Animal professionals shown to disagree with each other when assigning breed(s) to dogs of unknown parentage.
Summary A survey of more than 900 people in dog-related professions and services showed that they frequently disagreed with each other when making visual breed identifications of the same dog, and that their opinions may or may not have correlated with DNA breed analysis. More than 70% of the study participants reported that now, or […]
NCRC Video Interview with Janis Bradley
Janis Bradley, veteran dog trainer and author of the NCRC Vision Series publication, ‘The Relevance of Breed in Selecting a Companion Dog,’ discusses whether breed is a useful indicator of the suitability of a companion dog. Click to view other NCRC Video interviews.
Study underscores that we can only learn what dogs are capable of from capable dogs.
The human community has changed dramatically in the modern era. Both dogs and people are continually adjusting to new phenomena (trains, cars, streets teeming with other people and other dogs, to name a few) and new expectations that arise from our living in closer proximity to each other. It’s challenging enough for people. How do […]
NCRC Interview with Dr. Kristopher Irizarry
Dr. Irizarry discusses the genetic basis for why dogs that look alike do not necessarily act alike. NCRC Interview with Kristopher J. Irizarry, PhD
How long before we discard visual breed identification? A new survey confirms that even dog experts can’t tell just by looking.
In the 1960’s, John Paul Scott and John L. Fuller showed that mixed breed dogs may bear little or no resemblance to their purebred ancestors.[i] In 2009, Dr. Victoria Voith and colleagues from Western University published a short report indicating a low agreement between the identification of breeds of dogs by adoption agencies and DNA […]
Study shows owners and non-owners recognize animal emotions
“‘Sometimes I read about someone saying with great authority that animals have no intentions and no feelings, and I wonder, ‘Doesn’t this guy have a dog?”’ – Frans De Waal, quoted in The New York Times June 26, 2001 Charles Darwin argued that emotions evolved in both humans and animals; and scientists who have studied […]
NCRC Video Interview with Dr. Amy Marder
Dr. Marder discusses the concept that dogs are individuals and the particular relevance of that concept when selecting a companion dog.
HSUS “Pets for Life” toolkit: empowering pet owners in under-served areas and yielding significant results for animals in the creation of humane communities
All of us who love dogs – whether we live with them, raise them, provide professional services for them, or use them for a purpose – recognize the value they hold in our society. Yet the human-canine bond may be weakened by a disparate amount of resources and support available to human beings in under-served […]
Miami-Dade “pit bull” ban remains, despite overwhelming evidence of failure and county officials’ view
On August 14, 2012, 248,496 of Miami-Dade County’s 1.2 million registered voters (20%, or 202,637 people) went to the polls to decide if a 23-year-old ban on “pit bull” dogs would be repealed through a voter referendum. The outcome showed that 140,879 (63.2%) of participating voters opted to keep the ban in place, compared with […]
NCRC Interview with Bill Bruce on Ineffective Dog Laws
Bill Bruce, Calgary’s Director of Animal and By-Law Services discusses ineffective dog laws such as breed-specific legislation, pet limit laws, and mandatory spay-neuter, and why these broad-based forms of legislation are ineffective. NCRC Interview with Bill Bruce on Ineffective Dog Laws