Byline: JAMES CHAPMAN
PEDIGREE dogs are being interbred so extensively that there are now 400 horrifying genetic defects affecting them, experts have warned.
Bulldogs - the symbol of the British character - are one of the most seriously affected breeds.
Increasing numbers are born with huge heads, bowed legs and pelvises so narrow that puppies have to be delivered by Caesarean section. They often have problems walking and even breathing.
King Charles spaniels and boxers can suffer heart problems, while Irish setters, cocker spaniels and collies get inherited eye disorders.
The demand for Dalmatians with black, rather than brown spots, means that more are being born deaf.
'Undesirable' puppies with black or brown splodges instead of spots are much less likely to suffer the problem, but are often destroyed, making the characteristic worse over generations.
Poodles are prone to epilepsy while German shepherds are being born with hip dysplasia, a condition which can cause crippling, painful arthritis.
Many breeders traditionally prefer St Bernards with very large heads. As a result, many are unable to walk properly.
According to geneticists, interbreeding is at the root of the problem.
Since the Victorians discovered that they could alter a dog's appearance over a few generations with intensive breeding, the animals' health has suffered.
Such is the desire to produce prize show dogs that mating a dog with its own grandparent is now common practice, according to an investigation in the authoritative Time magazine.
Beverley Cuddy, editor of the magazine Dogs Today, said last night: 'The escalation of genetic diseases in dogs is very rapid, and the life expectancy of some lovely breeds is so quickly declining, that action has got to be taken.
'We see new problems emerging all the time as a result of the close breeding that's being done. If this was to happen in humans, we would call it incest.
'The bulldog is one of the easiest for people to understand, because you only have to stand next to one on a hot day to see that they can't breathe and that they are suffering.
'If you look back in the history books then bulldogs look vastly different only a hundred years ago. They have become caricatures of what some human thought was attractive.
'We've really got to start looking out for the dogs' best interests. Some countries don't allow animals to be bred so closely and demand health tests before dogs are bred from.' She called on the Kennel Club, the leading canine body in Britain, to toughen up rules on interbreeding and selecting for characteristics known to be associated with genetic abnormalities.
Geneticist Malcolm Willis, senior lecturer in animal breeding at Newcastle University, agreed that the bulldog was especially badly affected. 'On a hot summer day you can lose a bulldog,' he said.
Owner Ken Mollett, from London, recalled how his pet bulldog Leila died before her fifth birthday. He told Time that on hot days she would collapse panting, her tongue blue from lack of oxygen.
'Leila led a sad, feeble life,' said Mr Mollett, who has tried to breed old-fashioned bulldogs but has failed to win their acceptance at the Kennel Club. Chris Laurence, chief veterinary officer at the RSPCA, said: 'We deplore the breeding of any animal which might produce a genetic abnormality.
'We are particularly concerned where breeding is to maintain a characteristic which affects the animal's welfare, such as short noses in bulldogs or skin folds in shar-peis.'
GERMAN SHEPHERD: Established in Germany in 1880s as a farm dog, but after proving their usefulness in the German army in the First World War were introduced into the U.S. and Commonwealth by returning Allied soldiers. Prone to genetic condition called hip dysplasia that causes arthritis.
DALMATIAN: In 19th century Europe they trotted alongside carriages to protect passengers from highwaymen.The breed's origins are obscure - some believe they hail from India, while others think they have their roots in Egypt or Greece. A quarter of Dalmatians suffer inherited deafness.
POODLE: With three different sized varieties, standard, miniature and toy, poodles have been known in western Europe for at least 400 years. Genetic disorders in toy and miniature poodles include epilepsy and progressive retinal atrophy - a disorder where light cells in the retina die.
IRISH SETTER:These longhaired, chestnut coloured dogs were originally red and white with shorter legs but were intensively bred in the 19th century to produce the modern setter. Health problems include epilepsy and a twisting of the stomach called gastric dilation-volvulus.
BULLDOG: Dogs were trained to attack bulls for entertainment for more than 600 years before it was made illegal in 1835. By the 17th century the dogs used were known as bulldogs. The trend for bulldogs with short noses and large heads means they have difficulty breathing and walking.
KING CHARLES SPANIEL: Believed to originate from China or Japan, they were brought across the Channel in the 16th century.
Gain their name from Charles II, who was so fond of the dogs he allowed them to range all over Whitehall. More than half suffer heart murmurs by the age of five.
