ICEC Dogs has been released New Advertising Guidelines On Friday 12 July, an initiative was launched to stop images of dogs with physical issues from being used in advertising.
The International Cooperation on Extreme Dog Body Shape (ICECDogs) has urged advertisers and social media users to stop using images of dogs with extreme body shapes.
Instead, they encourage advertisers to use images that promote dogs’ healthy physical appearance.
In a statement, the group said: “Extreme body shapes (extreme appearances) cause considerable and unnecessary suffering in dogs, yet unfortunately it remains common for unnatural body shapes to be accepted and normalised by the general public.”
“The use of images of extreme dog sizes for marketing, promotional and entertainment purposes is believed to be a major contributing factor to the widespread public acceptance and demand for extreme dog sizes.” They explained.
The ICECDogs guidelines list dog characteristics that should not be used in advertising:
- Flat face (brachycephaly)This often leads to health problems in dogs, such as difficulty breathing and eye ulcers.
- A pronounced protruding or non-protruding chinThis physical characteristic can affect a dog’s ability to eat and promote dental disease.
- Large protruding eyesThis increases the risk of eye damage and infection.
- Short, twisted legs (achondroplasia). Dogs with extremely short legs and disproportionately long bodies often suffer from spinal and neurological problems.
- Facial and body skin foldsThese folds often lead to skin infections and sores.
- A bulging or domed skullThis is associated with brain diseases such as hydrocephalus and encephalocele.
- Eyelids that turn inward (entropion, where eyelashes or hair rub against the cornea) or outward (ectropion, where the eyelid droops and does not cleanse the eye with each blink) It often leads to lifelong, painful eye problems, including infections and corneal ulcers.
- At birth, the tail is absent or is deformed and twisted. Affected dogs have difficulty communicating with other dogs who lack tails.
- The head and shoulders are disproportionately broad. Combined with a narrow pelvis, this often makes it impossible to deliver puppies without surgical intervention.
- Sloping back, extremely low hindquarters, and extremely curved hind legs It is commonly associated with movement disorders.
Examples of dog breeds that commonly exhibit physical extremes include Basset Hounds, Boston Terriers, Dachshunds, English Bulldogs, French Bulldogs, German Shepherds, Neapolitan Mastiffs, Pekingese, Pugs, Shar-Peis, and Welsh Corgis.
ICECDogs does not blame these dogs and understands that not all dogs will suffer for the rest of their lives because of these physical characteristics.
But they are not aware that the general public “Often there is no distinction between extreme and acceptable body types within a breed.”.
Dr Dan O’Neill, Chair of the UK Brachycephalic Breed Working Group, Associate Professor of Companion Animal Epidemiology at the Royal Veterinary College, London and Co-founder of ICECDogs, said: Psychology Today What is the purpose of the new guidelines?
“This new ICECDogs message calls on advertisers to play their part in ending the normalization of suffering due to extreme body conformation and we hope it will contribute to the ongoing global movement to celebrate healthy body conformation in dogs.”
If an advertiser has doubts about whether a particular dog in an image has an extreme physical appearance, ICECDogs’ general advice is to not use the image at all.
“With easy access to images of hundreds of dog breeds and varieties that do not display extreme body habitus, the inappropriate sharing of images of dogs that display extreme body habitus is no longer justified on animal welfare grounds.” ICECDogs explains.
