Bulldogs sure are endearing, and bulldog lovers may love their pets to death, literaly. You see, bulldogs are bred to look that way, and the lengths that people are willing to go to get that cute look is killing the breed:
“It is the most extreme example of genetic manipulation in the dog-breeding world that results in congenital and hereditary problems,” Pacelle said.
Brenda Bonnett, a consulting veterinary epidemiologist and a speaker at the conference, outlined the results of her study of Swedish dog-insurance data from 1995 to 2006. She told conference attendees that bulldogs are significantly more likely than other dogs to suffer from a wide range of health issues, including ear and eye problems, skin infections, respiratory issues, immunological and neurological problems and locomotor challenges.
Can the bulldog be saved? Benoit Denizet-Lewis wrote an interesting article for The New York Times Magazine about how the bulldog breed can redesigned ... and whether we should do so: Link (Photo: Andrew Bettles for The New York Times) - via PopSci
As with all matters, consider that this was written from one perspective (using some questionable, underpowered studies). There are many bulldogs who live healthy, happy lives and I've owned 5 of them! Backyard breeding, puppy mills and those looking to turn a quick buck off of the popularity of this breed amongst the uninitiated are responsible for many of the problems.
As for the nobody needs to buy pure-bred dog comments, get real. A pound mutt doesn't come with any guarantees.
You have litters where the dogs are blind and deaf, but then again, Georgia fans still buy them because of them being a UGA descendant.