The Kennel Club in the UK have just fudged the breed standard and breeding practices of the French bulldog and unhealthy dog breeds. Bad news for dog breed health. This story is about the health and welfare of dog breeds and for that matter cat breeds which are bred to an extreme. This particularly concerns the flat-faced dogs and cats who struggle to breathe among other ailments.
In this instance, the French bulldog is again in the headlines. A French Bulldog called Elton won the best in the utility group at Crufts this year. In winning this prize Crufts which is run by The Kennel Club are seen to endorse and support the flat-faced dogs which they shouldn’t do.
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In fact, they admit that they shouldn’t do this because they changed the breed standard in 2021. It now states that the French bulldog should have a “well-defined muzzle that can clearly be viewed in profile” and that the nostrils should be “visibly” open”.
Elton was described as having “no discernible nostrils” by Jemima Harrison, an award-winning producer and director of science-led documentaries and a campaigner to improve the health and welfare of dog breeds.
Excusing unethical behavior
The Kennel Club excuse their behaviour in supporting an unhealthy dog breed by saying that Elton passed all the veterinary tests for breathing. The Kennel Club is introducing health tests for the dogs.
They put them through a test to make sure that they are healthy and, in this regard, they say that Elton, “has a grade 0 score on the Kennel Club/University of Cambridge breathing assessment that was done prior to the show, and which – from Crufts 2025 – will be mandatory for all French bulldogs, pugs and bulldogs before they compete, meaning he is clinically unaffected by brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS).”
They confirmed that Elton had passed the show vet check given to all dogs before group judging. The tests are to ensure that there are no visible signs of health concerns on the day of competition.
But is it enough? I get the point which is that Elton doesn’t have breathing problems but in allowing him to win a major award which allows him to go forward to the best in show award, The Kennel Club is telling the world that flat-faced dogs in general are acceptable. This is a PR disaster. The Kennel Club is undermining their earlier commitment to breed out fat-faced dogs as per the breed standard mention above.
This simply isn’t good enough. As I mentioned in the title, they have fudged the breed standard by saying that a dog bred to extreme with an unnaturally flat face and distorted anatomy, and which is in breach of the breed standard, can still compete at a dog show and win a high award if they can breathe adequately as per their test.
Like I say that’s fudging. It should be an absolute rule that dogs like Elton should not compete at dog shows never mind win an award.
RSPCA criticism
The RSPCA agree with me. Doctor Samantha Gaines, and RSPCA dog welfare expert said that extreme breeding, producing dogs with extreme traits should not be normalised and celebrated (and awards given to them).
She said that: “We are hugely disappointed that a French bulldog with an extremely short muzzle and pinched nostrils has been awarded Best in Breed at Crufts on Thursday.”
She added that: “The breed standard states these dogs should have a well-defined muzzle and wide-open nostrils, so awarding best of breed and group as well as allowing this dog to compete for Best in Show sends completely the wrong message,” she said.
“We must prioritise health over looks and we’re urging people to join our Born To Suffer campaign, pledging online to say no to extreme breeding, and yes to health and wellbeing.
“The public need to know the serious health issues faced by flat-faced dogs – which go beyond breathing difficulties and include skin, dental, spinal, brain and eye problems – and to encourage people not to fuel the demand by buying one.”
Wrong message
That’s the point, it sends the wrong message to the public. The public play a major part in the story. They love the flat-faced French bulldog. It was probably the most popular dog breed during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. Their popularity surged in the UK and I believe in other countries.
The public buy a dog mainly on appearance. They don’t do research on health and if they did, they would discover that this breed has a seven-year lifespan and is the unhealthiest dog breed on the planet!
And here we have an individual dog of this breed winning a major award given by the dog association that sets the breed standard. It’s crazy.
Surgery
Sometimes these dogs have operations on their noses to widen their nostrils. Does that strike you as being crazy as well? Breeders creating unhealthy dogs and then you have to take them to a veterinarian for surgery to modify them further. 😢
