Vets in the UK are urging people not to buy the dog breed of bulldogs because their current flat-faced genetics can cause a "lifetime of suffering".
A study has found bulldogs have twice the health risks as other dogs, and the Royal Veterinary College says urgent action is needed to reshape the breed.
The college is urging people to stop purchasing English bulldogs, French bulldogs and the pug until breeding issues are addressed.
They are also calling for the public to refrain from "promoting" the breed on social media by posting and liking pictures, the BBC reports.
Co-author of the study Dr Dan O'Neill said their extreme body shape after years of selective breeding has become their downfall.
"For breeds such as English bulldogs where many dogs still have extreme conformations (a dog's structure and appearance) with poor innate health, the public has a huge role to play by demanding dogs with moderate and healthier conformations,
"Until then, prospective owners should stop and think before buying a flat-faced dog," he added.
Before the English bulldog became a popular pet, the breed was once a muscular and athletic breed but with its rising popularity, the breed has become a short skulled, protruding jawed, skin folding and squat build dog.
O'Neill admitted the "phenomenal" popularity of the breed is understandable, with their large heads, big eyes and docile temperament, they remind humans of babies.
"We interpret this as the bogs being cute, and this is totally understandable and, in fact, very hard to fight against as a human."
The study which was published in the journal of Canine Medicine and Genetics found the most common health complaints in the breed were:
- Infections in skin folds - 38 times more likely than in other dogs
- An eye disorder known as cherry eye - 26 times more likely
- Protrusion of the lower jaw - 24 times more likely
- Breathing problems - 19 times more likely
A recent study by the same team found pugs were also at high risk of health complaints.
