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The influence of size on the biology of the dog
Author(s) -
KIRKWOOD JAMES K.
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
journal of small animal practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1748-5827
pISSN - 0022-4510
DOI - 10.1111/j.1748-5827.1985.tb02090.x
Subject(s) - body weight , pathological , allometry , medicine , physiology , zoology , biology , pathology , ecology
Many morphological and physiological characters adhere to quite rigid patterns of variation with bodyweight across the 35‐fold weight range of dog breeds. The ways in which these characters correlate with weight are thought to be due largely to constraints acting during development, and the rates at which they alter with weight among breeds of dogs often differ from those seen between mammals as a whole. Because of this difference in scaling, the dimensions of several morphological and physiological features (e.g. organ sizes, gestation period and pup size) tend to deviate in toy and giant breeds from the mammalian averages. Equations describing a variety of parameters in relation to weight are presented. These are of practical value in predicting properties from bodyweight, but may also help to explain some pathological conditions seen in toy and giant breeds.