On the other hand, there's a lot of evidence that dog breeding is really bad for dogs. I'm not talking about shady breeders raising their animals in unhealthy environments, though that certainly is a problem; I'm talking about how breeding for certain characteristics has resulted over time in physical changes to certain breeds that can only be considered detrimental. English bulldogs have been bred to be so large and to have such short snouts that many of them find it exceedingly difficult to keep themselves cool or to breathe at all; few are able to mate or give birth without human assistance; and nearly 80% of them suffer from hip dysplasia. Dachshunds have suffered too; having been bred to have extremely long torsos and unusually short rib cages, they're highly prone to spinal disease.
Knowing that gives me mixed feelings when it comes to our selection of dog calendars. Sure, it's good for the bottom line, but given the cost to the dogs, do we really want to be encouraging breed fetishism?
