0:00:02 > 0:00:03Ooh, come to me, ooh, come to me!
0:00:03 > 0:00:05The British bulldog.
0:00:05 > 0:00:06A national icon.
0:00:07 > 0:00:11And possibly the most irresistible puppy in the world.
0:00:11 > 0:00:14Well, I mean, I can totally see why people lose...
0:00:16 > 0:00:19..lose all common sense when they're around these puppies
0:00:19 > 0:00:22because they're the cutest things I've ever seen.
0:00:22 > 0:00:23And...
0:00:23 > 0:00:27All right, I'm trying to big you up, don't do that!
0:00:28 > 0:00:31As a nation, we're bonkers about bulldogs.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34Over the last 15 years, their numbers have quadrupled.
0:00:36 > 0:00:39Adoring owners love to capture the spirit of the bulldog
0:00:39 > 0:00:41and share clips online.
0:00:43 > 0:00:44Good girl.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49But the British bulldog is plagued by health defects.
0:00:49 > 0:00:53Two years ago, shocking new research caused an international controversy.
0:00:54 > 0:00:55Scientists say it could die out
0:00:55 > 0:00:59if it isn't crossed with other types of dog to avoid health problems.
0:00:59 > 0:01:02At the start of this year, British vets launched
0:01:02 > 0:01:07a national campaign urging dog buyers to avoid flat-faced breeds.
0:01:07 > 0:01:09DOG SNORTS
0:01:09 > 0:01:12From breathing difficulties to spinal disease,
0:01:12 > 0:01:15the bulldog is in crisis.
0:01:15 > 0:01:18It's a loved, iconic breed, but in its current form,
0:01:18 > 0:01:19it isn't fit for life.
0:01:20 > 0:01:22I'm Catherine Tate.
0:01:22 > 0:01:24I'm a dog owner and an animal lover.
0:01:24 > 0:01:27I'm also passionate about animal welfare.
0:01:27 > 0:01:28Are you a beautiful girl?
0:01:28 > 0:01:30You'll come home with me?
0:01:30 > 0:01:33I want to find out what's gone wrong with the British bulldog
0:01:33 > 0:01:34and what we can do to save it.
0:01:34 > 0:01:37I'll meet some of the world's leading experts
0:01:37 > 0:01:39battling to fix the breed.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42A lot of people think a snorting bulldog is normal for the breed.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45It isn't. This is a serious disease.
0:01:46 > 0:01:49I'll meet the breeders fighting to preserve the dog they love.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52We all aim to breed the perfect bulldog,
0:01:52 > 0:01:56but I also breed for health as well.
0:01:56 > 0:01:58And I'll ask the Kennel Club,
0:01:58 > 0:02:01the leading authority in charge of pedigree dogs,
0:02:01 > 0:02:03whether they're doing enough.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06I'm seeing dogs that have had to have operations
0:02:06 > 0:02:08to help them breathe.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11Of course, no-one would ever try and defend that.
0:02:11 > 0:02:16So can we save the British bulldog or is it already too late?
0:02:23 > 0:02:26MUSIC PLAYS
0:02:31 > 0:02:33If Britain is a nation of dog lovers,
0:02:33 > 0:02:35I completely fulfil the stereotype.
0:02:37 > 0:02:38Come on, Twinks.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41In fact, one of my early TV characters was a dog trainer.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46So, it's just a gentle trot and stay close.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50Don't forget the praise, you'll get nowhere without the praise.
0:02:50 > 0:02:51- Good boy!- Good boy!
0:02:51 > 0:02:54OK, everyone, that's our 90 minutes.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56And if we keep up this standard, in a few weeks,
0:02:56 > 0:02:59I can see myself letting some of you bring your dogs.
0:03:03 > 0:03:07My dog is a cross between a Chihuahua and a Brussels griffon.
0:03:07 > 0:03:09And owning her has changed my life.
0:03:09 > 0:03:11DOG BARKS
0:03:11 > 0:03:15This is Twinkle. I love her so much.
0:03:15 > 0:03:19She came along and now I am so animal-centric.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22I think quite a lot of people worry about me
0:03:22 > 0:03:27because I certainly like animals and dogs much more than people.
0:03:27 > 0:03:29And I don't think I'm the only one.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31Come on, Twinks.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34We Brits adore our dogs
0:03:34 > 0:03:38and one of our top ten favourite breeds is the bulldog.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44The annual bulldog picnic in Chichester is an occasion
0:03:44 > 0:03:47for bulldog lovers from all over Britain to get together
0:03:47 > 0:03:49and share their passion for the breed.
0:03:50 > 0:03:54# And they all go hand in hand
0:03:54 > 0:03:59# Hand in hand through their parklife... #
0:04:02 > 0:04:06Every September, around 300 dogs and their owners gather for a day
0:04:06 > 0:04:09of doggy bonding, dog shows...
0:04:09 > 0:04:11..and some pretty impressive dressing up.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16But it's the bulldog's personality that wins the day.
0:04:16 > 0:04:20My name's Sarah, this is Alfie. He's the most loving dog going.
0:04:20 > 0:04:24He likes cuddles, he's just absolutely brilliant.
0:04:24 > 0:04:27This is Reg and he's five and a half.
0:04:27 > 0:04:31You'd never think that an animal could bring so much love
0:04:31 > 0:04:34and happiness to a family.
0:04:34 > 0:04:37His name's Duke and he's really friendly.
0:04:37 > 0:04:39He is a lovable dog.
0:04:39 > 0:04:41You know, you see the old pictures,
0:04:41 > 0:04:43you see Winston Churchill with a bulldog.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46It's just British, it's just part of our heritage, I think.
0:04:50 > 0:04:54The bulldog has been a British icon for over 200 years,
0:04:54 > 0:04:56renowned for its courage and fighting spirit.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02During World War II, the bulldog's bravery, tenacity
0:05:02 > 0:05:07and resilience were celebrated as ideals of the British character.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11They always relate back to Winston Churchill and I think that
0:05:11 > 0:05:13Winston Churchill had the bulldog spirit.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15He looked like a bulldog
0:05:15 > 0:05:18and the amount of bulldogs we get through called Winston
0:05:18 > 0:05:19are just unbelievable.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26There's no denying we love our bulldogs.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30In fact, over the last 15 years, the number of pedigree bulldogs
0:05:30 > 0:05:33has quadrupled from around 2,000 a year to nearly 8,000.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39But now I'm hearing that the health of the breed
0:05:39 > 0:05:41has become a huge concern for vets.
0:05:42 > 0:05:44So I want to investigate what's going on.
0:05:44 > 0:05:46I've got three articles here.
0:05:46 > 0:05:50One is from the BBC News website and the headline says,
0:05:50 > 0:05:55"English bulldog health problems prompt cross-breeding call."
0:05:55 > 0:05:56If we go to the Times...
0:05:58 > 0:06:01.."Bulldogs have little chance of a healthy life."
0:06:02 > 0:06:06And the Independent which says, "English bulldogs now so inbred,
0:06:06 > 0:06:10"their appalling health problems will not improve."
0:06:10 > 0:06:13So, they are not headlines that sit on the fence.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19These news stories are incredibly worrying.
0:06:19 > 0:06:21They paint a picture of a breed in crisis.
0:06:23 > 0:06:26So what are the main health problems affecting many British bulldogs?
0:06:27 > 0:06:30To find out, I've come to the Royal Veterinary College
0:06:30 > 0:06:34in Potters Bar, one of the leading vet schools in the UK,
0:06:34 > 0:06:36to meet Professor Dan Brockman.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39- Hello, are you Dan?- I am indeed, would you like to come this way? - Yeah.
0:06:39 > 0:06:43Dan is a specialist at the UK's first clinic dedicated to
0:06:43 > 0:06:47flat-faced dogs like bulldogs, known as the brachycephalic breeds.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50One of the key problems that these dogs face
0:06:50 > 0:06:52is their ability to breathe.
0:06:52 > 0:06:54Brachycephaly means short head.
0:06:54 > 0:06:56- Right.- But if you look at this picture,
0:06:56 > 0:07:02this is a CT of a brachycephalic dog and this is a short nose
0:07:02 > 0:07:05and this is a CT of a much longer-nosed dog,
0:07:05 > 0:07:08probably a German shepherd or something like that.
0:07:08 > 0:07:11This structure here is the soft palate.
0:07:11 > 0:07:16Dan explains the soft palate is the tissue at the back of the roof of the mouth.
0:07:16 > 0:07:21And in these brachycephalic dogs, the soft palate is incredibly thick
0:07:21 > 0:07:25in comparison to the soft palate in a non-brachycephalic dog.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27And what's caused that?
0:07:27 > 0:07:31It's just all of that tissue trying to cram into a smaller space.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34So, it's just squashed...?
0:07:34 > 0:07:36It's all squashed in.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40Over the past 150 years, breeders have bred for
0:07:40 > 0:07:43an ever flatter muzzle, squashing the soft tissue inside.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48This is the nostril.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52Now, a normal dog should have a very wide open space here,
0:07:52 > 0:07:55but you can see this nostril collapses down.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59The nostrils are one of the highest causes of the resistance to airflow.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02They just can't breathe, they can't get their breath.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05- It must be the most frightening experience.- I agree.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08- And that's what these dogs experience.- I agree.
0:08:08 > 0:08:12So, what are the other issues that the bulldog presents with?
0:08:12 > 0:08:14Well, the skin folds on the face,
0:08:14 > 0:08:18so this fold of skin almost completely covers the nose.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21And in these little folds, here,
0:08:21 > 0:08:24there's a raging bacterial infection already.
0:08:24 > 0:08:26The eye is in here somewhere.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30- Gosh.- And all those folds of skin, if they roll all the way round,
0:08:30 > 0:08:33hair is rubbing directly onto the eye.
0:08:33 > 0:08:39They get chronic ear infections and their leg shapes are unusual
0:08:39 > 0:08:43and they're shorter and they're often quite bent.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45So, they may be predisposed
0:08:45 > 0:08:49to certain types of degenerative joint disease as well.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51They are inherently unhealthy.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54The bulldog's body shape is also the reason
0:08:54 > 0:08:58that 86% of the breed has to give birth by Caesarean section.
0:08:59 > 0:09:02So, how did the bulldog get to this point?
0:09:03 > 0:09:06Well, that's an interesting question,
0:09:06 > 0:09:08and clearly bulldogs originally
0:09:08 > 0:09:11were bred for a purpose, because they were bull-fighting dogs.
0:09:11 > 0:09:15But what happened over the years was
0:09:15 > 0:09:18that the function that these dogs were really bred for
0:09:18 > 0:09:21no longer became important.
0:09:21 > 0:09:23- But people said, "Well, I quite like the look of that."- Right.
0:09:23 > 0:09:26For some reason, people thought
0:09:26 > 0:09:28that the shorter and shorter the nose got,
0:09:28 > 0:09:30the cuter the animals became.
0:09:30 > 0:09:35And that's really created a huge number of knock-on effects.
0:09:35 > 0:09:37It's a purely man-made disease.
0:09:38 > 0:09:41I find it shocking how humans have played such a big role
0:09:41 > 0:09:43in the way the bulldog looks
0:09:43 > 0:09:46and how we're the cause of so many of its health problems.
0:09:48 > 0:09:51I want to find out more about how the dog's looks
0:09:51 > 0:09:53have changed over the years.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56I'm looking at a picture of the original bulldog
0:09:56 > 0:09:58which is from around about 1817.
0:09:58 > 0:10:03And you know, much, much different formation of dog.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06It's longer, it's leaner,
0:10:06 > 0:10:10its head and neck are in proportion, its got a muzzle,
0:10:10 > 0:10:12it's fit and athletic.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16And then we go to the dog that we call the bulldog today.
0:10:16 > 0:10:22And it's a flat face, wrinkles around the forehead, much shorter.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25Squat, massive shoulders.
0:10:26 > 0:10:33So, the contrast in the physical differences is stark.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40The pedigree bulldog of today has a written description of how it should look.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42This is known as the breed standard.
0:10:43 > 0:10:48"Head fairly large in proportion to size, but at no point so much in excess
0:10:48 > 0:10:52"of others as to destroy the general symmetry
0:10:52 > 0:10:54"or make the dog appear deformed.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57"Face relatively short, muzzle broad, blunt,
0:10:57 > 0:11:01"and inclined upward, though not excessively so.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04"Dogs showing respiratory distress highly undesirable."
0:11:04 > 0:11:08So, this all sounds quite moderate and reasonable.
0:11:08 > 0:11:13But, from what I'm hearing and from what I'm reading,
0:11:13 > 0:11:16there's an awful lot of dogs out there that don't conform
0:11:16 > 0:11:19to this description. So, I want to know what's going on.
0:11:24 > 0:11:27Despite what it says about the bulldog in the breed standard,
0:11:27 > 0:11:30one of the dog's major health problems is its poor breathing.
0:11:32 > 0:11:36So, I'm heading to the Cambridge University Vet Hospital to meet
0:11:36 > 0:11:40leading soft tissue surgeon, Jane Ladlow, who treats many bulldogs.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44Jane and her colleague, Nai-Chieh Liu, are conducting
0:11:44 > 0:11:47research into the bulldog breathing disease known as
0:11:47 > 0:11:50brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome, or BOAS.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58As part of their research, they use a special chamber
0:11:58 > 0:12:00to measure bulldogs' breathing ability
0:12:00 > 0:12:02with greater accuracy than ever before.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07This helps them to diagnose dogs affected with BOAS
0:12:07 > 0:12:09and treat them more effectively.
0:12:11 > 0:12:13So, what exactly is BOAS?
0:12:13 > 0:12:16So, BOAS is when you've got too much soft tissue
0:12:16 > 0:12:18at the back of your throat or in your nose,
0:12:18 > 0:12:22so in the bulldog it's particularly a long, thick, soft palate.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25And this soft palate gets sucked into the airway and the voice box
0:12:25 > 0:12:28when the animal breathes and it causes an obstruction.
0:12:28 > 0:12:31How many dogs overall are affected by BOAS?
0:12:31 > 0:12:32It's just under 50%.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35And we think that's probably relatively typical
0:12:35 > 0:12:37of the population at large.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43Today, Jane is seeing Laura and her bulldog, Betsy.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47Betsy suffers from BOAS and is here for a pre-surgery consultation.
0:12:47 > 0:12:49- This is Catherine. - Hi, nice to meet you.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52- And this is Betsy.- Hello. - Oh, how lovely.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54Betsy is a British bulldog
0:12:54 > 0:12:58with some of another bulldog breed in her known as Old Tyme.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01I think you've particularly unlucky as Betsy may have a little bit
0:13:01 > 0:13:03of Old Tyme in her, but she's presenting very much
0:13:03 > 0:13:07- with the classical presentation of the bulldog.- Yeah.
0:13:07 > 0:13:10So, you have come because you're worried about the fact she's making
0:13:10 > 0:13:13a lot of noise when she's breathing sometimes, particularly on exercise?
0:13:13 > 0:13:17Yeah, the hotter the weather, the louder it is.
0:13:17 > 0:13:22And then, when she's running, it's like something closes in her throat,
0:13:22 > 0:13:27- so she ends up, like, throwing up foam.- She regurgitates?- Yeah.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29So, it's those kind of things with her,
0:13:29 > 0:13:31especially with the hot weather.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33What's she's like when she's sleeping?
0:13:33 > 0:13:35She snores a lot, continuously.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39She does stop breathing, I think, every now and then
0:13:39 > 0:13:41for a short period of time
0:13:41 > 0:13:44because the snoring stops and then it starts again.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46Is that not really scary?
0:13:46 > 0:13:49Yeah, it is a little bit, because I don't know why she's doing it.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51- Wow!- I've brought some home footage with me
0:13:51 > 0:13:53just to show you her breathing at her worst
0:13:53 > 0:13:56cos now she's quite cool and relaxed.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59But this is...
0:13:59 > 0:14:02DOG SNORTS
0:14:02 > 0:14:04So, that's that after...
0:14:04 > 0:14:07- It sounds like a monster, doesn't it?- It does.
0:14:10 > 0:14:12Is that you?
0:14:14 > 0:14:17It must really freak you out. That would really freak me out.
0:14:17 > 0:14:19- Yeah, it makes you feel really upset.- Of course.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25Laura tells me it doesn't take much exercise
0:14:25 > 0:14:27for Betsy to get into this state.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30I mean, that's severely limiting, isn't it, in terms of a dog?
0:14:30 > 0:14:34So, we've got Betsy as our most severe grade, I'm afraid.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37And we think that she is actually quite severely affected because
0:14:37 > 0:14:40the skull is shortened but the soft tissues are still quite long.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43And in bulldogs, it is usually a thick and long soft palate.
0:14:43 > 0:14:46And that's very much what she sounds like to me.
0:14:46 > 0:14:51Jane has decided that Betsy needs surgery to trim the excess tissue
0:14:51 > 0:14:52at the back of her throat.
0:14:52 > 0:14:54So if we trim that soft palate
0:14:54 > 0:14:57and stop it being sucked into her voice box when she's breathing,
0:14:57 > 0:14:59I think you will notice quite an improvement with her.
0:14:59 > 0:15:03And what are you hoping to achieve after the surgery?
0:15:03 > 0:15:04How will it improve her life?
0:15:04 > 0:15:08So, we're never going to get her to an athletic kind of dog,
0:15:08 > 0:15:10unfortunately, because she does have these issues
0:15:10 > 0:15:12so we're really looking for quality of life.
0:15:12 > 0:15:15So, a dog that can go out and exercise without becoming
0:15:15 > 0:15:17too distressed or having that kind of noise.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20- Yeah.- Oh! Beautiful girl.
0:15:21 > 0:15:23We're going to get you breathing better.
0:15:23 > 0:15:25You can walk and play!
0:15:25 > 0:15:27I'll be back to observe Betsy's surgery,
0:15:27 > 0:15:30which hopefully will improve her quality of life.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34But, for some bulldogs, surgery isn't enough.
0:15:36 > 0:15:40The average life expectancy for British dogs is 12 years.
0:15:40 > 0:15:42For bulldogs, it's just eight.
0:15:42 > 0:15:44Many don't even make it that far.
0:15:44 > 0:15:48I've come to East Sussex to meet Donna, a former bulldog owner.
0:15:50 > 0:15:53- Hi, Catherine.- Hello. - Come on in.- Thank you.
0:15:53 > 0:15:57Donna's bulldog, Frank, died when he was just three years old.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00Was Frank your first bulldog?
0:16:00 > 0:16:02He was my first bulldog.
0:16:03 > 0:16:04Aw, look at him.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07He was brilliant with the grandchildren really.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10Temperament was lovely, with everybody, with other dogs.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13What age was he when he had his first operation?
0:16:13 > 0:16:15Probably about five months old
0:16:15 > 0:16:18when he had his soft palate and his nose done.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20Then he had ear infections.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23I guess the last straw for him and the biggest thing
0:16:23 > 0:16:26- was the cruciate ligaments. - That's in the knee, is it?
0:16:26 > 0:16:29Yeah, his knees kept dislocating.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32And, um, so he couldn't go upstairs.
0:16:32 > 0:16:37His life was really restricted and really limited in what he could do.
0:16:38 > 0:16:40What happened before he died?
0:16:40 > 0:16:43- What...?- Well, he had to have the cruciate ligament surgery.
0:16:43 > 0:16:48He came through the GA and I was phoned to say, "Yeah, he's fine."
0:16:48 > 0:16:49GA, general anaesthetic?
0:16:49 > 0:16:53Yeah, and I got a phone call about three and they said,
0:16:53 > 0:16:55"He's having trouble breathing, we're not sure why."
0:16:55 > 0:16:59And his lungs just couldn't cope, really struggling.
0:16:59 > 0:17:02And she just said, "What do you want us to do, during the night,
0:17:02 > 0:17:05"should anything happen?" And I said, "Just do what's best for him.
0:17:05 > 0:17:06"Whatever that may be."
0:17:06 > 0:17:08Oh, I'm so sorry for you.
0:17:08 > 0:17:10- That's all right. - That's really hard.
0:17:10 > 0:17:12That's terrible, it's really hard.
0:17:13 > 0:17:19Because, I mean, you know, losing any pet is a terrible experience.
0:17:19 > 0:17:20Yeah.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23Now, presumably, your vet bills were quite high, were they?
0:17:23 > 0:17:25They were very high.
0:17:25 > 0:17:27It did get ridiculous, to be honest,
0:17:27 > 0:17:31because the cruciate ligament surgery was £3,000 per leg.
0:17:33 > 0:17:36I think the first leg, about £800 of that was paid by the insurance,
0:17:36 > 0:17:38but then I paid the rest.
0:17:38 > 0:17:40And I paid the rest on the second leg.
0:17:40 > 0:17:42So in his three years of life,
0:17:42 > 0:17:45how much in total do you think you spent on vet bills?
0:17:45 > 0:17:50I'd probably say, as an estimate, between £8,000 and 10,000.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52Gosh, that's a lot, isn't it?
0:17:52 > 0:17:54And there was a worry of...
0:17:54 > 0:17:57- How will you continue to pay? - That's right, yeah.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00Where is this going to go? And you continue to do what you can do...
0:18:00 > 0:18:03- Yeah.- ..because, you know, they are a member of your family, they are.
0:18:03 > 0:18:05- Yeah, of course. - You took on that dog,
0:18:05 > 0:18:07you took responsibility of that dog.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10What would you say to people considering buying a bulldog?
0:18:10 > 0:18:15I personally would not buy another bulldog
0:18:15 > 0:18:18and I think one of the reasons I decided to talk to you today
0:18:18 > 0:18:20was to make people more aware,
0:18:20 > 0:18:26and if it does make one person think about the puppy that they're buying,
0:18:26 > 0:18:29and asking the right questions, you know,
0:18:29 > 0:18:31that's all I want to achieve, really.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38Back at Cambridge, it's the day of Betsy's surgery.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44First, Jane Ladlow and her team do a scan
0:18:44 > 0:18:46of the inside of Betsy's nose and throat...
0:18:52 > 0:18:54..then it's through to the operating theatre.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58The surgery will involve cutting away
0:18:58 > 0:19:01a section of Betsy's soft palate to help her breathe.
0:19:04 > 0:19:06Before the surgery begins,
0:19:06 > 0:19:09the tissue at the back of her mouth is so large,
0:19:09 > 0:19:11it's difficult to see her windpipe.
0:19:13 > 0:19:18When you do the soft palate, is it a case of just taking off
0:19:18 > 0:19:22some of the length or do you have to reconstruct it?
0:19:22 > 0:19:24So, we take off length, but we also take off thickness as well
0:19:24 > 0:19:27because these palates are excessively thick.
0:19:28 > 0:19:31So we strip out some of the muscle and some of the soft tissue,
0:19:31 > 0:19:35but the reconstruction we're doing is really to thin the soft palate.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39So now what I'm going to do is come up and cut the soft palate
0:19:39 > 0:19:42right at the front part of the tonsil.
0:19:42 > 0:19:45I'm going all the way down the side.
0:19:46 > 0:19:50It's a really big chunk of tissue I'm going to take out of Betsy.
0:19:51 > 0:19:53She has a very, very thick and soft palate.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00And that's the size of the tissue that we've just taken out
0:20:00 > 0:20:02of this dog, out of Betsy.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05- It's quite considerable, isn't it? - It is a considerable amount
0:20:05 > 0:20:07of tissue to have the back of your throat.
0:20:07 > 0:20:09- In excess.- It is in excess. Yes.
0:20:10 > 0:20:13OK, Catherine, if you want to have a look,
0:20:13 > 0:20:15so that's how we're going to leave the palate.
0:20:15 > 0:20:17Pretty short in comparison to where we were.
0:20:17 > 0:20:19Gosh, that's a big difference, isn't it?
0:20:19 > 0:20:21It is a bit difference, actually.
0:20:21 > 0:20:23- It's a big chunk of tissue we took out of Betsy.- Yeah.
0:20:23 > 0:20:25By cutting away this amount of tissue,
0:20:25 > 0:20:28Jane tells me more air will reach Betsy's lungs,
0:20:28 > 0:20:29and she'll find breathing easier.
0:20:32 > 0:20:35But Betsy's operation is not over just yet.
0:20:35 > 0:20:37Next, Jane is going to make her nostrils wider
0:20:37 > 0:20:40so she can breathe through her nose more easily.
0:20:40 > 0:20:44So I'm taking out the bit called the nare fold, which is just behind
0:20:44 > 0:20:46the nostril, and is quite a chunky bit of tissue.
0:20:46 > 0:20:50And by removing that, we take out a little bit of the obstruction
0:20:50 > 0:20:52at the front of the nostrils.
0:20:57 > 0:21:00The question is, do they look about right, what do you reckon, guys?
0:21:00 > 0:21:02Do you think they look about right?
0:21:02 > 0:21:04I can't believe that dogs as young as Betsy
0:21:04 > 0:21:07need invasive operations like this, just to be able breathe.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10Right, we're finished, thank you very much for that.
0:21:10 > 0:21:11Beautiful girl you are.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17Despite the fact that this surgery can cost up to £3,000,
0:21:17 > 0:21:19it's becoming more and more commonplace.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22Is there a danger that some people out there are going to,
0:21:22 > 0:21:24kind of, normalise this kind of procedure.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27Just think it's par for the course of having a bulldog,
0:21:27 > 0:21:29that they just have to have a little nip and tuck,
0:21:29 > 0:21:31and then the dog will be better?
0:21:31 > 0:21:35We see a lot of people that don't recognise that the airway noises are abnormal.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38They think hearing a snorting bulldog is normal for the breed.
0:21:38 > 0:21:40It isn't. Or it shouldn't be.
0:21:40 > 0:21:42This is a serious disease, it carries risks,
0:21:42 > 0:21:46and it's sad to think that you have to do this routinely on dogs
0:21:46 > 0:21:50to make them, you know, have a quality of life that's acceptable.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53Presumably this isn't a long-term fix for the breed...
0:21:53 > 0:21:55No, this is not a long-term fix for the breed.
0:21:55 > 0:21:57I enjoy doing this kind of surgery,
0:21:57 > 0:21:59but if it gets to the stage where I see one of these a year,
0:21:59 > 0:22:02as opposed to four or five a week, I would be delighted.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06We're improving them, but we are not totally fixing them, because,
0:22:06 > 0:22:10unfortunately, when the anatomy is so obstructed, you can help,
0:22:10 > 0:22:12but you can't completely sort things out.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17I mean, I find it very difficult to not be affected
0:22:17 > 0:22:20when I see bulldogs undergoing surgery.
0:22:20 > 0:22:22I just find it difficult to understand how we can,
0:22:22 > 0:22:26in all consciousness, go, "Yeah, I mean, it's all right."
0:22:26 > 0:22:28I think that is, kind of, what is happening,
0:22:28 > 0:22:30we're just allowing it to happen.
0:22:30 > 0:22:36And, you know, I don't mean to demonise people who love bulldogs,
0:22:36 > 0:22:41because the vast majority of people care deeply
0:22:41 > 0:22:44and would not want harm on any animal,
0:22:44 > 0:22:47but I just don't think there's a level of awareness yet
0:22:47 > 0:22:50that has infiltrated the public, because...
0:22:52 > 0:22:54..clearly, the dogs are suffering.
0:22:55 > 0:23:00We as humans have to start putting the dogs first.
0:23:01 > 0:23:03And I don't think we are.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12But despite these problems, there are people out there
0:23:12 > 0:23:15who are doing their best to save the British bulldog.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20Right now, breeders don't have to do any health tests on their bulldogs
0:23:20 > 0:23:21before they breed them.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23There are no regulations to prevent unhealthy dogs
0:23:23 > 0:23:26passing on their problems to their offspring.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31I've come to Wolverhampton to meet two show breeders
0:23:31 > 0:23:33who are working hard to change that.
0:23:33 > 0:23:35- Hello, Catherine. - Hello.
0:23:35 > 0:23:37Lieza Handley and Vicky Collins-Nattrass
0:23:37 > 0:23:40run the Health Committee of the Bulldog Breed Council.
0:23:40 > 0:23:42Hello, are you Vicky?
0:23:42 > 0:23:43Nice to meet you.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46They have launched their own health testing scheme
0:23:46 > 0:23:49which awards bulldogs a bronze, silver or gold certificate
0:23:49 > 0:23:51based on the quality of their health.
0:23:51 > 0:23:54- So, where are the dogs? - They're outside.
0:23:57 > 0:24:01Lieza, Vicky and their friend, Lorraine, try to breed healthy dogs,
0:24:01 > 0:24:04that still match the Kennel Club's breed standard.
0:24:04 > 0:24:05They're keen to show me
0:24:05 > 0:24:09how their testing scheme is improving their dogs' health.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13- And who's this? Hello.- This is Piper, she is eight-years-old.
0:24:13 > 0:24:15She's a beautiful girl.
0:24:15 > 0:24:16She's also a champion.
0:24:16 > 0:24:20She passed the vet checks to become a champion in 2012.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22A champion in the show ring or...
0:24:22 > 0:24:24- Yes.- ..or from health standards?
0:24:24 > 0:24:27- The show ring.- The show ring. - Yes.- So this is...
0:24:27 > 0:24:29- Her mum.- Her mum?- Yes.
0:24:29 > 0:24:31Piper. Piper.
0:24:32 > 0:24:36- They can move, can't they, for a big unit?!- Yeah.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40These dogs are part of Lieza's ongoing breeding programme
0:24:40 > 0:24:41to improve the bulldog's health.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47If you didn't know, though, the noise they're making, you'd think...
0:24:47 > 0:24:49- Yes.- ..I'm in trouble.
0:24:49 > 0:24:51- She's excited.- She's excited?
0:24:51 > 0:24:52- Yes.- That's what they do.
0:24:52 > 0:24:56Because these are eight and ten years old,
0:24:56 > 0:25:00these are part of the work in progress that we're doing, aren't they?
0:25:00 > 0:25:02You'll see the difference in the young dog.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05Oh, look at this one. Who's that?
0:25:05 > 0:25:07- That's Henny.- Henny.
0:25:10 > 0:25:11Henny's nearly three.
0:25:12 > 0:25:14Give it to me.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17So this is a really playful, active dog.
0:25:17 > 0:25:18Yeah, yeah.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22I don't think I've ever seen a bulldog move like this.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25He loves these toys.
0:25:25 > 0:25:27What have you got?
0:25:27 > 0:25:32He's a French champion, he's also took part in our health scheme.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34And he's at gold.
0:25:37 > 0:25:39Hello.
0:25:42 > 0:25:46So, as show judges, because you're both show judges, aren't you?
0:25:46 > 0:25:48So what is it you're looking for?
0:25:48 > 0:25:52We all go for as close to breed standard as possible,
0:25:52 > 0:25:55but not only that, but also health as well.
0:25:55 > 0:26:00If we look at his eyes, he's got beautiful round, dark eyes.
0:26:00 > 0:26:06He's got a true-fitting mouth, he's got lovely nostrils,
0:26:06 > 0:26:10and if you can see, his roll isn't impeding on his eyes,
0:26:10 > 0:26:11or his nostrils.
0:26:11 > 0:26:15He's got very little work in his head,
0:26:15 > 0:26:18so just that, straightaway, is good.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21His coat and his skin is in absolute perfect condition,
0:26:21 > 0:26:23short and close to the body.
0:26:23 > 0:26:30If you look at his tail, his tail is free, straight, and he can wag it.
0:26:30 > 0:26:35And you look at his movement when he's walking normal,
0:26:35 > 0:26:38there's no lameness, or anything in there at all.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41So as far as the health scheme goes, he's a very handsome,
0:26:41 > 0:26:43active and healthy dog.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45And ginger!
0:26:45 > 0:26:46And ginger!
0:26:46 > 0:26:49Get the ginger ones out there!
0:26:49 > 0:26:50- Oh, my God!- Sorry.
0:26:50 > 0:26:53He doesn't even like talking about being ginger!
0:26:53 > 0:26:56He's made a run for it.
0:26:56 > 0:26:57See what happens?
0:27:00 > 0:27:02- This is Margot.- This is a baby one!
0:27:02 > 0:27:03She's 15 weeks.
0:27:03 > 0:27:05Oh, my gosh!
0:27:07 > 0:27:09Are you a beautiful girl?
0:27:09 > 0:27:11Want to come home with me?
0:27:11 > 0:27:12Catherine, you can't have that one!
0:27:12 > 0:27:14Come on!
0:27:14 > 0:27:15You've got a lovely nostril.
0:27:17 > 0:27:21Margot, you've got a cracking nostril.
0:27:21 > 0:27:25Lieza and Vicky hope their health certificate scheme will be adopted
0:27:25 > 0:27:27by bulldog breeders across the country.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32So you're hopeful that, within the gene pool,
0:27:32 > 0:27:37we could see a greater number of healthier dogs,
0:27:37 > 0:27:41- just if they were bred correctly. - With more knowledge
0:27:41 > 0:27:44so that people are aware and don't breed bad breathers together.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46That's the main thing.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48That would make a big difference.
0:27:48 > 0:27:53It's like me, with my breeding programme, you breed for the health.
0:27:53 > 0:27:55Yeah. Not for the looks.
0:27:55 > 0:27:59You do breed for the look, because we breed to our breed standard,
0:27:59 > 0:28:02and our breed standard, unfortunately,
0:28:02 > 0:28:05is the Bible for a lot of pedigree dog breeders.
0:28:05 > 0:28:08You all aim to breed the perfect bulldog.
0:28:08 > 0:28:11And every time I breed a litter, that's what I breed,
0:28:11 > 0:28:14but I also breed for health as well.
0:28:14 > 0:28:18It sounds to me, as a layperson, that the health certificate is
0:28:18 > 0:28:22a very good step towards getting all bulldogs
0:28:22 > 0:28:24to be as healthy as your dogs.
0:28:24 > 0:28:26Yes, this is what we hope.
0:28:26 > 0:28:28We're hoping, we're working towards.
0:28:28 > 0:28:30Is this scheme mandatory?
0:28:31 > 0:28:33- No.- It's not.- No.
0:28:33 > 0:28:36It would be good if it was, wouldn't it?
0:28:36 > 0:28:39The only way that health testing bulldogs before breeding
0:28:39 > 0:28:42would be able to put in place would be if the Kennel Club
0:28:42 > 0:28:46wouldn't register anything unless it was accompanied
0:28:46 > 0:28:50by a certificate to say that the dogs were gold level,
0:28:50 > 0:28:53silver level, or whatever.
0:28:53 > 0:28:55So it's...
0:28:55 > 0:28:57I think how we have it, really,
0:28:57 > 0:29:01is as far as we can take it with the regulation.
0:29:07 > 0:29:10The health certificate is a useful tool for any bulldog buyer
0:29:10 > 0:29:13to find out the health status of their puppy's parents.
0:29:15 > 0:29:18I'm on my way to the Kennel Club, the body which oversees
0:29:18 > 0:29:21the health and welfare of pedigree dogs in the UK.
0:29:21 > 0:29:23It produces the breed standards
0:29:23 > 0:29:26which says what a pedigree bulldog should look like.
0:29:28 > 0:29:32Bill Lambert is the Kennel Club's health and breeder services manager.
0:29:32 > 0:29:37What health tests are mandatory for registered bulldogs?
0:29:37 > 0:29:39We don't have health tests that are mandatory
0:29:39 > 0:29:41for the bulldog at the moment.
0:29:41 > 0:29:44And the reason for that is simply that if we brought in
0:29:44 > 0:29:48mandatory testing, it would simply force people away from registering
0:29:48 > 0:29:51with the Kennel Club. We have no mandatory powers.
0:29:51 > 0:29:55We have no legislative powers, so we have to try and keep people with us.
0:29:55 > 0:29:58And therefore, we do things by encouragement and persuasion,
0:29:58 > 0:29:59rather than by force.
0:29:59 > 0:30:04But I'm seeing dogs that have had to have operations
0:30:04 > 0:30:07to help them breathe, which is...
0:30:07 > 0:30:11- You know.- Of course, no-one would ever try and defend that.
0:30:11 > 0:30:13You do have to consider, obviously, the health of the dogs,
0:30:13 > 0:30:15that's got to be paramount,
0:30:15 > 0:30:18but you have to look at the temperament of the dogs.
0:30:18 > 0:30:21Of course we want dogs to look like we want them to look,
0:30:21 > 0:30:23so it's a balancing act for breeders.
0:30:23 > 0:30:27Just to pick up on something you said about we want the dogs
0:30:27 > 0:30:31to look like we want them to look, that's a very human, kind of,
0:30:31 > 0:30:33selfish driven thing.
0:30:33 > 0:30:36I mean, should we not come much further on the health of the dogs
0:30:36 > 0:30:38than we should on our own desires?
0:30:38 > 0:30:43Of course we should, but you also need to be aware that the work that
0:30:43 > 0:30:47we do, we influence around about 30% of the bulldogs, for example,
0:30:47 > 0:30:49bred in the UK.
0:30:49 > 0:30:52There's a huge percentage that are born outside our control.
0:30:52 > 0:30:57What we've recently experienced in the UK is a sudden growth in a breed,
0:30:57 > 0:31:01and the bulldog has grown in popularity immensely.
0:31:01 > 0:31:0615 years ago, in the Kennel Club, we registered about 2,000 a year.
0:31:06 > 0:31:08Last year we registered almost 8,000.
0:31:08 > 0:31:13When you get this mismatch between supply and demand, you, then,
0:31:13 > 0:31:16in the middle there, you get this gap effectively,
0:31:16 > 0:31:18and the irresponsible breeders,
0:31:18 > 0:31:20who don't necessarily know about the breed,
0:31:20 > 0:31:23don't care about the breed, will try and fill that gap.
0:31:23 > 0:31:27But as the governing body of pedigree dogs,
0:31:27 > 0:31:30should the Kennel Club be braver?
0:31:30 > 0:31:34Is there any more that the Kennel Club could do,
0:31:34 > 0:31:38given that you are the standard to which everyone looks?
0:31:38 > 0:31:41We are always looking to see what more we can do for all dogs.
0:31:41 > 0:31:46We are the largest contributor to genetic research at the moment,
0:31:46 > 0:31:48anyway, so we are doing a lot.
0:31:48 > 0:31:51But there's always more we can do. Of course.
0:31:51 > 0:31:55There is a danger, if we brought in extremely tight regulations,
0:31:55 > 0:31:59and we restricted every aspect of dog shows, of breeding dogs,
0:31:59 > 0:32:02we could become a tiny, boutique register,
0:32:02 > 0:32:07where our numbers would shrink down to a very small quantity of dogs,
0:32:07 > 0:32:13and the influence on all dogs would therefore be diluted and lost.
0:32:18 > 0:32:21Personally, I find it disappointing that the leading authority in charge
0:32:21 > 0:32:26of pedigree dogs in the UK feels reluctant to bring in stricter regulations.
0:32:29 > 0:32:33The Kennel Club say they don't want to alienate people,
0:32:33 > 0:32:39so their strategy is to simply encourage breeders to breed healthy dogs,
0:32:39 > 0:32:43and fund research that they hope, in time, will produce results.
0:32:45 > 0:32:48So now I want to find out if their approach could work.
0:32:50 > 0:32:54I've come to Cambridge University where, since 2015,
0:32:54 > 0:32:59the Kennel Club has spent £150,000 funding research
0:32:59 > 0:33:02into the bulldog breathing disease known as BOAS.
0:33:04 > 0:33:07Geneticist David Sagan, is trying to create a DNA test
0:33:07 > 0:33:10which will allow breeders to identify
0:33:10 > 0:33:13whether puppies are likely to develop the breathing disease.
0:33:15 > 0:33:17This could help rule out sick dogs
0:33:17 > 0:33:18before they've been used to breed with.
0:33:20 > 0:33:22So you could tell much earlier...
0:33:22 > 0:33:28- Yes.- ..whether the dog is potentially going to have problems?
0:33:28 > 0:33:32Many of our cases don't develop until three, four, five years old.
0:33:33 > 0:33:36So those dogs could be used by breeders at the moment,
0:33:36 > 0:33:39but with the DNA test, they'd know not to use them,
0:33:39 > 0:33:42and this will allow us to eliminate disease more quickly.
0:33:42 > 0:33:47Do you have any knowledge of what the breeders will think about this?
0:33:47 > 0:33:52Yes, I mean, the breeders have been very concerned that they have a dog
0:33:52 > 0:33:54where they like the shape of the dog,
0:33:54 > 0:33:57they very much like the personality of the dog.
0:33:57 > 0:34:01So although bulldogs have developed from vicious dogs,
0:34:01 > 0:34:05nowadays, most bulldogs are sweet as pie, and they're lovely pets.
0:34:05 > 0:34:11And they are very concerned that if we start trying to develop tests
0:34:11 > 0:34:15that cause radical change, or use strategies that cause
0:34:15 > 0:34:18radical change in the genetics of the dog,
0:34:18 > 0:34:21then they will lose these nice characteristics.
0:34:21 > 0:34:24So what we are looking to do is cause the minimum change
0:34:24 > 0:34:26in the appearance and character of the dogs.
0:34:26 > 0:34:30We're suggesting that you can move the population quite effectively
0:34:30 > 0:34:34away from being severely affected over a few generations.
0:34:38 > 0:34:41I think David's research is really encouraging.
0:34:41 > 0:34:44If a test for the breathing disease can be rolled out,
0:34:44 > 0:34:45and breeders are willing to take it on,
0:34:45 > 0:34:48it could have a very positive impact on the breed.
0:34:50 > 0:34:52But I know there are experts out there
0:34:52 > 0:34:55who think the pace of change is still too slow.
0:34:56 > 0:35:00One of them is Doctor Rowena Packer at the Royal Veterinary College.
0:35:00 > 0:35:03Rowena has spent the last eight years researching the problems
0:35:03 > 0:35:06experienced by flat-faced dogs like bulldogs.
0:35:06 > 0:35:09And she believes we need to drastically change our attitude to the breed.
0:35:12 > 0:35:17So I've met breeders who are really working hard to improve the bulldog's health.
0:35:17 > 0:35:19Is that not a good thing?
0:35:19 > 0:35:22It's, of course, a good thing in the sense that they're committed to
0:35:22 > 0:35:25breed health, that they are trying to breed with health in mind,
0:35:25 > 0:35:30but it's still within this box of, they should still look the same
0:35:30 > 0:35:32and that we should only use a small gene pool.
0:35:32 > 0:35:35And there's only so far you can actually go with that.
0:35:35 > 0:35:39I just feel like the level of ambition as to how much better
0:35:39 > 0:35:42they can be is just set that bit too low for me.
0:35:42 > 0:35:45Actually, we could be doing far more than just changing small things,
0:35:45 > 0:35:48whilst still being committed to this really extreme body shape.
0:35:49 > 0:35:52I mean, would you say that there is such a thing as a healthy bulldog?
0:35:52 > 0:35:54There is a spectrum.
0:35:54 > 0:35:57There's no doubt there are some healthy dogs within that population,
0:35:57 > 0:35:58but there needs to be enough.
0:35:58 > 0:36:01There's a huge issue within bulldog's genetic diversity,
0:36:01 > 0:36:04and if we only pick those few that don't have problems,
0:36:04 > 0:36:09then we potentially have a whole time bomb of other genetic problems down the line.
0:36:09 > 0:36:10Because of the inbreeding?
0:36:10 > 0:36:13Absolutely. There isn't a big gene pool to play with.
0:36:13 > 0:36:16Because of the strict rules of keeping dogs breeding
0:36:16 > 0:36:20within a small population, and breeding to standards that are,
0:36:20 > 0:36:23- fundamentally, unhealthy, we're stuck in the situation.- Yeah.
0:36:23 > 0:36:25So what is the solution?
0:36:25 > 0:36:28We need to fundamentally change the way the bulldog looks.
0:36:28 > 0:36:31It's a loved, iconic breed, but in its current form,
0:36:31 > 0:36:33it isn't fit for life.
0:36:33 > 0:36:37It isn't fit for function, it has too many problems.
0:36:37 > 0:36:41We need to open up our minds to what a bulldog can look like,
0:36:41 > 0:36:45we need to reject the extremes, we need to breed with, primarily,
0:36:45 > 0:36:47health in mind. We need to not be selfish,
0:36:47 > 0:36:52and prioritise how a dog looks above its long-term health and welfare.
0:36:57 > 0:37:00Before meeting Rowena, I was quite hopeful,
0:37:00 > 0:37:03but now I'm worried the problem is worse than I thought.
0:37:04 > 0:37:08I think where I am at the moment is I'm sort of all over the place.
0:37:08 > 0:37:12I'm... I'm wrestling, trying to make sense of both sides.
0:37:12 > 0:37:14Because you meet the scientists,
0:37:14 > 0:37:17and you meet the doctors who give a very, quite a stark...
0:37:20 > 0:37:24..and bleak, and rightly so, unemotional assessment
0:37:24 > 0:37:27of where the situation is.
0:37:27 > 0:37:30The health of the bulldog is only going to get better
0:37:30 > 0:37:31if people stop breeding for looks.
0:37:31 > 0:37:35Then you meet the owners, and then you meet the bulldogs.
0:37:35 > 0:37:38And then, of course, you fall in love with the bulldogs,
0:37:38 > 0:37:42and you see these owners, who are just desperately loving their dogs.
0:37:42 > 0:37:43But then, at the same time,
0:37:43 > 0:37:46still have this obsession with the way they look.
0:37:46 > 0:37:48And that's what I wrestle with.
0:37:48 > 0:37:51I don't... I don't...
0:37:51 > 0:37:53I don't know how to reconcile it.
0:37:57 > 0:38:02Rowena believes the bulldog's problems need radical solutions.
0:38:02 > 0:38:05She's advised me to head to Edinburgh to meet a scientist whose
0:38:05 > 0:38:08ground-breaking research could offer a breakthrough
0:38:08 > 0:38:10in the fight to save the bulldog.
0:38:13 > 0:38:17Since the modern bulldog breed was established in 1875,
0:38:17 > 0:38:21the bulldog's gene pool has shrunk, as dogs were selectively bred
0:38:21 > 0:38:26to exaggerate their short faces, squat bodies and wrinkly skin.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33I've come to one of the world's leading centres for the study of
0:38:33 > 0:38:36animal genetics, the Roslin Institute.
0:38:36 > 0:38:41This is where we take that blood on the slide and it's converted over to DNA.
0:38:41 > 0:38:44Geneticist Jeff Schoenebeck's latest research could have a big impact
0:38:44 > 0:38:45on the bulldog's future.
0:38:48 > 0:38:50Why do bulldogs look the way they do?
0:38:51 > 0:38:53It all comes down to genes
0:38:53 > 0:38:56and what they're inheriting from their parents.
0:38:56 > 0:39:00So it's the flavours of genes, the differences in them,
0:39:00 > 0:39:03that give bulldogs a flatter face,
0:39:03 > 0:39:05whereas other dogs have a longer face.
0:39:05 > 0:39:09The skull, the jaw, the neck bone, the spine bones,
0:39:09 > 0:39:13the shoulder blade, the pelvis, these shapes,
0:39:13 > 0:39:14they're all derivatives,
0:39:14 > 0:39:18they're all things that emerge because of these dogs' genes.
0:39:19 > 0:39:21Jeff tells me that, like humans,
0:39:21 > 0:39:24dogs inherit copies of genes from each parent.
0:39:24 > 0:39:28These carry crucial information that determines different traits.
0:39:28 > 0:39:31But occasionally there are faults in these genes
0:39:31 > 0:39:33which can cause things to go wrong.
0:39:35 > 0:39:39So I'm going to use these coloured blocks to illustrate.
0:39:39 > 0:39:41What we discovered is a mutation
0:39:41 > 0:39:44that is driving face length shorter and shorter.
0:39:44 > 0:39:48And we see every bulldog has two copies of this.
0:39:48 > 0:39:50So not only do they have these two genes,
0:39:50 > 0:39:52and we can pretend they're here in red,
0:39:52 > 0:39:56but they have two copies of the same flavour of gene.
0:39:56 > 0:40:00Now that we appreciate that, you know, the flat face puts these dogs
0:40:00 > 0:40:05at risk of things, you know, breathing difficulties,
0:40:05 > 0:40:07eye trauma and so forth.
0:40:07 > 0:40:10If we try to breed away from these two copies of
0:40:10 > 0:40:12the gene, well, there's nothing to breed away from.
0:40:12 > 0:40:15They're always going to have the same two genes.
0:40:15 > 0:40:20So does that mean that we cannot correct
0:40:20 > 0:40:23the faults within this breed
0:40:23 > 0:40:25from within the breed?
0:40:25 > 0:40:28What I would say is that it's going to be an uphill battle,
0:40:28 > 0:40:31and the reason is there is no other genetic diversity.
0:40:31 > 0:40:35There is no copy of that gene that doesn't have the mutation.
0:40:35 > 0:40:39The bulldog, in a way, is locked in now, because the breed pool
0:40:39 > 0:40:43is closed, by definition, a bulldog can only be produced
0:40:43 > 0:40:46by parents that are bulldogs, grandparents that are bulldogs.
0:40:46 > 0:40:48So we're having to deal with what we've got.
0:40:48 > 0:40:53So if the current gene pool is potentially too small,
0:40:53 > 0:40:56what is the solution?
0:40:56 > 0:41:00Well, there's a couple of different solutions that people are considering.
0:41:02 > 0:41:04There are groups that are looking at
0:41:04 > 0:41:06introducing something that's not a bulldog
0:41:06 > 0:41:10and crossing it to a bulldog to bring in some genetic diversity
0:41:10 > 0:41:12that wasn't there before with hopes that, maybe,
0:41:12 > 0:41:15we can increase the face length a little bit.
0:41:15 > 0:41:18What we're talking about is out-crossing these dogs...
0:41:18 > 0:41:23That means mating a bulldog with another dog that does not contain
0:41:23 > 0:41:25characteristics that are problematic?
0:41:25 > 0:41:27Yeah, that's right.
0:41:27 > 0:41:29It doesn't have to necessarily be drastic,
0:41:29 > 0:41:32but even trickling in some new genetic material,
0:41:32 > 0:41:36under a controlled manner, personally,
0:41:36 > 0:41:39I don't see the problem with this.
0:41:41 > 0:41:45It seems Jeff's research is a crucial piece of the scientific puzzle.
0:41:47 > 0:41:52The big stumbling block seems to be the discovery of this mutant gene
0:41:52 > 0:41:57that's going to be a massive obstacle, because although...
0:41:57 > 0:42:01As I understand it, although, you know, that's not the only thing
0:42:01 > 0:42:05that is creating the shorter muzzle,
0:42:05 > 0:42:08it's certainly one of the big hitters.
0:42:08 > 0:42:12And there doesn't seem any way to breed away from that
0:42:12 > 0:42:14within the existing gene pool.
0:42:16 > 0:42:19One of the potential solutions to the problem is out-crossing.
0:42:20 > 0:42:23But Jeff isn't talking about out-crossing with any old dog.
0:42:28 > 0:42:31The British bulldog would need to be carefully matched with dogs
0:42:31 > 0:42:35that could provide healthy new genes while preserving as much of
0:42:35 > 0:42:37the bulldog's appearance and form as possible.
0:42:39 > 0:42:42I'm heading to Essex to meet a woman who breeds, perhaps,
0:42:42 > 0:42:47the healthiest of all out-crossed bulldogs, the Leavitt bulldog.
0:42:48 > 0:42:52- Hi.- Hello, are you Jessica?- Yes. Come in.- I'm Catherine.
0:42:52 > 0:42:57- Let me block these guys. - Who's this?- This is Ruby and Arthur.
0:42:57 > 0:43:00Hello, darling. There's a good boy.
0:43:01 > 0:43:02Arthur will give you hugs.
0:43:02 > 0:43:04Always.
0:43:05 > 0:43:07Jess, these are Leavitt bulldogs.
0:43:07 > 0:43:10- Leavitt bulldogs, yeah.- What's the origin of the Leavitt breed?
0:43:10 > 0:43:16So, basically, they were recreated by David Leavitt, 40 years ago.
0:43:16 > 0:43:20He wanted a dog that resembled the old bulldog, the working bulldog.
0:43:20 > 0:43:25So they are the result of a British bulldog being out-crossed with...
0:43:25 > 0:43:29- A bull mastiff, a bull terrier and an American bulldog.- OK.
0:43:29 > 0:43:31Can you talk us through the difference between
0:43:31 > 0:43:34the British bulldog and the Leavitt?
0:43:34 > 0:43:38They are less exaggerated, the muzzle is longer,
0:43:38 > 0:43:42they have a full tail, they are bred to move freely.
0:43:42 > 0:43:46And we want the dogs to still resemble that type.
0:43:46 > 0:43:48Yes, yes.
0:43:48 > 0:43:52- Thank you for the kisses! - But the emphasis is on the health.
0:43:52 > 0:43:55So the key to it is that there's nothing extreme about them.
0:43:55 > 0:43:59You know, we want a dog that is functional, that's comfortable,
0:43:59 > 0:44:03that is able to do everything a family, you know,
0:44:03 > 0:44:05member wants to do with them.
0:44:05 > 0:44:08There's no bum wiping, there's no face cleaning...
0:44:09 > 0:44:11Are you giving me a facial?
0:44:11 > 0:44:14No, the point of them is that... I mean, Ruby's seven,
0:44:14 > 0:44:15she's never been to the vet.
0:44:17 > 0:44:20Nothing. They're totally different to a Kennel Club bulldog.
0:44:20 > 0:44:23Were you ever worried that the temperament of the dog would change,
0:44:23 > 0:44:26aside from the health of it, the actual temperament?
0:44:26 > 0:44:29They're bred by people that are just so, so careful.
0:44:29 > 0:44:32So temperament is a really big deal for me.
0:44:32 > 0:44:37So I look for really, you know, placid, gentle family dogs.
0:44:37 > 0:44:39Which, generally, in the breed, they are.
0:44:40 > 0:44:44What kind of health testing is involved for the Leavitt breeding scheme?
0:44:44 > 0:44:47Well, before a dog is bred, they are fully health screened.
0:44:49 > 0:44:53So we test all their joints, their elbows, their hips,
0:44:53 > 0:44:55we X-ray their spine.
0:44:55 > 0:44:56Is this testing compulsory?
0:44:56 > 0:44:59- Yes.- Wow!- They have to meet a certain standard.
0:44:59 > 0:45:04And they're not recognised as Leavitt bulldogs without this level of testing.
0:45:04 > 0:45:06So is it pass or fail?
0:45:06 > 0:45:10Pass or fail. It's the responsible way to breed dogs.
0:45:10 > 0:45:14I can't imagine looking at a dog and going to breed it,
0:45:14 > 0:45:17not having a clue of the health of their joints.
0:45:17 > 0:45:22And I just can't, because... And then raise a litter of puppies,
0:45:22 > 0:45:25looking at them and going, "Oh," and then have families
0:45:25 > 0:45:28invested in them and you could just be breeding a dog
0:45:28 > 0:45:30that is not healthy.
0:45:30 > 0:45:32It's just not going to get better,
0:45:32 > 0:45:34unless breeders put their neck on the line.
0:45:34 > 0:45:37You know, people don't instantly recognise them as bulldogs,
0:45:37 > 0:45:39but I quite like that.
0:45:39 > 0:45:40She'll creep up, look.
0:45:42 > 0:45:43The creeping paws.
0:45:43 > 0:45:45Are you a little baby! Argh!
0:45:45 > 0:45:48Ruby! Arthur, come here.
0:45:48 > 0:45:52I can just... You know, like kids get like, and you know when you go,
0:45:52 > 0:45:55- just don't ask for anything when you go in there...- Yeah.
0:45:55 > 0:45:58- And they go...- Wait till everyone's gone home, and then play.
0:45:58 > 0:46:00This is what you get.
0:46:00 > 0:46:01For God's sake!
0:46:05 > 0:46:08So, I loved Jessica's Leavitt bulldogs.
0:46:08 > 0:46:12They're beautiful, super healthy, energetic, athletic dogs.
0:46:14 > 0:46:19I worry, though, that from an out-crossing point of view,
0:46:19 > 0:46:21they're just not going to be an acceptable alternative.
0:46:21 > 0:46:27It may just be a step too far for the devotees of the British bulldog.
0:46:29 > 0:46:33So how attached are bulldog owners to the classic bulldog breed?
0:46:33 > 0:46:36I've come to the monthly bulldog meet up in Hyde Park
0:46:36 > 0:46:39which attracts bulldog lovers from all over London.
0:46:40 > 0:46:44I mean, this is bulldog heaven, isn't it?
0:46:45 > 0:46:47Hello, darling. Who is this?
0:46:47 > 0:46:49- Buster.- Buster? How old is Buster?
0:46:49 > 0:46:52- Seven months. - Oh, so he's a little one.
0:46:52 > 0:46:53What made you get a bulldog?
0:46:53 > 0:46:55I love the temperament, I love the way they look.
0:46:55 > 0:46:57They don't need much walking.
0:46:57 > 0:46:58They're couch potatoes.
0:46:58 > 0:46:59He'll just lie down.
0:47:01 > 0:47:02- Who is this?- This is Boris.
0:47:02 > 0:47:04A popular name, it seems, with bulldogs.
0:47:04 > 0:47:07A lot of people say, is it because of Boris Johnson?
0:47:07 > 0:47:11- It's not.- Were you, like, dead set on a bulldog?
0:47:11 > 0:47:13- Yeah, I was, yes.- I don't think we could have another breed now.
0:47:13 > 0:47:16- Really?- After having a bulldog you can't have another one.- Really?
0:47:16 > 0:47:19- They are such characters. - Now I've had a bulldog, that's it.
0:47:19 > 0:47:21- So who is this?- This is Max.
0:47:21 > 0:47:22Come on.
0:47:23 > 0:47:26- Hello, baby.- I am bulldog mad.
0:47:26 > 0:47:28The only dog I will have is an English bulldog.
0:47:28 > 0:47:30Really? Why was that?
0:47:30 > 0:47:31I just love the way they look.
0:47:31 > 0:47:34I love the temperament.
0:47:34 > 0:47:38And, listen, I know that people say a lot of health problems associated
0:47:38 > 0:47:40with bulldogs, but actually,
0:47:40 > 0:47:43there are a lot of health problems associated with any dog.
0:47:43 > 0:47:46I mean, shall I have a Labrador because they're healthier...
0:47:48 > 0:47:51For you, you want a bulldog because it looks like a bulldog?
0:47:51 > 0:47:54For me, a bulldog.
0:47:54 > 0:47:57My first one was a bulldog, my second one is a bulldog.
0:47:57 > 0:48:01And if tomorrow I got another one, it would only be a bulldog.
0:48:02 > 0:48:03MUSIC PLAYS
0:48:06 > 0:48:09It seems that, despite the health problems and the cost,
0:48:09 > 0:48:12people remain devoted to the British bulldog.
0:48:12 > 0:48:15In the last 15 years, their numbers have gone through the roof.
0:48:17 > 0:48:19And our love for the bulldog is so great
0:48:19 > 0:48:22that advertisers have cottoned on to their popularity.
0:48:26 > 0:48:29Looking at the amount of commercials they're in,
0:48:29 > 0:48:31you wonder has that made them more desirable.
0:48:32 > 0:48:35Lots of car commercials.
0:48:35 > 0:48:38Mini Cooper loves the bulldog.
0:48:38 > 0:48:39Oi!
0:48:41 > 0:48:42Oi! Pretty girl.
0:48:45 > 0:48:47Nice car.
0:48:47 > 0:48:48You know, there's tissues,
0:48:48 > 0:48:51there's snacks, there's mattresses,
0:48:51 > 0:48:52skin products.
0:48:52 > 0:48:56Andy, hold up, bruv. I know you're about to rob this bank,
0:48:56 > 0:48:58cos I'm a telepathic bulldog, yeah.
0:48:59 > 0:49:02It's so popular.
0:49:02 > 0:49:06And you can kind of see why, you know, they're incredibly watchable.
0:49:06 > 0:49:08So endearing, and of course,
0:49:08 > 0:49:11a lot of their expressions can be interpreted as funny.
0:49:11 > 0:49:14You know, they've got human-like qualities, it seems.
0:49:16 > 0:49:19The bulldog's downfall may be its endearing cuteness.
0:49:20 > 0:49:24The fashion for bulldogs is now so great that British breeders can't
0:49:24 > 0:49:27keep up with demand, and the market is being flooded with bulldogs
0:49:27 > 0:49:29smuggled in from eastern Europe.
0:49:31 > 0:49:35Many of the people who breed them have little regard for their health,
0:49:35 > 0:49:38so if puppies are intercepted at the border and are suspected of
0:49:38 > 0:49:41being under age, they're sent to quarantine facilities,
0:49:41 > 0:49:43like this one run by Julie Adams.
0:49:45 > 0:49:48Hello, then.
0:49:48 > 0:49:50Hello. Hello, beautiful.
0:49:50 > 0:49:52Hello, beautiful.
0:49:52 > 0:49:54Hello, then.
0:49:54 > 0:49:57So what is the story of these little guys?
0:49:57 > 0:49:59So these little guys are Hungarian.
0:49:59 > 0:50:02They came in to us at about eight weeks old, so they've grown up here.
0:50:02 > 0:50:04And what age are they supposed to be?
0:50:04 > 0:50:08The minimum age to be legal to come into the UK would be 15 weeks.
0:50:08 > 0:50:11So they're serving seven weeks in quarantine to get them up to the UK
0:50:11 > 0:50:15legal standard and protect the rest of the UK animal population
0:50:15 > 0:50:17from potential rabies in the area.
0:50:17 > 0:50:20And they're being transferred so young
0:50:20 > 0:50:23because they're cuter and easier to sell?
0:50:23 > 0:50:25Yes, cuter and easier to sell.
0:50:25 > 0:50:26What condition were they in?
0:50:26 > 0:50:30They were transported in a crate that was very small,
0:50:30 > 0:50:32there was no bedding in that crate.
0:50:32 > 0:50:36Because they'll have often been bred in very high volume conditions with
0:50:36 > 0:50:39other puppies, they will tend to have things like kennel cough
0:50:39 > 0:50:41and chest infections, respiratory infections.
0:50:41 > 0:50:44On top of the typical neglect suffered by smuggled dogs,
0:50:44 > 0:50:47bulldog puppies suffer their own specific health problems.
0:50:49 > 0:50:52Cherry eyes are common in the breed anyway, but we find them coming over
0:50:52 > 0:50:55- untreated, so they'll have eye infections.- So you could
0:50:55 > 0:50:58get a dog come through quarantine looking like this already?
0:50:58 > 0:51:01These were arrivals that we had about three weeks ago.
0:51:01 > 0:51:05And, you know, all needing to be treated for infection.
0:51:05 > 0:51:08And this is probably one of the worst cases we saw a few months ago,
0:51:08 > 0:51:12where the pup had got two cherry eyes and had no vision at all.
0:51:12 > 0:51:15So they can be very, very poorly.
0:51:15 > 0:51:19So what will happen to these little beautiful boys next?
0:51:19 > 0:51:22Frequently, unfortunately, because they're bought
0:51:22 > 0:51:24very cheaply in Europe, we find they are abandoned.
0:51:24 > 0:51:26So then we do have to work with rescues and agencies
0:51:26 > 0:51:29to be able to re-home them back into the UK.
0:51:31 > 0:51:34It seems that the bulldog smuggling problem is escalating.
0:51:36 > 0:51:39One of the charities that often has to pick up the pieces
0:51:39 > 0:51:41from this illegal trade is the Dogs Trust
0:51:41 > 0:51:44which cares for smuggled pups before reforming them.
0:51:46 > 0:51:50Adam Leavey, one of the managers, explains that bulldogs are now
0:51:50 > 0:51:52one of the top four most smuggled breeds.
0:51:53 > 0:51:56There's a huge demand for these pups,
0:51:56 > 0:51:58and they go for extortionate amounts of money.
0:51:58 > 0:52:02And, you know, the small breeds are easier to transport in,
0:52:02 > 0:52:06and unfortunately, people are supplying that demand.
0:52:06 > 0:52:10Can you talk me through what kind of numbers are involved in purchasing,
0:52:10 > 0:52:13and the profits that are coming out of this?
0:52:13 > 0:52:19You know, a bulldog can sort of go for anything up to £2,500 for a puppy.
0:52:19 > 0:52:22Now, the ones that come in from eastern and central Europe,
0:52:22 > 0:52:25you know, they are being bought for £100,
0:52:25 > 0:52:28and then transporting a whole load of them across.
0:52:28 > 0:52:32So if you're bringing a shipment of them across, and you can, in a car,
0:52:32 > 0:52:37in a postal van, you could have £10,000, £15,000 of profit from one journey.
0:52:37 > 0:52:42- You know, why smuggle drugs when you can smuggle pups?- Yeah, of course.
0:52:42 > 0:52:44Yeah, yeah, yeah, of course.
0:52:44 > 0:52:47So the puppies that are successfully smuggled in, where do they get sold?
0:52:47 > 0:52:49Well, all manner of places, really.
0:52:49 > 0:52:52So the classic one at the moment is online.
0:52:52 > 0:52:55Because, you know, we are very much part of that generation
0:52:55 > 0:52:58where we want something, we go online, we want it now.
0:52:58 > 0:53:00We've got to feed that demand.
0:53:00 > 0:53:02Pet stores are another one as well.
0:53:02 > 0:53:05Do you think these breeders are taking advantage of the fact
0:53:05 > 0:53:07that people are not doing their research?
0:53:07 > 0:53:10- Yes.- And they just want a bulldog puppy, don't they?
0:53:10 > 0:53:16- Absolutely.- And they are, you know, probably unwittingly,
0:53:16 > 0:53:20becoming accomplices in this terrible cycle.
0:53:20 > 0:53:22You know, people go and they let
0:53:22 > 0:53:24their emotions get the better of them,
0:53:24 > 0:53:26and as soon as they see a puppy,
0:53:26 > 0:53:29you hold a little bulldog puppy up to anyone,
0:53:29 > 0:53:32it's just a bundle of joy, really.
0:53:32 > 0:53:34And they just go with their heart, you know,
0:53:34 > 0:53:37all rationale sort of goes out of their head and they make
0:53:37 > 0:53:40an emotional decision, and even if they are thinking,
0:53:40 > 0:53:44"Oh, I'm a little concerned about the background of this pup,
0:53:44 > 0:53:47"I'm rescuing it from that environment."
0:53:47 > 0:53:51- Actually, all they're doing is fuelling that trade.- Yeah, yeah.
0:53:56 > 0:53:58I'm coming to the end of my journey,
0:53:58 > 0:54:02but before I sign off, there is one dog I want to see again.
0:54:04 > 0:54:07Back at Cambridge I met Laura whose bulldog, Betsy,
0:54:07 > 0:54:08was struggling to breathe.
0:54:12 > 0:54:14At the time, I was shocked at how badly Betsy was affected.
0:54:14 > 0:54:16BETSY SNORTS
0:54:16 > 0:54:17Is that you?
0:54:19 > 0:54:23It's been five weeks since Betsy's surgery to help her breathe better.
0:54:23 > 0:54:25I've arranged to meet her and Laura at their local park.
0:54:27 > 0:54:30- Hello.- Who's that?
0:54:30 > 0:54:33- Who's that?- Hello, Miss Betsy.
0:54:33 > 0:54:35Hello, darling.
0:54:35 > 0:54:38- How is she?- Yeah, she's really good.
0:54:38 > 0:54:40- She's fabulous. - You're doing so well.
0:54:40 > 0:54:43You was asleep when I saw you last.
0:54:43 > 0:54:45Yes, you was, you was asleep.
0:54:45 > 0:54:46Do you remember?
0:54:47 > 0:54:49- How is she doing? - She's doing really, really well.
0:54:49 > 0:54:51- Is she?- Yeah, amazing.
0:54:51 > 0:54:53Once I let her off the lead, she's a completely different dog.
0:54:53 > 0:54:57Really? What's the main differences from before the operation
0:54:57 > 0:55:01to after the operation in her, kind of, like, quality of life?
0:55:01 > 0:55:04I think the first one has got to be the energy levels.
0:55:04 > 0:55:08They are really up, with the running.
0:55:08 > 0:55:10The second is the noise.
0:55:10 > 0:55:13I think, obviously, you heard her previously, when she got hot, or,
0:55:13 > 0:55:16you know, stressed. I can't hear her at all any more.
0:55:16 > 0:55:18I have to actually look for her.
0:55:18 > 0:55:22And the other is, she just seems brighter in herself.
0:55:22 > 0:55:26Her eyes seem brighter, and her whole personality is a little bit
0:55:26 > 0:55:28- brighter when she's out and about. - Yeah.
0:55:28 > 0:55:32I suppose it's like us, isn't it? If we can't get enough oxygen in,
0:55:32 > 0:55:36that will have a massive effect on, you know, energy levels, lethargy,
0:55:36 > 0:55:39you know, your mood as well.
0:55:39 > 0:55:43So, you know, she's her best self now.
0:55:43 > 0:55:44- She is.- That's great.
0:55:44 > 0:55:48Do you think you'd be more inclined, if you do get another bulldog puppy,
0:55:48 > 0:55:51to go to a breeder that health tests?
0:55:51 > 0:55:54Yes, definitely. I think I'd do more research.
0:55:54 > 0:55:57I'd definitely put more thought into it.
0:55:57 > 0:56:00- So you're pleased you had the operation?- Yes, massively.
0:56:00 > 0:56:03- Definitely.- I was there while she had the operation,
0:56:03 > 0:56:04it was pretty invasive for her.
0:56:04 > 0:56:10- Yeah.- You know, it's a lot for them to go through, isn't it?
0:56:10 > 0:56:13- It is.- To get to this point.
0:56:13 > 0:56:16I don't think it's an easy fix, but I'm glad there's something
0:56:16 > 0:56:17out there that helped her breathe,
0:56:17 > 0:56:20- but I don't want to have to have gone through that.- No.
0:56:20 > 0:56:21Oh, well, she's beautiful.
0:56:21 > 0:56:24- We're delighted that everything's worked out.- Yeah, thank you.
0:56:24 > 0:56:27But sorry she had to do it in the first place.
0:56:27 > 0:56:29Aren't we?
0:56:29 > 0:56:31- Are we going to see her in action? - You certainly can,
0:56:31 > 0:56:34- she's very excited about her ball. - Oh, my goodness.- Are you ready?
0:56:36 > 0:56:38Oh, wow!
0:56:41 > 0:56:43Betsy's story has a happy ending,
0:56:43 > 0:56:46but I still find it worrying that we have to put dogs through
0:56:46 > 0:56:50such invasive surgery because of the way they've been bred.
0:56:51 > 0:56:55Science is trying to find solutions, but in the meantime,
0:56:55 > 0:56:57dogs are suffering.
0:56:57 > 0:56:59For the bulldog's sake, things do need to change.
0:57:00 > 0:57:03And everyone has their part to play in that.
0:57:03 > 0:57:07The Kennel Club, the breeders, the advertisers, and we,
0:57:07 > 0:57:09the puppy-buying public.
0:57:09 > 0:57:13Because unless we start putting their health and wellbeing
0:57:13 > 0:57:16above our own desires,
0:57:16 > 0:57:20we may well be in danger of loving this dog to extinction.