Overview
In developed countries the rate of canine obesity ranges between 34% and 59%. Obesity is associated with reduced lifespan and several other comorbidities, as it is in humans. Labrador retrievers have among the highest prevalence of obesity and are particularly food motivated. The POMC gene is known to be important in regulating how the brain recognises hunger and the feeling of being full after a meal. A variant in the pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) gene has been associated with increased body weight, adiposity (body fat) and food motivation in Labrador and Flat-coat retrievers.
The variant identified is relatively common with an allele frequency of 12% in labrador retrievers. Interestingly a higher frequency of 45% was observed in assistance dog populations.