tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307187040250193857.post4674700966140068142..comments2024-03-20T03:33:22.357-07:00Comments on Skeptophilia: Such dogGordon Bonnethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06003472005971594466noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4307187040250193857.post-16062327767008621272021-12-22T04:35:23.464-08:002021-12-22T04:35:23.464-08:00Congrats on your new furry family member. I hope ...Congrats on your new furry family member. I hope all of you will have a long, happy association with each other!<br /><br />FYI there are actual legal problems with owning certain dog breeds, including pit mixes. Not only have I been prohibited from having one in various apartments I’ve lived in, but at least one of my homeowner insurance policies has explicitly excluded specific breeds, including pits.<br /><br />There is very little scientific basis behind dog breeds and associated behavioral traits - there is far more variation *within* a breed than there is *between* breeds. So breed stereotypes are about as accurate as Cosmo quizzes, with owners falling into most of the usual confirmation bias traps.<br /><br />Also, unless a dog has papers and is registered, or is purebred of a distinctive breed, it’s nearly impossible for humans (even veterinarians) to know what breeds are in the background simply by visual examination. There may be some genetic markers that can indicate the background in some cases.<br /><br />This is all to say that 1) dogs are basically dogs, and singling out specific breeds for exclusion in leases and insurance policies has no scientific basis, 2) assigning breeds to a mutt is problematic, and 3) while breed profiles are fun to read and breed histories are super interesting, any individual dog is going to much more be its own individual doggy self, anyway,<br /><br />References are available if you are interested. 🙂4A-HEALTHY-BMIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10422285581958528327noreply@blogger.com