[/caption]An interesting blog post arrived in my inbox this morning from the Pedigree Dogs Exposed blog run by Jemima Harrison. Harrison, as many of you already know, was the driving force behind the shocking documentary Pedigree Dogs Exposed which delved into the dark secrets contained within pedigree dog breeding. (The documentary can be viewed here. It is an hour in length, and it contains some very disturbing images that many dog lovers may find difficult to watch. However, it is an eye opening look into the world behind purebred dogs and just what that world considers acceptable.)
She explored many breeds and the negative effects that our breeding practices have had on these dogs (not surprising considering many breeds started with only a handful of individuals - or less!) including Bulldogs, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Boxers, German Shepherd Dogs, and the star of today's post, the Dalmatian.
[caption id="attachment_56" align="alignleft" width="207" caption="Gr. Ch. Stocklore Forrest Can O Pee, a LUA/NUA Dalmatian"]
[/caption]Let's first take a look at the history of the Dalmatian. No, no, the REAL history. As much as I would love to get into why the many fantasy backgrounds provided about each breed contain holes of logic and fact large enough to drive dog show caravans through, I'll let Terrierman explain the general idea for those of you who are interested. I also recommend taking a look at his articles regarding Fiona, the LUA Project and pedigree breeding in general.
As for the real history of the Dalmatian, theories have been surmised for ages about the dog's original purpose. The FCI recognized the Republic of Croatia as the origin of the Dalmatian - however, the breed became what it is today during it's time in England. Once again, it would be reasonable to state that the Dalmatian was born of the English Dog Show Circuit. Breed enthusiasts also claim that the Dalmatian has existed for thousands of years as a pure breed - which is backed by nothing but fiction and imagination.
Dalmatians first appeared in dogs shows in 1862 (in England) and were presented as a "guard dog and companion to the nomads of Dalmatia." This seems unlikely given the dog's colouring. As breed historians will tell you, dogs used for guarding humans are almost exclusively black, grey or brindle in colour. After all, it would be fairly difficult for a dog with a white coat and black spots to get the jump on an intruder. This is not to say they don't make good guard dogs, but it goes against common sense to create a dog for this purpose and then make it stick out like a Holstein in a field.
[caption id="attachment_57" align="alignright" width="268" caption="UKC Ch. Stocklore Squire of Britannia, another beautiful LUA/NUA Dalmatian"]
[/caption]So other stories were concocted - Dalmatians in fire houses and running as carriage dogs. Dalmatians as ratters,retrievers and guard dogs. While they may very well have been used for these purposes, this is certainly not why the breed was created - and it is not used for these purposes today either, aside from the stereotypical Dalmatian firehouse mascot. The real truth is simple - they looked interesting.
Sadly, the same standards that ensure the "ideal coat pattern" also bring with them hearing issues that leave 30% of dogs with some level of hearing loss. In fact, it is surmised that initial reports about the Dalmatian being difficult to train or slow to learn were actually caused by early breeders failing to recognize that they were pumping out deaf puppies.
The standard is pretty clear world wide that the coat of the Dalmatian should be white with black or liver spots - and these spots should be evenly spread (2-3 cm apart) and plentiful. However, a large patch of colour anywhere on the body is a serious fault. The Dalmatian is born white and gains its coloured spots as it grows, unlike these "patches" of colour which are visible at birth. While colour patches are a major fault in the show ring, these patches also decrease the potential that these dogs have hearing issues.
From the American Kennel Club's standard for the Dalmatian:
Patches are a disqualification. A patch is a solid mass of black or liver hair containing no white hair. It is appreciably larger than a normal sized spot. Patches are a dense, brilliant color with sharply defined, smooth edges. Patches are present at birth. Large color masses formed by intermingled or overlapping spots are not patches. Such masses should indicate individual spots by uneven edges and/or white hairs scattered throughout the mass.
Read that again - the same colour patches that are considered a disqualification in the show ring also help to ensure that these dogs have proper hearing function.
[caption id="attachment_58" align="alignleft" width="247" caption="A Dalmatian with a "patch." This dog would automatically be disqualified in the show ring - and yet has a lower chance of having hereditary hearing issues.*"]
[/caption]So the question must be, why have the breed clubs not changed the standard? By all accounts breeders should be selecting FOR these patches. This topic is addressed on numerous Dalmatian websites, and the general consensus is that breeding for patches would result in some dogs turning out with excessive patching - making them "not true Dalmatians by the breed standard." You read that right - a dog with 100% "pure" Dalmatian blood but an excess of colour would NOT be considered a "true Dalmatian." Some individuals surmise that selecting for patches may actually create a BLACK Dalmatian (oh, the HORROR!).
If that's the argument - that blood line doesn't matter if the dog does not conform to the standard... what the hell is the problem with Fiona?
Fiona's beginnings started 15 generations ago** in 1973 when Dr. Robert Schaible began the Dalmatian Outcross Project, also known as Low Uric Acid Dalmatians (LUA Dals) or Normal Uric Acid Dalmatians (NUA Dals). Their website can be found here.
For an in depth look into the Backcross Project and a quick primer on the genetics involved, check this out. From the Dalmatian Club of Canada (who is pushing its members to support this project!!):
At the US National Specialty 2005 more than 260 Dalmatians were ultra-sounded and they found that: “The results for males were 26% no detectable sediment for calculi (stones); 27 % sediment less than 1 mm and 47% calculi (stones) one to three millimeters or larger.
For females, the results were 72 percent had no sediment: 17% sediment; 11% calculi one to three millimeters: and 0 percent calculi three millimeters or larger.” Dogs in Canada September 2005 Vol 97 No. 1
Dalmatians have long suffered with a genetic disorder that causes an excess of Uric Acid. From the LUA/NUA website:
Dr. Robert Schaible conducted the breeding in an effort to address the Dalmatian fixed genetic defect that affects uric acid metabolism and that may lead to increased urinary uric acid, urate crystals, urinary bladder aggregate formation, stones, urinary tract obstruction and even death.
AKC registered Dalmatians were used in subsequent matings of the progeny of the original Dalmatian-Pointer cross. The first three matings, termed “backcrosses”, yielded progeny generally distributed as ½ Low Uric Acid (LUA) and ½ High Uric Acid (HUA). LUA and HUA backcrosses were initially distinguished by a ten-fold difference in their urinary uric acid to creatinine ratios in spot urine samples. Today DNA analysis is done to identify the specific single gene that has been discovered and is thought to control normal canine uric acid metabolism, residing on canine chromosome number three.
The breeding program is now termed the “Dalmatian Low Uric Acid Project” and is presently at the 14th generation from the original cross. The progeny have 99.98% AKC registered Dalmatians in their pedigrees and on parentage analysis. Their DNA is 99.8% the same as AKC registered Dalmatians. These facts suggest that the LUA/HUA Descendants cannot be distinguished genetically from AKC registered Dalmatians.
[caption id="attachment_60" align="alignright" width="255" caption="A visual comparison of the urine from an LUA/NUA Dalmatian on the left and what fanciers consider a "purebred" Dalmatian on the right. Both samples have been chilled on ice - the sediment in the sample on the right is easily apparent."]
[/caption]So here we have a group of Dalmatians who no longer suffer from a potentially deadly and certainly painful genetic disorder. Dalmatians afflicted with HUA (High Uric Acid) require a lifetime of treatment and sometimes even surgical alteration to allow their bladders to drain properly. For an explanation of this surgical mutilation, you can take a look here.
This group of LUA/NUA Dalmatians also appear both physically and genetically to be... Dalmatians. So why are the breed clubs and Dalmatian breeders so furious that Fiona is allowed in the ring?
I suppose I should properly introduce the lovely Miss Fiona, aka Grand Champion Fiacre's First and Foremost. (You can check out her and other NUA Dalmatians at the Normal Uric Acid Dalmatians Blog on blogspot.)
[caption id="attachment_51" align="aligncenter" width="320" caption="This stunning Dalmatian known as "Fiona" is being hailed as both a saviour as well as a mongrel imposter by breeders everywhere, but particularly in the UK"]
[/caption]Fiona was imported to the UK from Nevada by a Dalmatian breeder Mrs. Julie Evans. She is three years old and is NOT a carrier for HUA. Mrs. Evans is committed to doing what it takes to preserve her favourite breed, and believes that by introducing LUA/NUA Dalmatians into the breed that the dogs will be healthier and happier in the long run. Breed purists disagree.
Paul Heaton, a dalmatian breeder from Liversedge, West Yorkshire, said: ‘It is pretty unethical to allow this dog in a pedigree show. As far as I’m concerned it is an illegal entrant and makes a mockery of the dalmatian breed.
‘This is a dog that is not pure-bred. This is a mongrel. You can’t cross a dalmatian with a pointer and say it’s a dalmatian. This is unethical and I’d be disgusted if the dog won.’ Anne Harcraft, a breeder from Sheffield, agreed.
'The dog is unpure and I do not think it should be shown with pedigrees,’ she said. ‘I would be really miffed if it won.’
Ok, first let's look at the fact that those "pedigrees" are not worth the paper they are written on. In fact, in the past there have been instances of registered litters involving pedigree dogs previously sold by the breeder and then registered as parents of future litters (despite never having been bred).
“It is relatively easy to falsify parentage as registrations are taken on trust”. – James Skinner, The Kennel Club.
[caption id="attachment_61" align="alignleft" width="263" caption="Fiona was inspected by several Kennel Club judges before being permitted to register as a Dalmatian."]
[/caption]Journalists, critics and flat-out frauds have, in the past, registered litters from deceased dogs, a litter of cats, and shelter mutts as pedigreed dogs.
Pedigree dogs require three things to be identified as a purebred. A registered dog, a registered bitch, and an identifier (usually a tattoo). This means that obtaining false Kennel Club records is as easy as filling out a form. All you need is the registration number of two purebred dogs (one male, one female). They don't have to be intact, or even alive for that matter. Or, in theory one could tattoo any animal with the alphanumeric identifier and then proceed to register its progeny. When this became apparent, news organizations all over the world began to question the validity of "purebred" dogs. The most popular headline online was "Pedigree Fraud Casts Doubt Over Every Single Pedigree Dog Alive Today."
[caption id="attachment_62" align="alignright" width="261" caption="Ch. Robinwood Rain Storm at Sea, another stunning LUA/NUA Dalmatian"]
[/caption]So how did we get to the point where "purity" became more important than health? When did "purity" become more important than genetic diversity, function or overall wellbeing? Except in the case of form, of course - form is only more important than purity if the form doesn't involve a disqualifying fault according to the breed standard. After all, a black Dalmatian wouldn't be a Dalmatian, according to many breeders.†
I, for one, will be watching Crufts this year for one reason only. That reason has four legs, lots of adorable spots and is known as "Fiona." If she wins, or even places, she will have proven to the world that the backcross projects are not only doable, they are in everyone's interest - particularly the dogs that the people standing in the way claim to love.
The world of purebred dogs is shrinking, and a large part of this is due to the poor genetic condition of most breeds. This obsession with "purity" is coming at the expense of health and well being, particularly in breeds like the Dalmatian. The Dalmatian Backcross Project has proven that these issues can be addressed by improving the genetic health of the breed without changing the breed itself. Let's hope that Fiona's success can be an inspiration to those behind the Boxer Outcross Project and the dozens of other breed clubs who have considered it but fear the traditionalist backlash.
* photo by Andrea Schwartz, via flickr
** I've found it difficult to determine what generation of backcross Fiona is. Some reports put her at 12th, others as high as 15th.
† I should point out that this is not uncommon - the same feelings are held toward Rhodesian Ridgeback puppies born without a ridge. They are considered so undesired that several breeders had an issue with removing an endorsement for euthanizing ridgeless puppies from the Ridgeback Club's website. This, despite the fact that scientists now know that the ridge is caused by a spinal defect that is detrimental to the breed. Of course, when asked by Ms. Harrison about the issue, one breeder stated quite dramatically that when Ridgebacks were used to hunt lions the ridged dogs were far more successful. Of course, to that I say - show me a Ridgeback hunting a lion today. Even if it were true (which it is not) what is more important as a pet dog who will NEVER hunt lions? Lion hunting ability, or health?
Edited to add: It should also be noted that ALL breeds were originally crossbreeds (or at least cross-types). Oh, and just in case Fiona doesn't make a big enough splash in 2011 - she's already qualified for Crufts 2012!!
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Update!
Unfortunately, Fiona was completely overlooked at Crufts this year. No matter, she's already qualified for next year and the biggest hurdle - acceptance by the Kennel Club - has already been passed. LUA/NUA Dalmatians will continue to be a part of the breed and will eventually become the norm. After all, if you were a Dalmatian puppy buyer and your choices were between a dog who stood a 30-50% chance of developing a bladder full of sludge and a dog who had ZERO chance of having this occur - which would you choose?
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="226" caption="Meet Ch Dalmark The Shaded Moon at Nospar JW, the Best of Breed winner Crufts 2011"]
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