The power of advertising
First, we had the Dulux advert featuring an immaculately groomed Old English Sheepdog. This ad inspired a load of viewers to rush out and buy one, without researching the amount of grooming and exercise that this breed requires. I know because I was working as a veterinary nurse at the time and it seemed that every other puppy coming in for vaccination was an OES — “we just had to get one after seeing them on the telly,” being the usual response.
Then came the adorable yellow Labrador of the Andrex ads — not too bad a choice for an impulse buy, but not without problems such as hip dysplasia and retinal atrophy if bred wrong.
Then came ‘Game of Thrones’ and it seems that a whole new generation wanted the (then quite rare) Husky breed — not the most suitable dog to have in a high-rise flat perhaps.
Now it’s the turn of the GoCompare ads, which pull at the viewers’ heartstrings with a basket full of cuddly, teddy-bear-like
Chow Chow puppies. How soon before these become the ‘must-have’ puppy?
How many potential owners are going to diligently do their homework before buying one — only to find out that this breed comes with a whole range of potential problems, such as hip and elbow dysplasia, hypothyroidism, entropion, breathing difficulties, and a thick dense coat, which makes them suffer greatly in warm weather (they were bred as guard dogs in the high, cold mountains of China). Added to that is their temperament — they are not very sociable with either strangers or other dogs, and are really only suited as a one-man dog to an individual owner, not as a family pet.
Surely companies such as GoCompare have a duty to be careful as to what breed they are promoting with their adverts, knowing that by featuring a certain breed some of them will end up in entirely unsuitable homes. Your Dog reader, Belfast.