Abstract

To improve the health and welfare of pedigree dogs, national kennel clubs (KCs) are key players in the governance and regulation of dog breeding. In a survey conducted to investigate differences between KCs in breeding policies and management of pedigree dogs, a questionnaire was completed by 15 KCs from 11 European countries (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom) and four non-European countries (Australia, Mexico, Uruguay and the USA). The most important concerns reported by KCs were exaggerated morphological features and inherited disorders. A wide variety of information, tools and strategies was used to address these issues, with implementation differing across countries and breeds. KCs reported progress in the collection and provision of information related to canine health and welfare. Implementation of advanced breeding tools, such as genetic evaluation and online advisory mating tools, and balanced breeding strategies, endorsed by clubs and breeders, remain challenging and require further development. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords

Animal breeding; Animal welfare; Canine; National kennel club; Survey

Published in

Veterinary Journal
2018, Volume: 234, pages: 130-135
Publisher: ELSEVIER SCI LTD

SLU Authors

• Wang, Shizhi

  • Department of Animal Biosciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    
  • National Institute of Agricultural Research (INRA)

• Strandberg, Erling

  • Department of Animal Biosciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Animal and Dairy Science
Other Veterinary Science


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tvjl.2018.02.018

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/95387