so do you think through breeding - medicine supressing natural tolerance levels etc, dogs are less resilient than dogs of the past ?

I bet they didn't get anything like the additives that commercial pet food feeders pump into their dogs nowadays, not sure that's much of an advance personally.

Ian

i think so...

from what i understand from parent and grandparents they were pretty much eras of you get what you deserve,
so for example you taunt a dog, you get bitten
you misbehave at school you get caned...
etc

so i think people probably respected the animalistic beahviours more than they do now....

alot of people seem to forget that dogs are animals nowadays!

i 100 percent agree

- i dont know why it made me think of it, but my grandad told me a story once of being over blackheath and an airdale and another dog were having a fight and couldnt get split up and being a very big man he walked over grabbed both dogs by the necks and threw them in the pond. Fight over and universal gratitude.
I wonder nowadays if there would be a few hand ringing for a hands on approach

Not quite correct regarding showing dogs as dog shows in England were originally held in public houses & pre date Crufts & the KC by many years, I can't see the rich popping along to the local hostelry for a swift half of gin & a dog show. Dogs were also "judged"@ agricultural shows(the terrier shows were around back then & still exist today of course)Purebred dogs were owned by the "lower"classes usually terriers & farm dogs, bull baiting was also around in the 1800's as was dog fighting until they were banned in 1835. Cock fighting was banned as was dog fighting & bear baiting in the same act of parliament

Veterinary Surgeons have been regulated since 1844 some 14 years before doctors were regulated in 1858 & there were vets around 100 years ago.

Some breeds are better than 100 years ago(certainly the GSDs that came into the UK after WWI were poor specimens "liberated"from German troops nervous & unpredictable)

Of course dog fighting is still around today, so the animals that take part are no worse or better off than 100 years ago.

!00 years ago dogs were as now seen as a disposable piece of property in the law & sadly by some owners, the difference being fewer dogs are killed by their owners(drowning etc) & more by the vets when they are of no more use. Dogs are still abandoned, but per head of population I think there are now fewer "stray"dogs around.

Certainly pet dogs have a better quality of life nowadays, regular meals rather than just leftovers, some people still overindulge their dogs with food & being treated as substitute babies just as they did 100 years ago.

Most working dogs also have better lives than they did 100 years ago

Not totally back in the 50's lost a dog to distemper when his injections didn't work & a dog to cancer who with modern methods of assessment & treatment would I'm fairly sure have been saved. On the other hand have known puppies saved who back then would have died in the nest & they have needed extra care all their lives, so to a certain extent its true. Also dogs (& humans) do seem to suffer more from auto imune problems than was the case back 50 or 60 years ago, but I'm not sure how much of this is due to the environment & way of life & how much to vet practice.

yeah my father in law moans that kids live in a too sterile enviroment and its weakening the constitution ha...

is the auto immune thing either of those or breeding maybe? i'd love to know if any research done on the above

In dogs or humans?
Actually know of some research at present where heredity in certain auto imune deseases is being looked at along with other things butsadly though my boy has an auto imune eye problem as he is a rescue & I have no idea of his breeding I can't contribute

hahaha both actrually

my staff is pretty much allergic to everything and my vet tells me that its becoming more prevalent than when he first started out.
As an aside I read somewhere that living with dogs can increase a childs allergy tolerance levels.

I think they were happier 100 years ago. Ok, they were less pampered then but they were allowed the freedom to be the dogs they are.

Heidi