Surgery
6th Annual Gulf-Atlantic Veterinary Conference
Kathleen Ham, DVM, MS, DACVS
Michigan State University
Anatomy gone wrong: Brachycephalic dogs are bred to have a shortened skull on the longitudinal axis, which occurs by early ankylosis of the basicranial epiphyseal cartilage. Craniometry is used to classify dogs into three groups (brachycephalic, dolichocephalic or mesocephalic) based on facial skull development with brachycephalic dogs having craniofacial angles of 9-14° and a skull width:length ratio of >0.81. The problem that is associated with breathing results from the amount of oral and nasal soft tissues that are compressed into the short and broad face and skull.