What have we done?

This is Zamp vom Thermodos. Yesterday he was judged to be the best representation of the German Shepherd breed at Crufts, and I was horrified.

I used to be a big fan of German Shepherds. They are handsome, versatile dogs that have literally been man's best friend for a long, long time - they have herded, guarded, guided and assisted.. and I've always thought that they were one of the "natural" looking breeds. Then I saw this, and couldn't think of anything but the Hunchback of Notre Dame. This is what breeders think German Shepherds should look like?

Let's just rewind to what a wolf looks like. There are different theories about the origin of the dog, and the most likely one is that dogs descend from those wolves that weren't so scared of people and hung around near their settlements because of the scavenging benefits. So while dogs haven't actually been wolves for a very long time, this is grey wolf Duma from the Wolf Conservation Trust, showing what nature meant them to look like.

Selective breeding (inbreeding) is how breeds came about. For years there has been controversy over breeds like the Pekingese and Bulldog, because people have bred health problems into them for the sake of something they inexplicably found aesthetically pleasing.. and it looks like the GSD is suffering the same fate.

Not only do Breeders Kill, they cause untold harm in the process. As I remarked to Elaine last night, I definitely don't want a dog of any specific breed any more - I want a mongrel.