Is it true that some canine health research also advances human health?
The genetic makeup of dogs and humans is about 85% the same. There are about 400 diseases that affect both species in the same way. Because of this, research in canine health will help humans, and research in human health will help dogs. Scientists have proven that the dog makes a good model for human health research. Some of that reasoning is based on a shared environment (we breathe the same air, drink the same water, walk across the same treated lawns), the shorter lifespan of dogs (you can study several generations of dogs in the time it would take to study one human generation) and the ability to track lineage through pedigrees of purebred dogs (each breed is considered to be an extended “family” or genetic isolate).
