Overview

• PETA filed the suit on July 8 seeking to abolish AKC breed standards for French bulldogs, bulldogs, pugs, dachshunds and Chinese shar-peis.
• The complaint contends that mandated traits such as wide skulls and short noses cause obstructed airflow and frequent caesarean births in affected breeds.
• It includes evidence of ocular injuries in pugs, spinal problems in dachshunds and auto-inflammatory fever in shar-peis.
• The AKC responded by rejecting the allegations and pointing to decades of veterinary collaboration and more than $40 million invested in canine health research.
• Supporters of breed restrictions cite precedents in the Netherlands, Norway and the United Kingdom restricting or regulating breeding of short-snouted dogs.