We all have our favourite dog breeds, whether that’s because of their unique features such as being hypoallergenic, their intelligence or their size – the list goes on.
But over the years, there are some much-loved breeds that have unfortunately declined, meaning they could soon disappear from our homes and neighbourhoods.
At present, there are 32 native dog breeds in the UK and Ireland that have been identified as “vulnerable”, according to figures released by The Kennel Club.
There are also another seven which have been put on the “at watch” list by the UK’s largest organisation for dog health, welfare and training in the UK.
This is why you should never feed chocolate to your dogs
The Kennel Club website says: “Many native British and Irish breeds are at risk of disappearing from our parks and streets, simply because people don’t know they exist, or because they aren’t considered fashionable.
“The top ten breeds in the UK (including the Labrador, French Bulldog and Cocker Spaniel) account for more than 60% of annual puppy registrations for all breeds.”
It adds: “Some breeds have such low numbers that they are completely unrecognisable to the British public, which is a concern because it means that breeds that might be the perfect fit for people’s lifestyles are being overlooked in favour of other breeds that might not be, simply because they are not as well known.”
Here are the 32 dog breeds on the ‘vulnerable’ list at risk of extinction
These are the native UK and Ireland dog breeds with fewer than 300 registrations a year, according to The Kennel Club:
- Bearded Collie
- Bloodhound
- Bull Terrier (Miniature)
- Collie (Smooth)
- Dandie Dinmont Terrier
- Deerhound
- English Setter
- English Toy Terrier (Black & Tan)
- Fox Terrier (Smooth)
- Glen of Imaal Terrier
- Gordon Setter
- Harrier
- Irish Red & White Setter
- Irish Wolfhound
- King Charles Spaniel
- Kerry Blue Terrie
- Lakeland Terrier
- Lancashire Heeler
- Manchester Terrier
- Mastiff
- Norwich Terrier
- Otterhound
- Retriever (Curly Coated)
- Sealyham Terrier
- Skye Terrier
- Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
- Spaniel (Clumber)
- Spaniel (Field)
- Spaniel (Irish Water)
- Spaniel (Sussex)
- Spaniel (Welsh Springer)
- Welsh Corgi (Cardigan)
If you love dogs, you’ll love Crufts.
— The Kennel Club (@TheKennelClubUK) November 14, 2023
The wait is over, get your Crufts 2024 tickets now at https://t.co/8LmGt6FNWF. pic.twitter.com/O52c3GphDz
See the 7 dog breeds featured on the ‘at watch’ list
Here are the native UK and Ireland dog breeds with between 300 and 450 registrations a year, according to The Kennel Club:
- Bedlington Terrier
- Bullmastiff
- Irish Terrier
- Norfolk Terrier
- Parson Russell Terrier
- Old English Sheepdog
- Welsh Terrier
Visit The Kennel Club website to find out what you can do to “give these dogs a chance.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here