Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-wxhwt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-11T07:03:59.143Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Brachycephalic problems of pugs relevant to animal welfare

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 January 2023

A Bartels ,
V Martin ,
E Bidoli ,
S Steigmeier-Raith ,
A Brühschwein ,
S Reese ,
R Köstlin  and
M Erhard
A Bartels*
Affiliation:
Ethology, Animal Hygiene and Animal Husbandry, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany
V Martin
Affiliation:
Ethology, Animal Hygiene and Animal Husbandry, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany
E Bidoli
Affiliation:
Ethology, Animal Hygiene and Animal Husbandry, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany
S Steigmeier-Raith
Affiliation:
Clinic of Veterinary Surgery and Obstetrics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany
A Brühschwein
Affiliation:
Clinic of Veterinary Surgery and Obstetrics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany
S Reese
Affiliation:
Institute of Veterinary Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany
R Köstlin
Affiliation:
Clinic of Veterinary Surgery and Obstetrics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany
M Erhard
Affiliation:
Ethology, Animal Hygiene and Animal Husbandry, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany
*
* Contact for correspondence and requests for reprints: a.bartels@tierhyg.vetmed.uni-muenchen.de
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Excessive breeding for brachycephaly (fore-shortened muzzle) has led to increasing problems in pugs related to brachycephalic airway syndrome (BAS). Consequently, the German Pug Club (Deutscher Mopsclub eV; DMC) established a stress test in 2009 that must be passed for breeding and requires normalised heart and respiratory rates 15 min after having covered a distance of 1 km. In this study, 42 pugs underwent the stress test under standardised conditions. Taking into account that this exercise should not be too physically demanding for any healthy dog, the results were surprising: 14 of the pugs failed, ie a failure rate of 33.3%. In addition to the stress test, the pugs were assessed according to their heart and respiratory rates at rest, which we predicted would be associated with BAS, and in this test, 21 out of 42 pugs failed. Thus, 50.0% of the pugs were in a severely compromised physical condition. A further group of seven retropugs, ie a crossbreed of pugs with a slightly longer muzzle, was included in the study to compare brachycephalic problems. All of the retropugs passed the test, even when respiratory and heart rates at rest were considered. However, the findings may not be transferable to all retropugs because of the small sample size, so further research is needed. In summary, this study has enabled the development of recommendations for future implementation of stress tests.

Keywords

animal welfarebrachycephalic airway syndromephysical exercisepugsretropugsstress test
Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Welfare , Volume 24 , Issue 3 , August 2015 , pp. 327 - 333
Copyright
© 2015 Universities Federation for Animal Welfare

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Aron, DN and Crowe, DT 1985 Upper airway obstruction: gen-eral principles and selected conditions in the dog and cat. Veterinary Clinics of North America, the Small Animal Practice 15(5): 891–917. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0195-5616(85)50101-1CrossRefGoogle Scholar
De Lorenzi, D, Bertoncello, D and Drigo, M 2009 Bronchial abnormalities found in a consecutive series of 40 brachycephalic dogs. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 235:835–840. http://dx.doi.org/10.2460/javma.235.7.835CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ham, SA and Epping, J 2006 Dog walking and physical activity in the United States. Preventing Chronic Disease 3(2): 1–7Google ScholarPubMed
Harvey, CE 1982 Upper airway obstruction surgery: 1 stenotic nares surgery in brachycephalic dogs. Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association 18: 535–537Google Scholar
Hoareau, GL, Jourdan, G, Mellema, M and Verwaerde, P 2012 Evaluation of arterial blood gases and arterial blood pressures in brachycephalic dogs. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 26: 897–904. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-1676.2012.00941.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Klinke, R and Silbernagl, S 2003 Lehrbuch der Physiologie, Fourth Edition. Thieme: Stuttgart, Germany. [Title translation: Manual of physiology]Google Scholar
Knoblauch, RL, Pietrucha, MT and Nitzburg, M 1996 Field studies of pedestrian walking speed and start-up time. Journal of the Transportation Research Board 1538: 27–38CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Koch, DA, Arnold, S, Hubler, M and Montavon, PM 2003 Brachycephalic syndrome in dogs. Compendium 25(1): 48–55Google Scholar
Lorinson, D, Bright, RM and White, RS 1997 Brachycephalic airway obstructive syndrome: a review of 118 cases. Canine Practice 22(5–6): 18–21Google Scholar
Noeller, C, Hueber, J, Aupperle, H, Seeger, J, Oechtering, TH, Niestrock, C and Oechtering, GU 2006 New aspects of brachycephalia in dogs and cats basics: Insights into embryology, anato-my and pathophysiology. http://www.brachycephalia.com/index.php?de=publikationenGoogle Scholar
Oechtering, GU 2010 Das Brachyzephalensyndrom – Neue Informationen zu einer alten Erbkrankheit. Veterinary Focus 20(2): 02–09. [Title translation: Brachycephalic airway syndrome, new information concerning an old hereditary disease]CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oechtering, GU 2013 Wenn Menschen Tiere verformen. Deutsches Tieraerzteblatt 1/2013: 18-23. [Title translation: When humans deform animals]Google Scholar
Oechtering, TH, Oechtering, GU and Noeller, C 2007 Structural characteristics of the nose in brachycephalic dog breeds analysed by computed tomography. Tieraerztliche Praxis 35: 177–187Google ScholarPubMed
Packer, RMA, Hendricks, A and Burn, CC 2012 Do dog own-ers perceive the clinical signs related to conformational inherited disorders as ‘normal’ for the breed? A potential constraint to improving canine welfare. Animal Welfare 21: 81–93. http://dx.doi.org/10.7120/096272812X13345905673809CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Riecks, TW, Birchard, J and Stephens, JA 2007 1991–2004: Surgical correction of brachycephalic syndrome in dogs: 62 cases. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 230: 1324–1328. http://dx.doi.org/10.2460/javma.230.9.1324CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Suter, PF and Kohn, B 2006 Praktikum der Hundeklinik, Tenth Edition. Parey: Stuttgart, Germany. [Title translation: Canine practice]Google Scholar
The Kennel Club Limited 2013 High profile breed list removal criteria guidance for breed representative(s). http://www.thekennel-club.org.uk/media/158015/high_profile_breed_list_removal_cri-teria.pdfGoogle Scholar
Wykes, PM 1991 Brachycephalic airway obstructive syndrome. Problems in Veterinary Medicine 3: 188–197Google ScholarPubMed