Both giant and toy dog breeds face significant health and welfare challenges related to their extreme body size. Selective breeding for size extremes has created animals with shorter lives and more health problems.
The extremes of body size in dog breeding create animals whose bodies work against their welfare. Giant breeds face joint stress, cardiac strain, and cancer at rates far above moderate-sized breeds. Toy breeds face dental crowding, fragile bones, and respiratory compromise. In both cases, breeding trends driven by human aesthetic preference rather than health have created generations of animals with preventable suffering. Breeding standards that prioritise health metrics over size extremes are the key intervention.