In this episode we're moving away from wildlife and nature conservation to a serious animal welfare issue I face in my career as a vet, exploring the issues of flat faced or brachycephalic dog breeds. I'm joined by two incredibly knowledgeable guests, Alison Skipper and Dr Rowena Packer. Alison is a vet studying a PhD in the history of pedigree dog breeding and welfare. Rowena is a companion animal behaviour and welfare scientist at the Royal Vet College. Together we explore when and why the trend for flat faced dogs appeared, why they are popular, what problems they suffer from as a result of their extreme appearance and what can be done about it. It's a fascinating insight into a complex topic.

Dr Packer is recruiting recent puppy owners for a survey in to pandemic puppy ownership, so if you fit the bill please do partake by 11th March here: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/Pups2021

Cover image courtesy of CRUFFA (Campaign for the Responsible Use of Flat Faced Animals in Advertising. https://www.facebook.com/groups/cruffa).

Sean's Wild Life podcast is produced by Sean McCormack, co-produced and edited by Thomas Ntinas. Title track 'A Wild Life' kindly composed and donated by Mark Rose.

All costs of production have been self funded. If you've enjoyed this episode and would like to tip me by buying me a coffee you can do so here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/seanswildlife.

If you would like to sponsor a future episode of Sean's Wild Life please email drseanmccormack@gmail.com and visit www.drseanmccormack.com to learn more about Sean's work.

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