Dogs with smaller brains relative to overall size are cleverer thanks to selective breeding

Dogs with small brains relative to overall size are cleverer due to selective breeding

Left alone, nature operates natural selection, a process which leads to cleverer animals surviving more successfully. This led to the evolution of larger brained animals and ultimately to the dominance of humans over all animals. But for dogs selective breeding has interrupted this process with a research study deciding that dogs with smaller brains …

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EU advises a period of darkness every day for breeding cats and dogs

Breeding male cat in darkness as recommended by the EFSA to ensure that they maintain their circadian rhythm

The Commission of the European Union commissioned one of their agencies, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to produce a scientific report on the welfare of cats and dogs in commercial breeding premises destined for sport, hunting and as companion animals. They addressed several issues including the housing of the cats and dogs and …

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Designer dog breeders abandon damaged, retired breeding bitches to animal shelters

Dachshund

Today, The Sunday Times reports on a worrying story about designer dogs being abandoned by breeders to shelters when they are done with them. In this instance I’m talking about the ever-popular dachshund, a breed that was particularly popular during the Covid-19 pandemic as was the French bulldog. Louise Eccles in her Sunday Times …

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Sighting of very rare golden tiger in Indian reserve signals inbreeding and poor conservation

Rare mutant golden tiger in the wild in a tiger reserve in Assam, India which signals inbreeding and poor conservation to the point where the species is jeopardised in the wild.

The golden tiger is described as a “mutant” by Sarah Hartwell. They are the result of the “expression of recessive (hidden) genes [which] show up when there is too much inbreeding”. It takes inbreeding for the golden tiger to be created and this individual was spotted in the Assam Kaziranga National Park and Tiger …

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Los Angeles proposes a pause to the issuing of animal breeding licences

LA Animal Services

NEWS AND COMMENT: I’m told that Los Angeles City Council is considering a moratorium on the issuing of breeding licences. That means a pause to the issuing of permits to breed which I presume mainly means dog and cat breeders in the city of Los Angeles. The reason why the council wants to stop …

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WHITE COAT WASTE PROJECT ends ALL primate testing and breeding at FDA’s monkey lab

WCW close US government funded monkey business

In another stunning success the White Coat Waste Project (WCW) has achieved yet another victory in closing the FDA’s biggest monkey lab, the National Centre for Toxicological Research (NCTR), which ended all primate testing and breeding. At the time of WCW’s campaign against this waste of American taxpayer dollars and animal cruelty, NCTR experimentation …

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Animal welfare laws don’t apply to the INBREEDING of purebred dogs and cats which causes harm

Inbreeding of purebred cats can cause unnecessary suffering during their lives

It seems to me that animal welfare laws which are usually under statute (an ‘act’) don’t apply to dog and cat breeders or any other breeders for that matter in respect of an important aspect of their work: inbreeding. But they should. Perhaps I’ve got this wrong but I don’t recall any dog or …

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Coefficient of inbreeding (COI) in dogs and cats – a full discussion

COI - coefficient of inbreeding

At first glance this is a daunting and off-putting topic. However, we have Ben, the TikTok vet to ease us into the discussion 😎. He’s great and thanks Ben. He has a nice video of the COI of the most inbred pedigree dogs available in the UK. It is a very good start. This …

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