Brachycephalic dogs - including French bulldogs, pugs, and English bulldogs - suffer from structural breathing difficulties that cause chronic welfare compromise and are selected for by buyer demand.
Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome represents a systemic welfare failure driven by human preference for infantile facial features. Affected dogs cannot breathe normally, exercise normally, thermoregulate, or sleep soundly - conditions that would constitute severe welfare compromise in any other context. The suffering is chronic, lifelong, and deliberately perpetuated by breeding selection driven by consumer demand. Welfare reform requires both regulatory changes restricting extreme conformation breeding and consumer education reducing demand for severely affected breeds. The popularity of brachycephalic breeds despite their welfare problems demonstrates how aesthetic preferences can override welfare considerations.