Using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs
This study aimed to use retirement data from working guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in dogs and the demographic factors that influence ageing. Using a dataset of 7686 dogs spanning 20 years, dogs withdrawn for health reasons before they reached retirement were identified. Cases of retireme...
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| Format: | Article |
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Elsevier
2016
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38820/ |
| _version_ | 1848795698774933504 |
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| author | Caron-Lormier, Geoffrey England, Gary C.W. Green, Martin J. Asher, Lucy |
| author_facet | Caron-Lormier, Geoffrey England, Gary C.W. Green, Martin J. Asher, Lucy |
| author_sort | Caron-Lormier, Geoffrey |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | This study aimed to use retirement data from working guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in dogs and the demographic factors that influence ageing. Using a dataset of 7686 dogs spanning 20 years, dogs withdrawn for health reasons before they reached retirement were identified. Cases of retirement for old age, rather than for health reasons, were also recorded, as was the length of working life for all dogs. Specific health reasons were grouped into 14 different health categories. The influence of purebred or crossbreed, breed, and sex on the incidence of these health categories and the length of working life within each health category was considered.
The majority (n = 6465/7686; 84%) of working guide dogs were able to function as guide dogs until they had worked for 8.5 years, when they retired. This working life might constitute a reference for the different breeds considered, with the exception of the German shepherd dog, which had a shorter working life. The most common reason for health withdrawals was musculoskeletal conditions (n = 387/1362; 28%), mostly arthritis. Skin conditions (mostly comprised of cases of atopic dermatitis) reduced working life most commonly (mean, approximately 5 years). Nervous sensory conditions (35% of which were cases of epilepsy) reduced working life by 3 years. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:36:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-38820 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:36:14Z |
| publishDate | 2016 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-388202020-05-04T20:04:29Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38820/ Using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs Caron-Lormier, Geoffrey England, Gary C.W. Green, Martin J. Asher, Lucy This study aimed to use retirement data from working guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in dogs and the demographic factors that influence ageing. Using a dataset of 7686 dogs spanning 20 years, dogs withdrawn for health reasons before they reached retirement were identified. Cases of retirement for old age, rather than for health reasons, were also recorded, as was the length of working life for all dogs. Specific health reasons were grouped into 14 different health categories. The influence of purebred or crossbreed, breed, and sex on the incidence of these health categories and the length of working life within each health category was considered. The majority (n = 6465/7686; 84%) of working guide dogs were able to function as guide dogs until they had worked for 8.5 years, when they retired. This working life might constitute a reference for the different breeds considered, with the exception of the German shepherd dog, which had a shorter working life. The most common reason for health withdrawals was musculoskeletal conditions (n = 387/1362; 28%), mostly arthritis. Skin conditions (mostly comprised of cases of atopic dermatitis) reduced working life most commonly (mean, approximately 5 years). Nervous sensory conditions (35% of which were cases of epilepsy) reduced working life by 3 years. Elsevier 2016-01 Article PeerReviewed Caron-Lormier, Geoffrey, England, Gary C.W., Green, Martin J. and Asher, Lucy (2016) Using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs. The Veterinary Journal, 207 . pp. 124-130. ISSN 1532-2971 Heterosis; Guide dogs; Welfare; Epidemiology; Breed http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1090023315004578 doi:10.1016/j.tvjl.2015.10.046 doi:10.1016/j.tvjl.2015.10.046 |
| spellingShingle | Heterosis; Guide dogs; Welfare; Epidemiology; Breed Caron-Lormier, Geoffrey England, Gary C.W. Green, Martin J. Asher, Lucy Using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs |
| title | Using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs |
| title_full | Using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs |
| title_fullStr | Using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs |
| title_full_unstemmed | Using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs |
| title_short | Using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs |
| title_sort | using the incidence and impact of health conditions in guide dogs to investigate healthy ageing in working dogs |
| topic | Heterosis; Guide dogs; Welfare; Epidemiology; Breed |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38820/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38820/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38820/ |