With the growing visibility of canine health issues and the increasing influence of science, legislation, and public opinion, breeders, kennel clubs and breed clubs are being called upon to do more than ever before. I attended the 5th International Dog Health Workshop (IDHW) which was held in Helsinki in June 2024, and a recent open-access report by Mäki et al summarises the workshop’s outcomes and offers both a challenge and a roadmap for the future.
Hosted by the Finnish Kennel Club, the workshop brought together 106 people from 16 countries, including scientists, veterinary practitioners, breeders, kennel club representatives, and welfare advocates. After a five-year hiatus due to COVID-19, and marking the 10th anniversary of the International Partnership for Dogs (IPFD), the workshop aimed to improve international sharing of information, foster collaboration, and identify concrete actions to enhance canine health and welfare globally.
This month’s article summarises the key points from the IDHW5 published paper that are particularly relevant to us as pedigree dog breeders and as breed club representatives.
The workshop was structured around four themes: ‘Supply and Demand’, ‘Breeding for Health and Well-Being’, ‘Big Data’, and ‘Does the Colour Matter? Defining Breed vs. Variety’. Across all these areas of focus, a recurring priority was the acknowledged need for better education of puppy buyers, breeders, show judges, and others.
Among the diverse attendees, broad agreement crystalised around several key principles that form a roadmap for responsible breeding. These include the imperative to follow scientific evidence in decisions about canine genetics and health, a clear mandate to move away from extreme conformations that compromise welfare, and the importance of embracing all available tools—including crossbreeding—to maintain and increase genetic diversity within dog breeds.
Exploring the Themes
The theme of Supply and Demand addressed the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on dog acquisition. The UK, for instance, saw an estimated 2.5 million dogs acquired since March 2020. Unfortunately, this boom was accompanied by deteriorating puppy buying behaviours, increasing risks of supporting low-welfare breeders. This situation, coupled with the cost-of-living crisis and a rise in behavioural problems in “pandemic puppies”, has exacerbated the issue of unwanted dogs. The illegal puppy trade remains a significant concern. For breeders, this highlights the importance of championing responsible sourcing and educating buyers that a dog is a sentient being requiring significant commitment, not an inanimate product. Workshop participants agreed to explore collaborations to gather data on dog buyers to help guide future actions.
Breeding for Health and Well-Being focused on prioritising innate health. A growing concern exists regarding aesthetic traits in demand that are associated with poor welfare. Extreme conformation is arguably the most pressing welfare issue for domestic dogs today, with ICECDogs defining it as “a physical appearance that has been so significantly altered by humankind…that affected dogs commonly suffer from poor health and welfare…”. A significant challenge is that many owners, and even some breeders, may fail to recognise health problems related to extreme conformation, seeing them as ‘normal for the breed‘. Breeders are urged to prioritise innate health, ensuring every dog is capable of normal reproduction, free from preventable disease, and able to express basic behavioural needs. All stakeholders should be “champions of canine health and well-being first” before considering breed concepts. This may involve re-evaluating breed standards if they encourage extreme traits and better educating show judges on their crucial role in protecting health, supported by tools like the UK Kennel Club’s ‘Breed Watch’. Developing breeding programmes that identify and mitigate risks of extreme conformation is essential, as is compliance with all relevant legislation.
The discussion on Big Data explored how to harness vast amounts of existing phenotypic and genomic data for healthier dogs. Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) are already used for conditions like hip/elbow dysplasia in several countries, and international collaboration can enhance their accuracy. However, challenges include data standardisation (e.g., differing hip grading systems), data privacy (such as GDPR compliance), and obtaining owner consent. To address these, the workshop initiated a pilot project to test data collection and analysis and formed a working group to identify traits with EBVs and improve their use, including creating training materials. Additionally, DogWellNet.com will host resources listing key datasets and scientific papers with lay summaries.
The theme ‘Does the Colour Matter? Defining Breed vs. Variety’ centred on embracing genetic diversity. Since all forms of selection can reduce genetic diversity, identifying strategies for increasing it is paramount. Crossbreeding was discussed as one strategy. This can involve mating between varieties of the same parent breed, a practice the FCI accepts but some breed clubs restrict, highlighting a need for more harmonised rules. The merging of the Finnish Spitz and Karelo-Finnish Laika in 2006 serves as a successful example of broadening a gene pool. Another approach is introducing genetic variation from a distinct “donor” breed to address specific health issues, such as the projects for the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel in Finland, Norway, and Sweden. It’s crucial to remember that most current pedigree dog breeds originated through crossbreeding; it’s a proven method. Breeders are encouraged to be open-minded about the history of dog breeding and the biological need for genetic diversity. Workshop participants suggested that crossbred dogs from kennel club-approved projects should receive recognition and access to the same activities as “purebreds”. Educational resources, including webinars on crossbreeding, will be made available via DogWellNet.com.
The Path Forward: Collaboration and Education
A common thread throughout the IDHW was the critical need for education and communication to encourage positive changes in human behaviour. This extends to puppy buyers, breeders, judges, and aims to reach breeders who fall outside Kennel Club registries. The IPFD’s DogWellNet.com platform, a hub for shared information, is undergoing redevelopment to improve navigation, and its success depends on active participation from all stakeholders in submitting information.
The 5th IDHW concluded with a strong consensus on several key agreements for the future of dog health. These include the necessity for all organisations to comply with relevant national animal welfare legislation, a committed effort from all organisations to work towards eliminating extreme conformations, and the need for organisations to strive to improve and maintain genetic diversity within subpopulations of dogs. It was also agreed that all organisations should recognise and support crossbreeding as an accepted and valuable tool for modern dog breeding.
The discussions and actions initiated at the 5th IDHW are not just theoretical exercises; they are a commitment to a healthier future for our dogs. Progress will be reviewed at the 6th IDHW, scheduled for 2026 in Italy around the time of the World Dog Show.
For those seeking more information, resources like DogWellNet.com offers invaluable guidance. The full report by Mäki et al. (2025) is available here: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40575-025-00143-0
