Kasey Dresser| November 4, 2019

A study published in the Journal of Neuroscience found evidence that artificial dog breeding has affected the animal’s brain.

Artificial dog breeding has been around for centuries, even notably performed by George Washington and the crossbreed of the American foxhound. Selective breeding is done to achieve desired behavioral and physical characteristics. A study at Harvard University set out to find out if the practice has affected their physical characteristics in ways we can’t see. 

Dr. Erin Hecht, the leader of the study, focused on brain structure unrelated to body size or head shape. 62 male and female dogs of 33 different dog species were given MIRS. After the areas of the brains were analyzed, the team created six separate brain network models, each related to a different behavior specialization like hunting, guarding, companionship, etc. An analyzation of the data revealed that brain anatomy has significant variation among the different dog species, likely related to human-applied selection for behavior. 

This study is one of the first related to the complications of selective breeding and Dr. Hecht, and their team, look forward to continuing their research.