Examining the Dog Phenotype and Genotype to Find the Qualities that Make Up the Best Working Dogs with Jenny Essler

Are all dogs made the same? No matter how much you love your furry friend, some dogs may be better suited to certain lifestyles than others.

Listen up to learn:

• The range of jobs working dogs are capable of
• Why some dogs fail out of work training
• Which breeds are best at particular jobs

Jenny Essler, a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Penn Vet Working Dog Center, shares her work developing the traits and finding the best working dogs science can discover.

Dogs are capable of much more than offering a best friend or emotional support animal, which most of us are familiar with. However, if we can identify specific traits, they are fantastic tools for a wide variety of work applications, from bomb-sniffing to cancer detection.

Each breed of dog is proficient in different areas of work, but not every dog is cut out for the job another may be capable of. Since training a working dog can present such a tremendous cost, understanding the genetics of each breed and litter can be a significant advantage.

Visit https://www.vet.upenn.edu/research/centers-laboratories/center/penn-vet-working-dog-center to learn more.

Episode also available on Apple Podcast: http://apple.co/30PvU9C

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed