28/10/2026
This morning, Keetah and I were enjoying a lovely early-morning mooch around a large grassy area beside a lake. For a Labrador, it was pretty close to heaven.
The weather has been warming up lately, and already the humidity was creeping in.
Then my enjoyment turned to anxiety.
I watched a man running along the path with his brachycephalic dog on lead. The dog’s movement appeared unusually stiff through all four limbs, and I found myself wondering how comfortable he was.
There was nothing about the dog's movement that suggested he was enjoying this experience. Yet the man continued running, perhaps unaware of what his dog was communicating.
This is one of the reasons I believe education about canine welfare is so important.
Brachycephalic dogs — breeds with shortened skulls and flattened faces, such as French Bulldogs, Pugs and English Bulldogs — can experience significant health challenges. Their shortened airways can make breathing less efficient, while their ability to regulate body temperature may be compromised. Warm, humid conditions and physical exertion can place additional demands on dogs who already struggle to breathe comfortably.
And breathing isn't the only concern. Some brachycephalic dogs also experience eye problems, spinal abnormalities, skin disease and difficulties with movement.
Of course, I cannot know exactly what that particular dog was experiencing from a distance. But seeing him move that way, in those conditions, raised serious welfare concerns for me.
The difficulty is that these dogs are incredibly popular. Their appearance has become normalised, and many people simply don't realise how much their physical structure can affect their quality of life.
We can educate guardians about recognising signs of breathing difficulty, heat stress, pain and fatigue. We can encourage people to choose activities suited to their individual dog and to seek veterinary advice when movement or breathing concerns arise.
But we also need to ask a much bigger question.
**Should we continue breeding dogs whose physical features can compromise their health and wellbeing?**
For me, education alone isn't enough. We need to reconsider the breeding practices that produce extreme physical characteristics in the first place.
I don't blame people for loving these dogs. They are individuals, each deserving of love, care and the opportunity to live a comfortable life.
But loving these dogs and questioning the breeding practices that create their difficulties are not mutually exclusive.
**Our responsibility isn't simply to help dogs cope with the bodies we've bred them to have. It's to question whether we should continue creating those bodies at all.**
Because the welfare of the dog must always matter more than the appearance we find appealing.
In the past, when I have posted about the unethical practice of breeding these dog it has been met with criticism and hatred.
For those people - I have had conversations with many Vets and other animal welfare experts and the answer is the same.
No Brachycephalic dog is every health and happy.
I wanted to back this up with science
https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/12/11/1058
