Game or gameness is a trait most often attributed to fighting dogs, working terriers, and fighting cocks that are selectively bred, referring to their ability to persevere in a fight even when losing.[1] Dogs that demonstrate this trait can also be described as "ready and willing", "full of fight", "spirited", or "plucky", and are able to resist mental and physical challenges in order to win a fight.[2] Gameness contrasts with prey drive insofar as gameness refers to a dog's motivation to fight other dogs, and prey drive refers to a dog's motivation to hunt prey.
The factors that produce gameness are not well understood. Though the selective pressures involved in breeding dogs for dogfighting appear to be a significant component of gameness, dogfighters disagree about the importance of genetics to the trait. While dogs that exhibit a high degree of gameness are more prone to have offspring who are also game, the inheritance of the trait is not consistent.[3]
- ^ McMillan, F. D.; Reid, P. J. (May 2010). "Selective breeding in fighting dogs". Animal Welfare. 19 (S1): 133–143. doi:10.1017/S0962728600002347. ISSN 0962-7286.
- ^ Stanley Coren (2006). Why does my dog act that way?: a complete guide to your dog's personality. Simon and Schuster. p. 193. ISBN 978-0-7432-9855-1.
- ^ Lockwood, Randall (2018), Linzey, Andrew; Linzey, Clair (eds.), "The Dog that is Willing to Die: The "Ethics" of Animal Fighting", The Palgrave Handbook of Practical Animal Ethics, London: Palgrave Macmillan UK, pp. 545–567, doi:10.1057/978-1-137-36671-9_31, ISBN 978-1-137-36671-9, retrieved 24 April 2024