{"id":4336,"date":"2019-02-05T10:00:32","date_gmt":"2019-02-05T16:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dev.diamondpet.wearewoodruff.xyz\/?p=4336"},"modified":"2023-10-23T02:18:12","modified_gmt":"2023-10-23T07:18:12","slug":"are-mixed-breed-dogs-healthier-than-purebreds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.diamondpet.com\/blog\/culture\/myths\/are-mixed-breed-dogs-healthier-than-purebreds\/","title":{"rendered":"Debarking Pet Myths: Are Mixed-Breed Dogs Really Healthier Than Purebreds?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to \u201cDebarking Pet Myths,\u201d our monthly series that addresses common myths, misconceptions and old wives\u2019 tales about dogs and cats.<\/em><\/p>\n

This month, we\u2019re addressing a widely held assumption that\u2019s responsible for a lot of debate and controversy among dog owners, breeders and even some veterinarians. There\u2019s been so much debate, in fact, that veterinary researchers have looked into the question. Scientists with the University of California\u2013Davis, the University of Helsinki, Genoscoper Laboratories and Wisdom Health decided to search medical records and a canine DNA database for an answer.<\/p>\n

The controversy-causing belief?<\/p>\n

A \u201cmutt\u201d (or mixed-breed dog) is healthier than a purebred dog.<\/strong><\/p>\n

HEREDITARY DISEASES ARE COMMON IN DOGS<\/h2>\n

Like people, dogs can have or pass on a number of genetic health conditions. With nearly 700 inherited disorders and traits identified in the canine population so far, dogs are second only to people in the number of known inherited diseases. And dogs are one of the most genetically well-studied species \u2014 second only to humans.<\/p>\n

Domesticated dogs are thought to have descended from three to five wolf lineages. Since each lineage was derived from a few common ancestors, some genetic disorders would be common to all dogs regardless of their breed. Researchers have found that to be true for some of the health issues they have studied.<\/p>\n

In a DNA screening study<\/a> of more than 100,000 dogs, scientists found that purebred and mixed-breed dogs can potentially suffer from many of the same inherited disorders. They also found that two in five dogs carried at least one of the 152 disease-related gene variants (known previously as gene mutations) for which the researchers screened. While mixed-breed dogs were more likely to carry a common recessive disease gene variant, purebred dogs were more likely to be genetically affected with an inherited disorder.<\/p>\n

SOME GENETIC DISEASES ARE LIMITED TO LINES OF PUREBRED DOG BREEDS<\/h3>\n

Researchers at UC\u2013Davis found expression of genetic disorders<\/a> in the dog population varies with the specific disorder. They evaluated the medical records of more than 90,000 dogs seen at the veterinary medical teaching hospital over a 15-year period for 24 genetic health problems. These disorders included various types of cancers, heart diseases, endocrine system diseases, orthopedic problems, allergic dermatitis and bloat (gastric dilatation volvulus or GDV), to name a few.<\/p>\n

These researchers found that 13 of the 24 genetic health problems occurred with equal frequency among all purebred and mixed-breed dogs in the study. Purebred dogs were more likely to have 10 genetic disorders:<\/p>\n