A Critique- Peer Review of the DCA Board of Governors’ Red Book, 3d edt, 1994-2012
The Dalmatian Club of America (DCA) Board of Governors’ Red Book can and should be modernized promptly at low cost to be consistent with modern year 2012 scientific knowledge of behavior of domestic dogs in the US and internationally: http://www.thedca.org/redbook.html, (downloaded 27 Jan 2012); [page numbers x/19 represent downloaded pages.]
Circumstances of the Dalmatian Breed in the US radically changed after1994 with reduction from #9th popularity to less than #69, and over 90 percent reduction in AKC registrations of Dalmatians per year.
Eighteen years of DCA official demands for BAER deafness testing of puppies has probably NOT provably obviously reduced the prevalence of deafness in the breed. Genetics as of 2012 offer NO scientific basis for expecting elimination of deafness in the Dalmatian breed at any future date whatsoever while Dalmatians exist as a breed.
The critique identified many points on which the 1994-2012 Red Book was inconsistent within itself, contained conflicts with the DCA Board of Governors’ Ethical guidelines of the Red Book, and conflicted with modern scientific knowledge of dog behavior – both hearing dogs and deaf dogs. Examples of peer review identified flaws of the Boards’ Red Book included:
Inconsistencies, such as alleging:
Inconsistent and Conflicts with modern science, such as:
Conflicts with modern science, such as:
1. In the 1994-2012 Red Book - - Many deaf Dalmatians develop defensive aggressive behavior or temperament with age. BUT, conversely the international expert in the book Strain, 2011 (page 46, 76-78) reported that there was no evidence of old-age hearing loss aggression among any breeds.
2. In the 1994 Red Book “... ONLY irresponsible and unknowledgeable people are making deaf dogs available ....” BUT Strain, 2011 Table 4.1 reported that the bi-lateral deafness rate had only declined to 8 percent by 2012 from the 12 percent reported in 1994 by the DCA Board for breeders; although it appeared that about 1/3 of bi-lateral deaf dogs were probably killed at ages 3 to 4 weeks [sic, 21 to 28 days] per Red Book Ethical guideline #10, to reduce breeders’ costs, so likely never appeared in the Strain, 2011 (with BAERs post 40 days; page 102) for the official BAER 8 percent bi-lateral deafness statistics.
Therefore, probably the prevalence of bi-lateral deafness in Dalmatians remained substantially unchanged despite about 18 years of expensive BAER testing and the deaf-killing policies of the 1994-2012 DCA Board of Governors’ Red Book. It was the understanding of these reviewers that the prevalence of uni-ear deaf Dalmatian puppies likewise probably also remained substantially unchanged overall in the US Dalmatian population.
3. In the 1994-2012 Red Book, [page 14/19, 5th paragraph], “... Fashion has not distorted the Dalmatian....” although Red Book section called “Official Standard for the Dalmatian”, effective September 1989 did that in detail BY prescribing rigid physical criteria regardless of the adverse consequences caused by the requisite line-breeding for the genetic, temperament and personality of individuals of the Dalmatian breed. The assertion was particularly ironic with the DCA Boards policy since 1994 that deaf puppies must be “distorted” by killing them. In the opinion of the peer reviewers no sane person would claim that killing almost 50 percent of the Dalmatian puppies annually has complied with the DCA Board Ethics practices Guidelines #1 “To ensure that all dogs in my care are provided adequate food, shelter, human companionship, and medical care, [page 12/19]” of the Red Book.
For more information see also:< http://deafdogsforever.weebly.com/major-flaws-of-lsubaerdca-dog-behavioral-research.html > and http://deafdogsforever.weebly.com/consequences-trends.html
The Dalmatian Club of America (DCA) Board of Governors’ Red Book can and should be modernized promptly at low cost to be consistent with modern year 2012 scientific knowledge of behavior of domestic dogs in the US and internationally: http://www.thedca.org/redbook.html, (downloaded 27 Jan 2012); [page numbers x/19 represent downloaded pages.]
Circumstances of the Dalmatian Breed in the US radically changed after1994 with reduction from #9th popularity to less than #69, and over 90 percent reduction in AKC registrations of Dalmatians per year.
Eighteen years of DCA official demands for BAER deafness testing of puppies has probably NOT provably obviously reduced the prevalence of deafness in the breed. Genetics as of 2012 offer NO scientific basis for expecting elimination of deafness in the Dalmatian breed at any future date whatsoever while Dalmatians exist as a breed.
The critique identified many points on which the 1994-2012 Red Book was inconsistent within itself, contained conflicts with the DCA Board of Governors’ Ethical guidelines of the Red Book, and conflicted with modern scientific knowledge of dog behavior – both hearing dogs and deaf dogs. Examples of peer review identified flaws of the Boards’ Red Book included:
Inconsistencies, such as alleging:
- The Dalmatian is ... an intelligent dog, [page 2/19] BUT (sic, A Dalmatian) lacks the power of reason and the ability to read a situation and react accordingly ... [page 11/19]
- The Dalmatian [sic, ALL of them] is ... devoted to his owner(s), moderately territorial [page 2/19] BUT must be confined or leashed at all times because it runs away at every opportunity and likely can’t find its way home, runs into the road at exactly perfect times to die under a vehicle, wraps itself in barbed wire if it is available, possibly leaps into farm hay-mowers or corn-choppers, and so on ... ,according to the Red Book, endangering itself at every chance, [page 3/19]
- Clear evidence the Dalmatian will continue to increase in popularity after 1993-4: BUT by 2011 the popularity as reported by the AKC declined from #9 to #69; i.e. over 90 percent decrease in annual registrations, nearly steady at rates lower than those before 1986.
- Only bi-ear deaf puppies were specifically under the official ethics guidelines to be killed, BUT at other places in the Red Book both uni-and bi-ear deaf puppies identified by BAER tests were said to be mandatorily killed: [page 6/19] “... Any puppies proven deaf are euthanized [sic, killed] ...”
Inconsistent and Conflicts with modern science, such as:
- FAQ #2; [page 8/19] “ ... the average Dalmatian is tolerant and affectionate with children.” BUT [page 11/19] declared that as many as half of the Dalmatians born every year ... ARE POTENTIALLY VERY DANGEROUS.
Conflicts with modern science, such as:
1. In the 1994-2012 Red Book - - Many deaf Dalmatians develop defensive aggressive behavior or temperament with age. BUT, conversely the international expert in the book Strain, 2011 (page 46, 76-78) reported that there was no evidence of old-age hearing loss aggression among any breeds.
2. In the 1994 Red Book “... ONLY irresponsible and unknowledgeable people are making deaf dogs available ....” BUT Strain, 2011 Table 4.1 reported that the bi-lateral deafness rate had only declined to 8 percent by 2012 from the 12 percent reported in 1994 by the DCA Board for breeders; although it appeared that about 1/3 of bi-lateral deaf dogs were probably killed at ages 3 to 4 weeks [sic, 21 to 28 days] per Red Book Ethical guideline #10, to reduce breeders’ costs, so likely never appeared in the Strain, 2011 (with BAERs post 40 days; page 102) for the official BAER 8 percent bi-lateral deafness statistics.
Therefore, probably the prevalence of bi-lateral deafness in Dalmatians remained substantially unchanged despite about 18 years of expensive BAER testing and the deaf-killing policies of the 1994-2012 DCA Board of Governors’ Red Book. It was the understanding of these reviewers that the prevalence of uni-ear deaf Dalmatian puppies likewise probably also remained substantially unchanged overall in the US Dalmatian population.
3. In the 1994-2012 Red Book, [page 14/19, 5th paragraph], “... Fashion has not distorted the Dalmatian....” although Red Book section called “Official Standard for the Dalmatian”, effective September 1989 did that in detail BY prescribing rigid physical criteria regardless of the adverse consequences caused by the requisite line-breeding for the genetic, temperament and personality of individuals of the Dalmatian breed. The assertion was particularly ironic with the DCA Boards policy since 1994 that deaf puppies must be “distorted” by killing them. In the opinion of the peer reviewers no sane person would claim that killing almost 50 percent of the Dalmatian puppies annually has complied with the DCA Board Ethics practices Guidelines #1 “To ensure that all dogs in my care are provided adequate food, shelter, human companionship, and medical care, [page 12/19]” of the Red Book.
For more information see also:< http://deafdogsforever.weebly.com/major-flaws-of-lsubaerdca-dog-behavioral-research.html > and http://deafdogsforever.weebly.com/consequences-trends.html
Critiqued & Clarified Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) of the
DCA Governors Approved, 1994-2012, Red Book
Clarifications were suggested, by the Critique peer review, in Table 1 that might assist in gaining Red Book compliance with the DCA Board Approved the Ethical Practices Guidelines’, in part:
- To ensure that all dogs in my care are provided adequate food, shelter, human companionship, and medical care.
- To ensure that all bilaterally deaf puppies ... are humanely euthanized (sic, killed) as soon as the condition is detected and confirmed. [1]
- To ensure that all advertising is factual and not misleading. To never engage in malicious criticism and to separate fact from fiction before repeating comments heard from others.
Table 1. Clarified Red Book's Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Questions Hearing Puppies Deaf Puppies (before ethically killed)
Life span? ~11 to 16 yrs ~ 3 to 5 WEEKS
Likes children? trained & socialized, with nice kids ~ yes until killed!
Adult size? ~ 2 ft tall, 40 to 80 pound ~ to 5 x 10 inches, 5 pounds
Food needs? ~ several cups per day ~ mother’s milk until its death
Equipment needs? ~ choke chain ~ small pine box or pewter urn
Medical Care (vet)? ~Vaccinations, BAER test ~ “put to sleep”, i.e. killed
Coat color? black & brown stay, yellow Go Away ~ doesn’t matter
Buy male or female? stud males go crazy for females ~ doesn’t matter
Socialize, Obedience Train begin as soon as it can stand ~ don’t bother, it’ll be killed soon
Special Needs? “Don’t lose your temper?” ~ kiss the wee pine box weekly
Only deafness was listed as a fault requiring ethically killing each ‘guilty’ Dalmatian puppy; other flaws that were apparently ethically digestible included “patches”, exotic eyelashes, partial pigmentation of eye rims, incomplete nose pigmentation, too short or too tall, overshot or under bite, cowhocks, coat colors except brown or black; the only listed behavior fault was “shyness” possibly because of worries about fear-aggression if fondled by a show-judge. Canadian Veterinarians in “Can Vet J Volume 41, June 2000” in its “VETERINARY MEDICAL ETHICS Question of the Month” for March 2000 declared that euthanizing (sic, killing) deaf puppies is unethical.
[1] Death ethically was required although a bi-ear Dalmatian was capable of essentially normal behavior as a pet or Agility performance Dalmatian as demonstrated by the famous Canadian Dalmatian Agility Gold Champion “Holly” Martin in 2011. The Red Book did NOT require use of expensive BAER tests to confirm deafness before killing a puppy.