Genetic Tinkering Leads to Cuter and Sicker Dogs

Ordinarily, I write about genetics and human health but I couldn’t resist this New York Times article about the effects of extreme inbreeding on the Japanese rare dog scene.

Rare dogs are highly prized here, and can set buyers back more than $10,000. But the real problem is what often arrives in the same litter: genetically defective sister and brother puppies born with missing paws or faces lacking eyes and a nose.

There have been dogs with brain disorders so severe that they spent all day running in circles, and others with bones so frail they dissolved in their bodies. Many carry hidden diseases that crop up years later, veterinarians and breeders say.

That sounds like animal cruelty to me and also reminds me that PermaPuppies aren’t too far from reality.

Tags: nextgencode, michael crichton, next, permapuppy, dogs, puppies, japan, inbreeding, genetic defects, genetics, genes, dna, diseases, illness, health