Overview
Selective breeding by humans has made the domestic dog the most morphologically diverse species that has ever existed. Since Victorian times, dogs have been the subject of increasingly intense selective breeding with the goal of altering their functional anatomy for specific purposes, such as working tasks, agility or simply ‘desirable’ visual qualities.
About this opportunity
The clear breed-specific prevalence for certain disorders strongly suggests that many of the physical traits favoured by selective breeding have a harmful effect on musculoskeletal function by creating inherent predispositions to disease or injury. Unfortunately, the scientific data needed to understand the relationships between different breed morphologies and locomotor mechanics is currently lacking, limiting the ability of those responsible for canine welfare policy to address health issues surrounding breed standards.
We are attempting to address these issues through quantitative comparisons of anatomy and gait dynamics in popular UK domestic dog breeds. At present, however, we have not assessed the impacts of differences in anatomy and gait on the loading of joint tissues (ligament, cartilage and bone) across breeds, which could be carried out non-invasively using finite element analysis. Furthermore, our work is yet to place the anatomical and movement variation seen in dogs in a wider context by comparing to other selectively bred mammals or indeed animals that evolved purely by natural selection. Such an analyses could have major welfare impacts, as well as allowing us to use body shape variation seen in selectively bred animals as model systems to understand how anatomical variation alters quadrupedal locomotor mechanics.
The goal of this project is to determine if differences in anatomy and habitual motion patterns across canine breeds result in joint tissue loads and safety factors that different not only to each other but also a range of other domesticated and non-domesticated mammals, through the following objectives:
- To build and analyse breed-specific finite element computer models of knee and elbow joints and load these models with existing kinetic data from experimental gait analysis and MDA models.
- Conduct comparative morphological, experimental and modelling work to quantitatively compare the magnitude of anatomical change and the resulting variation in bone loading seen in domestic dog breeds to ancestral and wild dogs, and other selectively bred or domesticated mammals (e.g. cats, horses).
- In collaboration with SME Fusion Implants (CASE partner), use our experimental and FE modelling framework to assess a new Load Shifting Humeral Osteotomy device for large-breed dogs.
The ideal student would have a background in zoology, comparative anatomy or bioengineering, and skills in quantitative, mechanical and/or 3D digital techniques, and/or experimental gait analysis, but training will be provided in all techniques. The supervisory team includes experts in mammalian anatomy, biomechanics, computer simulation, tissue mechanics and canine welfare, and some flexibly exists to customise the project to the interest of successful student.
Further reading
1. Charles, J.P., Comerford, E., Ratcliffe, V., Kissane, R.W.P., Gooding, I., Cottriall, S., Maddox, T.W. & Bates, K.T. 2025. Biomechanics of working dog locomotion I: steady-state trotting. Journal of Experimental Biology.
2. Charles, J.P., Comerford, E., Ratcliffe, V., Kissane, R.W.P., Gooding, I., Cottriall, S., Maddox, T.W. & Bates, K.T. 2025. The biomechanics of working dog locomotion II: Loaded trotting. Journal of Experimental Biology.
3. Clark, N.L., Bates, K.T., Murray, J., Harris, L. & Comerford, E. 2023. GenPup-M: a novel validated owner-reported clinical metrology instrument for detecting early mobility changes in dogs. PLoS ONE 18(12): e0291035.
4. Sellers, W.I., Cross, C.F., Fukuhara, A., Ishiguro, A. & Hirasaki, E. 2023. Producing non-steady-state gaits (starting, stopping, and turning) in a biologically realistic quadrupedal simulation. Frontiers in Ecology & Evolution 10, 954838.
5. Readioff, R., Geraghty, B., Comerford, E., & Elsheikh, A. 2020. A Full-Field 3D Digital Image Correlation and Modelling Technique to Characterise Anterior Cruciate Ligament Mechanics Ex Vivo. Acta Biomaterialia 113:417–28.