A video from the Walloon Region’s Animal Welfare Department sheds light on hypertypical animals via its website https://bienetreanimal.wallonie.be/hypertypes.
An animal is considered hypertypic when certain distinctive traits of the breed are accentuated to the extreme: flattened nose, folds, size of the paws, specific color… However, accentuating these characteristics can cause discomfort, pain, or even suffering, thus harming the animals’ well-being.
Worse, some of these characteristics can also be associated with genetic diseases, sometimes deadly.
Discover the testimonials of Walter, Barbouille, Mona, Rotor, and Lili.
It’s the amplification of specific characteristics that leads to hypertypic animals.
Throughout domestication, animals have been selected to reproduce and accentuate criteria deemed relevant by and for humans. As a result, humans have created hundreds of breeds of dogs and cats with behavioral or physical characteristics that meet their needs.
Over time, associations dedicated to cats and dogs have developed “breed standards” that describe the ideal of each individual in terms of physical characteristics, such as body shape and size, skull structure, tail length, as well as the quality, length, and color of the coat. These standards are the result of an agreement between breeders of a specific breed.
- Regarding dogs, you can consult the breed standards with the International Canine Federation (FCI) and/or breed clubs.
- Regarding cats, you can consult the breed standards with the International Feline Federation (FIFé) and/or breed clubs.
By constantly seeking “extraordinary” dogs or cats with, for example, increasingly flat faces, special colors, smaller or larger sizes, humans have produced cats and dogs whose well-being and health are in danger. This phenomenon is called “hypertypes.”
Since 2018, the Walloon Council for Animal Welfare (CWBEA) has focused on the issue of hypertypes and genetic diseases associated with certain breeds of cats and dogs. It has formed a working group tasked with proposing measures to limit harm to the well-being of these animals.
The Walloon Region emphasizes that each of us, whether citizens, breeders, or veterinarians, has a role to play in protecting and respecting the health, integrity, and dignity of animals.