Good dog and bad dog: Science says that traits have little to do with race

The Labradors are sociable, aggressive pit bulls, mood Pekingese So you can continue the list. Dogs are just as vulnerable as humans Are identical. Recent study by scientists University of Massachusetts Published in Magazine Science He warned that these behaviors may be less with the race than previously believed.

According to historical data, the species began to appear XIX century. Therefore, dogs may have very different physical features. A big big dane looks completely different than a small chihuahua. Generally, It is assumed that these differences are also manifested in behavior.

In interpreting Course of study, The scientists explained in their publication, “Modern domestic dog breeds are (approximately) only 160 years old and Is the result of selecting specific cosmetic properties. To explore how genetics coincides with racial traits ” DNA sequencing of more than 2,000 purebred and mangle dogs. These dates, They were used to map genes related to ownership surveys, physical and behavioral traits. According to the post.

Doctor Eleanor Carlson, Of Umas Chan Medical School, University of Massachusetts The co-author of the study said the research revealed different types of behaviors in each species. “Even if the average is different, you still have a better chance of getting a dog that doesn’t fit what people say.” Said.

In a study published in ScienceThe science team explained how they studied the answers to the poll linked to Physical and behavioral characteristics of 18,385 dogs, nearly half of them purebred, of which genetic data were analyzed for 2,155 dogs.

That is what this survey suggests Approximately 9% of behavioral variability was explained by race. “Mostly, we don’t see big differences in racing, but Some (behaviors) are more related to race than others “ Carlson explained.

Yes OK No one behavior is just for one raceThere were screams Omnipotent In the Beagles, Pit Bulls and Retriever were more “human friendly” or comfortable with strangers. Experts on the ancestral differences of each species, for example, Pastoral species are very gentle, Categorized them among other features.

But the most remarkable thing about the research is that There was so much variation between each person that it was difficult to predict a dog’s behavior based on its breed. To examine whether genetics explains common traits, the study looked at behavior Street dogs They had different levels of descent from specific species. The results reveal that some traits have stronger genetic components than others.

When they had a Labrador Retriever pedigree, they had little concern for the fact that unknown dogs were wet, but it seemed that such pedigree had nothing to do with human society. “If Labrador retrievers are genetically more social with humans, we need to see that street dogs with more Labrador Retriever pedigree are more social with humans,” Carlson said.

Previous analyzes by the same group have shown that socialization with humans is highly hereditary, however, Carlson said, The results of stray dogs suggest that the genetic variants involved do not appear to be very common in specific breeds. In this way, the differences between different species for behavioral characteristics may be due to environmental influences or even by the feelings of each owner, experts assure.

In this way, the panel of experts did not find that the behavior of the dogs analyzed was hereditary, including that a dog was easily provoked by a frightening stimulus. A finding that suggests a dog’s aggression has nothing to do with genetics.

Defenders “should pay very little attention to all the stories about what your dog’s pedigree says about his behavior and personality. Look at the dog sitting in front of them ”, Carlson suggested. For its part, Daniel Mills, Professor of Veterinary Behavior Medicine Lincoln UniversityWho was not on the research team, thought it could provide information about the genetic population, but It often reveals very little about individuals.

Mills added Not surprisingly, the results of a study by the University of Massachusetts suggest that genetics may play a small role in dog aggression. And criticized the specific law on alleged so-called invasive species. “Potentially dangerous behaviors are unlikely to be controlled by simple genetic mechanisms because animals must make judgments based on their vast environment and their developmental history,” he said.

Thus, although many physical characteristics are related to the breed, the behavior varies greatly between individual dogs. In general, heredity of physical characteristics was the most important predictor of a breed, but it does not necessarily have to be a predictor of breed descent in wild dogs.

Published in another study conducted in the UK Scientific reports, Revealed that different species have different lifespans. Analysis of There are 30,563 reported dog deaths in the UKCollected between 2016 and 2020, it showed Jack Russell Terrier Life expectancy at birth is 12.72 years, with flat-faced species having a shorter lifespan. Thus, the French Bulldogs Their lifespan is only 4.53 years at birth.

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