Yet ANOTHER reason not to buy a pug: Vets warn flat-faced dogs are more likely to suffer from sleep apnoea
- New research shows flat-faced dogs are more likley to suffer from sleep apnoea
- This condition is caused by breathing difficulty and leads to disturbed sleep
With their squashed little noses and wrinkled faces, pugs have become a favourite among dog lovers and celebrities.
Gerard Butler, Paris Hilton and YouTuber Zoe Sugg are just a few of the famous faces who have shared their lives with the breed.
But vets are urging people not to buy pugs, as new research shows flat-faced dogs are more likley to suffer from sleep apnoea - a condition that leads to a disturbed sleep pattern.
'Sleep apnoea places people at considerable risk of conditions such as hypertension and cardiovascular disease,' said Iida Niinikoski, lead author of the study.
'Sleep affects the body's immune system, hormone secretion and metabolism. Sufficient, sound sleep is vital for quality of life. For these reasons and others, we are interested in canine sleep too.'
![Vets are urging people not to buy pugs, as new research shows flat-faced dogs are more likley to suffer from sleep apnoea - a condition that leads to a disturbed sleep pattern (stock image)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/15/12/57922261-12198391-Withdrawn_Pugs_and_French_bulldogs_will_no_longer_be_included_on-a-239_1686827329247.jpg)
Vets are urging people not to buy pugs, as new research shows flat-faced dogs are more likley to suffer from sleep apnoea - a condition that leads to a disturbed sleep pattern (stock image)
![Gerard Butler is just one of the famous faces who has shared his life with the breed](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/15/12/57961421-12198391-Gerard_Butler_is_just_one_of_the_famous_faces_who_has_shared_his-m-242_1686827412765.jpg)
![Pugs are significantly more likely to suffer from breathing, eye, and skin disorders than other breeds. Pictured: Paris Hilton with her pet pug](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/15/12/57961915-12198391-Pugs_are_significantly_more_likely_to_suffer_from_breathing_eye_-a-243_1686827416554.jpg)
With their squashed little noses and wrinkled faces, pugs have become a favourite with dog lovers and celebrities. Gerard Butler (left), Paris Hilton (right) and YouTuber Zoe Sugg are just a few of the famous faces who have shared their lives with the breed
Flat-faced dogs' short-faced 'brachycephalic' characteristics did not evolve naturally, and are instead the result of selective breeding.
This facial structure puts them at high risk for a range of health conditions, including skin fold dermatitis, breathing and eye issues.
In the new study, the team from the University of Helsinki set out to understand whether these breeds - including French bulldogs and pugs - are also more likely to suffer from sleep apnoea.
As with humans, sleep apnoea in dogs is caused by upper airway obstruction.
During episodes, breathing is interrupted by obstructed airways as the muscles of the upper airways relax.
This results in sleep interruptions through the night, and daytime fatigue as a result.
However, until now, measuring the condition in dogs have proved difficult.
'Previous methods for investigating sleep apnoea have required dogs to sleep either while connected to all sorts of equipment or within a certain type of box in a lab,' Ms Niinikoski explained.
![Pugs are significantly more likely to suffer from breathing, eye, and skin disorders than other breeds, according to vets from the Royal Veterinary College](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/15/12/57923489-12198391-Pugs_are_significantly_more_likely_to_suffer_from_breathing_eye_-a-244_1686827445450.jpg)
Pugs are significantly more likely to suffer from breathing, eye, and skin disorders than other breeds, according to vets from the Royal Veterinary College
'This has made research challenging and limited our knowledge of dog sleep apnoea.'
To combat this issue, the team used a wearable neckband system featuring a microphone and pulse oximeter to monitor 24 dogs (12 flat-faced and 12 control dogs) as they slept at home.
The results revealed that flat-faced dogs were more likely to experience disordered breathing through the night, as well as snoring.
When asked for a figure on how much more likely these dogs are to have the condition, Ms Niinikoski told MailOnline: 'Unfortunately I can't give you a number, as research has been very scarce up until now.
'However, there have been no reports of sleep apnoea in non-brachycephalic dogs.
'None of the non-brachycephalic dogs involved in our recent study or the few previously published studies have had significant amounts of apnoeas during sleep.
'This combined with the marked amount of apnoeas in flat-faced dogs suggests that the risk is greatly higher in the flat-faced breeds.'
The study comes shortly after researchers from the RVC compared the risks of 40 common conditions in pugs with other dog breeds.
The team analysed the records of 16,218 pugs and 889,326 non-pug breeds, taken from the VetCompass database.
Their analysis revealed that pugs were at increased risk for 23 out of 40 common disorders.
Pugs were 54 times more likely to have brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome – a condition affecting the upper airway – and 51 times more likely to have narrow nostrils.
The breed was also 13 times more likely to suffer from corneal ulceration, 2.5 times more likely to suffer from obesity, and twice as likely to have overgrown nails.
Dr Dan O'Neill, lead author of the paper and Associate Professor in Companion Animal Epidemiology at the Royal Veterinary College, said at the time: 'As humans, we hold the power to ensure that every pet dog starts life with good natural health.
'When choosing which dog to own, this means selecting a breed that does not have extreme conformations such as folded skin which can lead to a lifetime of painful skin infections.
'It is vital that people make informed puppy buying choices and avoid those dogs that are bred for extreme wrinkles – which are far removed from what's described in breed standards – and instead "stop and think", and find a responsible breeder, who has their dogs' welfare at heart.'
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