The findings from surveys performed by the late George A. Padgett, DVM, Veterinary Pathologist & Professor Emeritus at the College of Veterinary Medicine of Michigan State University and author of Control of Canine Genetic Diseases, indicate that mixed - breed dogs have more genetic
diseases than purebred dogs.
Not exact matches
The first detailed genetic comparison of
purebred domestic
dogs promises to rewrite the textbooks with new information about breed classification and insights that may improve canine health by boosting understanding of the more
than 350 inherited disorders, including cancer, heart
disease, epilepsy, blindness and deafness, which affect
dogs.
Even though mixed breeds tend to be hardier
than purebred dogs, without knowing what breeds are in your
dog's makeup, you can't know what
diseases to which he might be genetically predisposed.
The idea that a mixed - breed
dog is likely to have fewer genetic
diseases than a
purebred is a misconception.
However, such a return to the wild is not going to happen, and in spite of assertions that they are healthier
than purebreds, crossbred and mixed breed
dogs are subject to the same
diseases, structural problems, joint dysplasias, allergies, and genetic abnormalities as their blue - blooded cousins.
As do all
purebred dogs - or humans for that matter (there are more
than 3,000 known genetic
diseases to affect human beings.)
RMSF can affect
dogs of all breeds, but young
purebred dogs are reported to be more susceptible to developing severe
disease due to Rickettsia rickettsii infection
than mixed breeds.
The reasons given for a reduction in breeding are legion: There are too many homeless
dogs dying in shelters,
purebred dogs have too many structural faults,
purebred dogs have too many genetic
diseases, even well - bred
purebred puppies take homes from shelter
dogs, generic
dogs are healthier
than purebreds because they have «hybrid vigor,» man should not manipulate
dogs for his own purposes, etc..
or betrayal (I thought mixed breed
dogs were healthier
than purebreds, or I thought Bosco's breeder certified her stock against genetic
diseases).
If we disqualified all of the
dogs with the slightest elbow issue, we would lose 31 % of the breeding population in every generation, compounding a genepool problem that is historically present in
purebred dogs, and far more dangerous to the
dogs than any heritable
disease.
Mixed breed
dogs do live longer on average
than their
purebred cousins, and if you avoid the fatal pitfalls of heart
disease and trachael collapse then you've got a good chance of having a long lived Pomnchi pup.
The present study illustrated that certain subpopulations of the
purebred dog population were more likely to display certain conditions while other subpopulations were not statistically different
than mixed - breed
dogs in terms of
disease prevalence.
The inherited conditions of aortic stenosis (a narrowing above the aortic heart valve or the aortic valve itself), atopy / allergic dermatitis (skin allergies), gastric dilatation volvulus (bloat / stomach dilation), early onset cataracts (a clouding of the lens inside the eye), dilated cardiomyopathy (enlargement of the chambers of the heart and thinning of the muscle wall), elbow dysplasia (abnormal growth of tissues that leads to malformation and degeneration of the joint), epilepsy (brain seizures), hypothyroidism (underactive production of thyroid hormones), intervertebral disk
disease (problems with the disks between the vertebrae of the spine leading to neurological problems), and hepatic portosystemic shunt (an abnormal blood circulation where blood is diverted around the liver rather
than into it) are more prevalent in
purebred dogs than in mixed - breed.
For ten other inherited conditions, the
purebred dog population had greater prevalence
than that seen in mixed - breeds: aortic stenosis, atopy / allergic dermatitis, gastric dilatation volvulus (GDV), early onset cataracts, dilated cardiomyopathy, elbow dysplasia, epilepsy, hypothyroidism, intervertebral disk
disease (IVDD), and portosystemic shunt.