A veterinarian named Ben has gone viral on TikTok after revealing the breeds of dogs he would never own.
He posted a video to the social media platform captioned, "5 dog breeds I would/could never own as a veterinary surgeon," with the hashtags #dogsoftiktok #learnontiktok #veterinary #benthevet
Ben.the.vet began:
"I've seen quite a few of these on TikTok before already, but I just wanted to give my opinion."
"Remember it is ultimately my opinion. You may disagree."
The full TikTok video is below:
He went on to count down his top, er bottom, five breeds while justifying his list with solid medical reasoning.
"Number five for me is the Chow Chow. Now sure there is some nice ones, but I just find they often don't have a very nice temperament, they can be really aloof, and they're often very aggressive at the vet's, but it's quite hard to fit a muzzle onto their face."
"They suffer quite commonly with a ton of eye problems, and their purple tongues are a bit unnerving."
His number four pick is a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
"They are the loveliest dogs, and if I was going to pick a dog breed for myself, if it weren't for all the health issues, it would probably be the cavi."
"But they do have lots of issues. Pretty much all of them get the same kind of heart disease."
Next up was the Dachshund, of which Ben said:
"Again, they're really lovely dogs and some of my favorite patients, but one in four develop back problems in their lifetime."
"Fantastic personalities but too much potential for heartbreak."
#2 was the Shar Pei due to their high risk of disease.
"They even have a disease named after them called Shar Pei fever."
"They're so wrinkly that they have to have their eyelids tacked in place."
"They're always getting skin issues, [and] they've got tiny narrow ear canals."
"At the vet's, they often try to bite the face off all the staff."
And what is the #1 breed ben.the.vet would not own? "Any flat-faced dog breed" like French Bull Dogs or pugs.
He explained:
"Society has normalized the fact that these dogs snorting means that they can't breathe very well."
"They are so prone to so many problems: spinal issues, skin problems, eye problems..."
"The fact that over 50% of them have to have a cesarean to give birth is enough of an ethical issue to me to never want to have one."
Comments came flooding in, mostly in agreement with the vet.
Although most of his picks are lovable and adorable, they do have significant health risks.
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While some of us may be disappointed to see some of our favorite breeds listed, it's commendable Ben constructed his list from an ethical standpoint based on quality of life.
