Pawsitive protest: PETA's fight for breathing-impaired breeds

Volunteers from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India staged a demonstration at the World War Memorial on Thursday to raise awareness about the ill effects of breeding and promoting breathing-impaired breeds, such as pugs and bulldogs.

In their first demonstration for this cause in the country, five volunteers dressed up as pugs with oxygen masks held up placards with the message ‘Pugs struggle to breathe. Don’t buy them!’

They warned onlookers about the serious respiratory problems that foreign brachycephalic dog breeds—those with shortened skulls and flat faces—face due to narrow airways.

These problems include noisy breathing, bluing of the gums and tongue due to a lack of oxygen, and swallowing difficulties, all part of a debilitating, sometimes fatal condition called Brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS).

For ‘show’

Atharva Deshmukh, campaigns coordinator at PETA India, explained that these breathing-impaired breeds, including pugs, French and English bulldogs, Boston Terriers, and Shih Tzus, are deliberately “manufactured” for the sake of the show.

Adopt Indie dogs

“They live their whole lives suffering, struggling to breathe or enjoy regular activities. Instead, people can adopt Indie dogs from the streets or shelters that are looking for a loving home and will live healthier lives than these breeds,” he said.

In 2020, PETA India urged the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying to amend the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Dog Breeding and Marketing) Rules, 2017, to prohibit the breeding of such animals.