears". There is now a true dog-industry that occupies itself with breeding dogs, and that alters dogs to suit people's requirements and wishes.
The
consequences of irresponsible breeding for dogs are considerable.
A much-used breeding method is line breeding, which
is a form of inbreeding. This method makes animals
vulnerable to genetic defects and diseases. These
defects are the direct consequence of inbreeding,
which is the mating between relatives. This is done
to keep and intensify certain breed characteristics.
Natural selection, a mechanism that prevents sickly
or unsuitable animals from reproducing, is kept out
of the breeding programs, because humans are now constantly
looking after the continued existence of the animals.
Underneath we will outline some examples of problems that arise with breeding on special breed characteristics that have unfavorable consequences for dogs:
WORRIED ABOUT RETIREMENT?
Chihuahua
Breed characteristics: large head in relationship to the body.
Consequences: Chihuahua puppies have to be born through cesareans, because the puppy's heads are too big for natural birth. There are also instances of open fontanels ("Chihuahua molera"), which is seen as a breed characteristic.
Pekinese
Breed characteristics: short snouts
Consequences: it's not uncommon for a Pekinese's eyes to pop out of their sockets because these do not fully enclose the eyes.
Boxers
Breed characteristics: short snouts
Consequences: boxers often suffer from respiratory problems because of their "flattened" snouts.
Dachshund
Breed characteristics: long backs
Consequences: dachshunds may develop ruptured spinal discs due to their long backs, leading to paralysis and/or chronic pain.
German shepherd
Breed characteristics: sloping backs
Consequences: German shepherds are known for having malformed and stiff hip joints, which may cause chronic pain.
Terriers (certain types)
Breed characteristics: narrow jaws
Consequences: these terriers have abnormal bone growth of the lower jaw that may give them difficulty chewing.
This is just a very small selection of diseases and defects (heart disease, coronary disease, blood disease, endocrine disorders, eye disease, skin disease, nervous system diseases, digestion disorders, joint diseases and immunological diseases) that can be directly related to dog breeding (CIDD).
Constant pain and suffering can be the consequence of deliberately trying to keep and intensify breed characteristics.
When the desired results cannot be obtained (quickly) through breeding, tails are docked and ears are cropped, tied off or snapped, right after birth and without anesthetics. After an earlier ban on the cropping of dog's ears we now also have a ban on the docking of tails in Holland. It is still allowed to remove the fifth toes (dewclaws) from puppies under four days without anesthetics, because it is assumed that their nervous system is not fully developed and they can't feel pain yet. Fortunately a new resolution for cats and dogs was put in place in the Netherlands since 1st January 1999 that should improve animal welfare in breederies. This is an indication that not all breeders care alike about animal welfare. Keeping breed characteristics is their first priority, optimal health takes second place.
This is done to animals because people think that dogs with a certain appearance look sweet, nice or beautiful. Almost every dog breed suffers ill effects from breeding. Please note: everyone who buys a dog like that is helping to maintain these breeding practices. As long as there is a demand, there will be a supply.
Do you think that we have the right to do this to animals?
Underneath we will outline some examples of problems that arise with breeding on special breed characteristics that have unfavorable consequences for dogs:
WORRIED ABOUT RETIREMENT?Chihuahua
Breed characteristics: large head in relationship to the body.
Consequences: Chihuahua puppies have to be born through cesareans, because the puppy's heads are too big for natural birth. There are also instances of open fontanels ("Chihuahua molera"), which is seen as a breed characteristic.
Pekinese
Breed characteristics: short snouts
Consequences: it's not uncommon for a Pekinese's eyes to pop out of their sockets because these do not fully enclose the eyes.
Boxers
Breed characteristics: short snouts
Consequences: boxers often suffer from respiratory problems because of their "flattened" snouts.
Dachshund
Breed characteristics: long backs
Consequences: dachshunds may develop ruptured spinal discs due to their long backs, leading to paralysis and/or chronic pain.
German shepherd
Breed characteristics: sloping backs
Consequences: German shepherds are known for having malformed and stiff hip joints, which may cause chronic pain.
Terriers (certain types)
Breed characteristics: narrow jaws
Consequences: these terriers have abnormal bone growth of the lower jaw that may give them difficulty chewing.
This is just a very small selection of diseases and defects (heart disease, coronary disease, blood disease, endocrine disorders, eye disease, skin disease, nervous system diseases, digestion disorders, joint diseases and immunological diseases) that can be directly related to dog breeding (CIDD).
Constant pain and suffering can be the consequence of deliberately trying to keep and intensify breed characteristics.
When the desired results cannot be obtained (quickly) through breeding, tails are docked and ears are cropped, tied off or snapped, right after birth and without anesthetics. After an earlier ban on the cropping of dog's ears we now also have a ban on the docking of tails in Holland. It is still allowed to remove the fifth toes (dewclaws) from puppies under four days without anesthetics, because it is assumed that their nervous system is not fully developed and they can't feel pain yet. Fortunately a new resolution for cats and dogs was put in place in the Netherlands since 1st January 1999 that should improve animal welfare in breederies. This is an indication that not all breeders care alike about animal welfare. Keeping breed characteristics is their first priority, optimal health takes second place.
This is done to animals because people think that dogs with a certain appearance look sweet, nice or beautiful. Almost every dog breed suffers ill effects from breeding. Please note: everyone who buys a dog like that is helping to maintain these breeding practices. As long as there is a demand, there will be a supply.
Do you think that we have the right to do this to animals?
DRAWBACKS FOR DOGS
Besides physical problems arising from breeding, there
are other drawbacks for dogs' welfare. People make all
kinds of demands on dogs, and keep them from exhibiting
their natural behavior. For instance:
The dog owner decides when, how much, how often and what kind of food the dog gets.
Walking
The dog owner decides where, how often and how long a dog is walked. It's walked at times that are convenient for its master. Often the dog has to be kept on a leash, limiting its freedom of movement.
Exercise
It often happens that dogs have not enough room to move around freely in the house. There's furniture and obstacles everywhere, and the room itself is just small. Dogs by nature are used to run and play a lot.
Attention
Dogs only receive attention when it's convenient for their masters. Of course, there's interaction between dogs and their owners, but if the owner doesn't feel like it, the dog gets no attention.
Social behavior
Dogs are social animals. They are used to having their own place within the pack. When dogs are accepted into a family home, they should be awarded the lowest social rank. Not all dogs will accept this easily, which can cause conflicts that may get out of hand (especially with children).
Contact with other members of their species is often limited. By nature, dogs are pack animals, they live in groups with other dogs. People often have just one dog, and it cannot exhibit its natural behavior with members of its species. The dog's natural behavior doesn't concur with what its owner wants, and its conditioned behavior is unnatural.
Sexual behavior
Suppressing sexual behavior is part of a dog's training, because this natural behavior is something we do not like. Think about dogs "humping" legs, excitement and chasing other dogs.
Castration and sterilization are common, to make sure no unplanned litter is born. Another reason is to suppress sexual drive, which is often seen as an undesirable characteristic.
Of course there's interaction between dogs and people, but this is mostly one-sided. People own dogs, are the leaders and make the decisions. Although there are plenty of people who want nothing but the best for their dogs, this doesn't change the fact that in the end people impose their wills on dogs. Dogs are restricted in almost every natural behavior and need, and have to yield to people's "needs".
In their natural surroundings, dogs are also limited by their place in the pack's social rank. But with humans these restrictions are more extreme. In nature, dogs will not always have the lowest rank, such as they do with people. They are not kept on a leash, restricting their movements, they can answer nature's call when necessary and they have much more social interaction with members of their species.
By taking dogs as an example, we have touched upon various factors that normally you don't think about much. Not all, but most of these arguments also apply to other pets. On the other hand, there are also factors that apply to other kinds of pets and not to dogs.
- eating
- walking
- exercise
- attention
- social behavior
- sexual behavior
The dog owner decides when, how much, how often and what kind of food the dog gets.
Walking
The dog owner decides where, how often and how long a dog is walked. It's walked at times that are convenient for its master. Often the dog has to be kept on a leash, limiting its freedom of movement.
Exercise
It often happens that dogs have not enough room to move around freely in the house. There's furniture and obstacles everywhere, and the room itself is just small. Dogs by nature are used to run and play a lot.
Attention
Dogs only receive attention when it's convenient for their masters. Of course, there's interaction between dogs and their owners, but if the owner doesn't feel like it, the dog gets no attention.
Social behavior
Dogs are social animals. They are used to having their own place within the pack. When dogs are accepted into a family home, they should be awarded the lowest social rank. Not all dogs will accept this easily, which can cause conflicts that may get out of hand (especially with children).
Contact with other members of their species is often limited. By nature, dogs are pack animals, they live in groups with other dogs. People often have just one dog, and it cannot exhibit its natural behavior with members of its species. The dog's natural behavior doesn't concur with what its owner wants, and its conditioned behavior is unnatural.
Sexual behavior
Suppressing sexual behavior is part of a dog's training, because this natural behavior is something we do not like. Think about dogs "humping" legs, excitement and chasing other dogs.
Castration and sterilization are common, to make sure no unplanned litter is born. Another reason is to suppress sexual drive, which is often seen as an undesirable characteristic.
Of course there's interaction between dogs and people, but this is mostly one-sided. People own dogs, are the leaders and make the decisions. Although there are plenty of people who want nothing but the best for their dogs, this doesn't change the fact that in the end people impose their wills on dogs. Dogs are restricted in almost every natural behavior and need, and have to yield to people's "needs".
In their natural surroundings, dogs are also limited by their place in the pack's social rank. But with humans these restrictions are more extreme. In nature, dogs will not always have the lowest rank, such as they do with people. They are not kept on a leash, restricting their movements, they can answer nature's call when necessary and they have much more social interaction with members of their species.
By taking dogs as an example, we have touched upon various factors that normally you don't think about much. Not all, but most of these arguments also apply to other pets. On the other hand, there are also factors that apply to other kinds of pets and not to dogs.
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