Everything is Arbitrary

Purebred dogs

Episode Summary

Dogs are the super-cute, ancient friends of humans. And how they look and what they're like have been shaped by humans. Find out about the arbitrary standards that define breeds, and the problematic underpinnings and monstrous results of these standards.

Episode Notes

Music via Danosongs.

Sources:

• https://www.sciencealert.com/fruits-vegetables-before-domestication-photos-genetically-modified-food-natural
• https://www.businessinsider.com.au/what-farm-animals-looked-like-before-breeding-2016-2?r=US&IR=T#/#turkeys-1
• https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/how-wolves-really-became-dogs-180970014/
• https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/06/the-origin-of-dogs/484976/
• http://theconversation.com/canine-and-able-how-dogs-made-us-human-7394
• https://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/services/public/breed/standard.aspx?id=1003
• https://brightside.me/wonder-animals/how-dog-breeds-have-changed-over-the-last-100-years-172705/
• http://www.dogbreedhealth.com/basset-hound/
• https://digitalcommons.law.msu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1146&context=facpubs
• https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/different-dog-breeds-same-species/
• https://ticau.com/pages/history/history.pdf
• https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/mar/15/pedigree-dogs-breeding-crufts-german-shepherd-best-in-breed
• https://www.rspca.org.au/campaigns/puppy-farms
• https://www.rspcavic.org/buying-a-puppy-from-a-pet-shop
• https://www.mic.com/p/is-buying-a-dog-from-a-breeder-really-that-bad-the-answer-isnt-as-clear-cut-as-you-think-17296618
• https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/15/magazine/is-it-ok-to-get-a-dog-from-a-breeder-not-a-shelter.html
• Also, the 2008 BBC documentary, Pedigree Dogs Exposed, and its 2012 followup, Pedigree Dogs Exposed: Three Years On.