Trends in genetic diversity for all Kennel Club registered pedigree dog breeds

BACKGROUND: Inbreeding is inevitable in closed populations with a finite number of ancestors and where there is selection. Therefore, management of the rate of inbreeding at sustainable levels is required to avoid the associated detrimental effects of inbreeding. Studies have shown some pedigree dog breeds to have high levels of inbreeding and a high burden of inherited disease unrelated to selection objectives, implying loss of genetic diversity may be a particular problem for pedigree dogs. Pedigree analysis of all 215 breeds currently recognised by the UK Kennel Club over the period 1980–2014 was undertaken to ascertain parameters describing the rate of loss of genetic diversity due to inbreeding, and the presence of any general trend across all breeds. RESULTS: The trend over all breeds was for the rate of inbreeding to be highest in the 1980s and 1990s, tending to decline after 2000. The trend was comparable in very common and rarer breeds, although was more pronounced in rarer breeds. Rates of inbreeding over the entire period 1980–2014 were not correlated with census population size. The existence of popular sires was apparent in all breeds. CONCLUSION: The trends detected over 1980–2014 imply an initial excessive loss of genetic diversity which has latterly fallen to sustainable levels, even with modest restoration in some cases. The theory of genetic contributions, which demonstrates the fundamental relationship of inbreeding and selection, implies that popular sires are the major contributor to high rate of inbreeding. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s40575-015-0027-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.