Dogs with short faces (Frenchies, Pugs, Boston terriers, English bulldogs, Boxers, Shih Tzus, etc.) are some of the most common breeds, and in my opinion, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒔𝒕. It’s important to note, however, that 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒂𝒓 𝒅𝒐𝒈𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔, 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒔. 😨⠀⠀
These dogs have been bred to have 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐦𝐮𝐳𝐳𝐥𝐞𝐬 and 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐬. In doing so, their throat and breathing passages are frequently undersized or flattened. Subsequently, these breeds are 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙩, 𝙤𝙗𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙, 𝙢𝙪𝙯𝙯𝙡𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙩 known as brachycephalic airway disease or 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐲𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐞.⠀
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Brachycephalic means “short head”, and we endearingly refer to these breeds as “squish-faced”. Most of the affected dogs will often snort or snore, and many can actually have 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔.⠀
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Often, these issues are identified during puppy visits with your veterinarian, who may recommend surgical correction at their facility or at a specialty hospital (MSU performs most of the deeper airway surgery in our area)
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Before rescuing, adopting, or purchasing a short-faced dog, consider the fact that they may need surgical correction to prevent airway obstruction, and require more precautions during routine anesthetic procedures such as spays, neuters, and dental cleanings. ⠀
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If you’d love to add one of these adorable dogs to your household, 𝙥𝙚𝙩 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙡𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙙, as they often have additional health issues such as dry eye, inverted eyelids, periodontal disease, skin infections, and allergies.
Despite that, these dogs make great additions to households!