An Overview of the International Partnership for Dogs (IPFD)

Our Organization:
 

IPFD At-a-Glance:

• Non-profit, registered in Sweden
• Independent, international, multi-stakeholder, multi-disciplinary
• Facilitates collaboration and sharing of information and bringing the dog world together for action to enhance dog health, well-being, and welfare.
• Our Partners and Collaborators are organizations that share our interest in dog health, well-being, and welfare. Our Founding Partners were national kennel clubs, international cynological organizations, and from pet industries; our collaborating partners include groups from academic institutions, breed specific interests, educational and professional organizations (include both for profit and non-profit organizations).
• The target audiences for our online platform DogWellNet.com (see below) are first and foremost committed and health-conscious breeders, as well as those who support and advise them (kennel and breed club health committees, breeding advisors, etc.), but also include essentially all those involved in the world of dogs including, veterinarians; researchers; kennel/breed clubs and their members; dog owners; and more.
   

IPFD - Bringing the Dog World Together:

The issues of dog health, well-being, and welfare are extremely complex and extend across international borders to include organizations and individuals from numerous jurisdictions, sectors, and disciplines. A coordinating mechanism is essential to bringing these stakeholders together, harnessing their strengths, and facilitating collaboration among them.

The IPFD and our internet platform DogWellNet.com came into being following a long history of efforts to address dog health and well-being by many stakeholders. The organization was founded with an intent to provide information and support to the global dog community – not to limit access to the members/populations of our Partners. We depend on the leadership and commitment to stewardship of our Partners to provide this service, free to all.

A timeline of key developments highlighting the complexity of issues addressed by the IPFD and DogWellNet.com can be viewed in the article: IPFD: Background and Development.

The IPFD is open, inclusive, and transparent in its structure and function. It is truly a "people driven" service organization. We allocate the bulk of our financial resources to maintain a small but dedicated team to manage our modest resources and facilitate the activities of our stakeholders – with the aim of achieving our collective goals. Learn more about our recent activities and accomplishments in our 2018 Annual Report.

Our Contributors
 

Contributing Partners:

IPFD’s Contributing Partners include our Founding, Initiating, and other Partners who provide financial support to IPFD.

Collaborating Partners:

Our Collaborating Partners include Breed-Specific and non Breed-Specific organizations officially collaborating with IPFD.

Sponsors:

IPFD Sponsors are organizations or individuals providing funds and in-kind support to specific IPFD initiatives, such as the Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs.

Ongoing Engagement

IPFD is a truly global organization. We are continuously working to engage more Partners from throughout the world, including additional cynological organizations, professional and academic groups, welfare organizations, and corporate/industry partners.

We are also continually increasing engagement of individuals as members of the DogWellNet.com online community.

Our Board
 

The first meeting of the Board of the International Partnership for Dogs was held on Thursday, August 28, 2014, at the Kennel Club in London.

The IPFD Board (2018) is comprised of Pekka Olson (Chair, Sweden), Caroline Kisko (Vice Chair, UK), Peter Friedrich (Germany), Jean-Pierre Genevois (France), Patricia Olson (USA), and Kirsi Sainio (Finland). Brenda Bonnett (Canada) is the Chief Executive Officer, and Ulf Uddman (Sweden) is the Chief Financial Officer. See brief curriculum vitae for the Board here.

International Dog Health Workshops (IDHWs):
IPFD, together with an alternating host organization, holds biennial meetings: the International Dog Health Workshops (IDHWs). These meetings bring together a wide range of stakeholders in dog health and welfare to improve international sharing of information and resources, to provide a forum for ongoing collaboration, and to identify specific needs and actions to improve health, well-being and welfare in dogs.

There have been four IDHWs to date. The most recent was co-hosted by IPFD Partner, The Kennel Club in the UK in 2019.

Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs (HGTD):

One of the major IPFD projects, the Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs (HGTD) arose from discussions at the International Dog Health Workshops (IDHWs); the HGTD is a proud achievement, exemplifying the IDHW’s tagline: From Information and Collaboration to Action!

The goal of the HGTD is to improve standardization of, and access to, robust genetic testing to support health improvements and a sustainable future for healthy dogs. It is a portal for information on Genetic Testing Providers (labs); genetic tests, and tests by breed. There are two major components: the Quality Testing Database and Genetic Counselling resources. 

The HGTD Initiative is made possible by our Harmonization Leadership Sponsors (Contributing Leadership Sponsors, Leadership GTPs, and Leadership Collaborators) listed on the main HGTD Page.

HGTD Quick Links:

IPFD Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs: Initiative Description | Main HGTD Resources Page

Our Online Platform: DogWellNet.com

DogWellNet.com, the internet platform of the IPFD, functions as an information hub, providing links, documents and additional resources to breeders and others in the dog world. However, it is much more than ‘Google-for-dogs’.

The design and structure of the platform revolves around ‘building community’ – bringing people together. This is being accomplished both by the way the IPFD has developed the site, e.g., sharing information from our Partners, as well as the functionality inherent in its design (for example, our Forums, where groups can effectively communicate, share information, reach consensus, etc.).  Another collaborative resource is our Breeds Database where we provide information on breeds, including health, welfare, and breeding information, from around the world, often including contributions from Breed Clubs from various countries.

As IPFD is dedicated to sharing information with the whole "dog world" - beyond our Partners and their communities, unregistered guests can access significant amounts of content on the site. Guests can sign up for a free Member account to access some additional content and features on the website and participate more fully with other Members. Invited Members and Advanced Members (in general, those recommended by one of our Partners or Sponsors) may be granted additional privileges to help us create and maintain content.

DogWellNet.com At-a-Glance:

The following sections of the site can be accessed via links in the main horizontal navigation bar:

The Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs section includes a searchable Quality Testing Database, Genetic Counselling Resources and other information related to the Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs (HGTD) initiative. This area can only be accessed by DogWellNet.com Members (sign up here).

Our Breeds area provides information on Pedigreed Breeds, Native Breeds and Additional Breed Resources.

The Articles section is organized under the following headings:

• About IPFD
• Hot Topics
• IPFD International Dog Health Workshops
• Health and Breeding
• Population Data on Dogs, Health and Disease
• Welfare
• Education
• HGTD Quality Database
• HGTD Genetic Counselling
• International Actions

Our Forums section contains areas for general discussion, along with specialty forums, working group forums and administrative forums. Access to specific forums is dependent on Member status and participation in various IPFD activities.

Our Blogs section include blogs from IPFD staff, Partners, and other collaborators.

The Downloads and Gallery sections provide documents and images for download. Access to content is dependent on Member status.

Our Contributors area includes profiles of Partners, Sponsors, and other organizations that support IPFD. 

We offer a collection of helpful tips for using DogWellNet.com (account setup, site navigation, etc.) in our Help Desk area.

Reception within the Dog Community
 

Extensive Outreach:

IPFD and DogWellNet.com are being received enthusiastically by the dog community (see examples of media coverage in our IPFD in the Media section), and we are frequently used as a resource and our CEO and other IPFD contributors are approached by partner organizations for veterinary meetings, educational events for breeders and judges, and government and regulatory groups to share international perspectives on tough issues.

Recent examples include:

• Outreach Seminar on Healthy Breeding - 42nd World Small Animal Veterinary Association Congress and 23rd FECAVA Eurocongress

• Breeding healthy dogs: IPFD CEO Dr. Brenda Bonnett talks about the use of breed specific insurance statistics for breeders, breed clubs, veterinarians and other stakeholders

• AKC-CHF 2017 National Parent Club Canine Health Conference
  BONNETT - AKC-CHF Presentation - Harmonization of Genetic Testing for Dogs | BONNETT Abstract - CHF June 2017

Collaborative Inspiration:

The IDHWs bring together decision-leaders from over 20 countries to improve cooperation on shared goals and to promote needed actions. Read: Moving from information and collaboration to action: report from the 3rd International Dog Health Workshop, Paris in April 2017

Trusted Expertise - An Independent Voice:

We are also increasingly viewed as an important independent voice - with a view of the entire landscape - such as during recent discussions on genetics and genomics for dogs.

Join us:

IPFD encourages potential contributors, collaborators, sponsors, and others in the dog world to contact us (see below) to explore ways for us to work together in furthering the health, welfare, and well-being of dogs.

Stay Informed
 

DogWellNet Digest:
 

Check out DogWellNet Digest for the latest news and information from IPFD and DogWellNet.com. Registered Members receive a link to new issues of the Digest via email.

Our Social Media Pages:

Be sure to follow our social media accounts for up-to-the-minute updates on IPFD and DogWellNet.com: