Working dogs: adult

The Working group covers guarding, rescue and draught breeds — mostly large to giant dogs bred for a physically demanding job. Many need well over two hours of exercise a day, and their size brings a recurring set of joint, heart and bloat-related themes worth discussing with a vet.

Example breeds in this group: Boxer, Rottweiler, Great Dane, Bernese Mountain Dog, Siberian Husky.

Exercise needs are high for most of this group, and a deep chest brings a genuine emergency risk (bloat) alongside the joint and heart themes common to large breeds.

• Bloat (gastric dilatation-volvulus) mainly affects deep-chested breeds — UK emergency-care research found the highest odds in Great Dane, Akita and Dogue de Bordeaux compared with crossbred dogs, with risk rising with age; it's a genuine emergency, and vets generally advise against strenuous exercise straight after a full meal.

  Source: Gastric dilation-volvulus in dogs attending UK emergency-care veterinary practices, Journal of Small Animal Practice (O'Neill et al.), 2017

• Hip and elbow dysplasia remain a recurring published theme in this group — BVA names Bernese Mountain Dog, Newfoundland and Rottweiler among breeds commonly at risk of hip dysplasia, and Bernese Mountain Dog, Dogue de Bordeaux, Great Dane, Newfoundland and Rottweiler for elbow dysplasia.

  Source: BVA Hip Dysplasia Scheme, BVA

• Dilated cardiomyopathy is the most common heart disease in large-breed dogs — a veterinary cardiology review recommends yearly screening from three years old, with Holter (heart-rhythm) monitoring specifically recommended in Boxers and Dobermanns.

  Source: Screening for dilated cardiomyopathy in dogs, Journal of Veterinary Cardiology (Wess), 2022

• UK research found markedly higher odds of osteosarcoma (bone cancer) in Leonberger, Great Dane and Rottweiler compared with crossbred dogs, with odds rising alongside adult bodyweight and a median diagnosis age of around nine and a half.

  Source: Dog breeds and conformations predisposed to osteosarcoma in the UK: a VetCompass study, Canine Medicine and Genetics (Guillen et al.), 2023