French Bulldog

General Information - French Bulldog

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History

Probably issued, like all the mastiffs, from the Epirus and the Roman Empire molosses, relative of the Bulldog of Great Britain, the Alans (tribe of the Middle Age), the mastiffs and small type mastiffs of France, the bulldog we know is the product of different crossings done by enthusiastic breeders in the popular quarters of Paris in the years 1880.

During that period, the Bulldog being a dog belonging to butchers and coachmen of « les Halles » (market place), he soon knew how to conquer the high society and the artistic world by his particular appearance and character. He then rapidly propagated himself.

The first breed club was founded in 1880 in Paris. The first registration dates from 1885 and the first standard was established in 1898, year in which the Société Centrale Canine of France recognized the breed of the French Bulldog. The first shown dog was from 1887. The standard, modified in 1931, 1932 and 1948, was reformulated in 1986 by HF Reant and R Triquet (FCI publication 1987), then in 1994 by the committee of the Club of the French Bulldog with the collaboration of R. Triquet.

Behaviour/Character

Sociable, lively, playful, sporty, keen. Particularly affectionate towards his masters and the children.

Upkeep

The Frenchie has minimal exercise requirements, although it is a fun-loving dog. It enjoys a romp outdoors, but it doesn’t do well in hot, humid weather. A short walk on lead is sufficient to meet most of its physical needs. This breed should not live outdoors. It requires minimal coat care.

French Bulldog

A breed standard is the guideline which describes the ideal characteristics, temperament, and appearance of a breed and ensures that the breed is fit for function with soundness essential. Breeders and judges should at all times be careful to avoid obvious conditions and exaggerations, as well as being mindful of features which could be detrimental in any way to the health, welfare or soundness of this breed.

Breed Standard - French Bulldog

Origin: France.

Date of Publication of the official valid standard: 10.08.2023.

Utilization: Companion and Toy dog.

Classification FCI: Group 9 Companion and Toy Dogs.
                                Section 11 Small Molossian Dogs.
                                Without working trial.

Brief Historical Summary: Probably descending, like all mastiffs, from the Epirusand the Roman Empire molossers, relative of the Bulldog of Great Britain, the Alaunts (tribe of theMiddle Ages), the mastiffs and small-type mastiffs of France. The bulldog we know is the product ofdifferent crossings done by enthusiastic breeders in the popular quarters of Paris in the 1880s.During that period, the Bulldog was a dog belonging to Parisian market porters, butchers and coachmen,it soon won over high society and the artistic world by its particular appearance and character.It rapidly became popular. The first breed club was founded in 1880 in Paris. The first registrationdates from 1885 and the first standard was established in 1898, the year in which the French KennelClub recognized the French Bulldog breed. The first dog of this breed was shown at an exhibition asearly as 1887. The standard, modified in 1931-1932 and 1948, was reformulated in 1986 by H.F.Reant with the collaboration of R. Triquet (F.C.I. publication 1987), then in 1994 by VioletteGuillon (F.C.I. publication 1995) and in 2012 by the French Bulldog Club committee.
General Appearance: The type is of a small-sized molossian. A powerful dog for itssmall size, short, stocky, compact in all its proportions, smooth-coated, with a snub nose, erect earsand a naturally short tail. Must have the appearance of an active, intelligent, very muscular dog,of compact build with a solid bone structure. No point is exaggerated compared to the others, whichcould spoil the dog's general harmony, in appearance and in movement.
Important proportions: The length of the body - between the point of the shoulderand the point of the buttock - slightly surpasses the height at the withers. Short face.
Head: Must be strong, broad and square, covered by the skin of the head which formssymmetrical folds and wrinkles, without excess.

Cranial Region

Skull: Broad, almost flat from ear to ear, domed forehead. Prominent superciliaryarches, separated by a particularly developed furrow between the eyes. The furrow must not extendonto the skull. External occipital protuberance is barely developed.

Stop: Pronounced.

Facial Region The head of the Bulldog is characterized by a shortening of themaxillary-nasal part as well as a slight to moderate slope of the nose backwards. The nose isslightly upturned (“snub nose”).

Nose: Black, broad, snubbed, with symmetrical and well opened nostrils, slantingtowards the rear. The slope of the nostrils as well as the upturned nose must, however, allownormal nasal breathing.

Muzzle: Short, broad, with concentric symmetrical folds.

Lips: Thick, a little loose and black. The upper lip meets the lower lip at itsmiddle, completely covering the teeth.The profile of the upper lip is descending and rounded. The tongue must never show when the dogis not excited.

Jaws/Teeth: Broad and powerful jaws. The lower jaw projects in front of the upperjaw and turns up. The arch of the lower incisors is rounded. The jaw must not show lateral deviation,or torsion. The gap between the incisors of the upper and the lower jaw should not be strictlydelimited, the essential condition being that the upper and the lower lips meet to completely coverthe teeth. The lower incisors surpass the upper incisors. Sufficiently developed incisors and canines.Complete bite is desirable.
Cheeks: Well developed.

Eyes: Clearly visible eyes, striking with lively expression, set low, quite far fromthe nose and the ears, dark coloured, rather large, rounded, showing no trace of white (sclera) whenthe dog is looking straight forward. Rims of eyelids must be black.

Ears: Medium size, wide at the base and rounded at the top. Set high on the head,but not too close together, carried erect. The ear is open towards the front. The skin must be fineand soft to the touch.

Neck: Short, powerful, slightly arched, without dewlap, broadens towards the shoulder.

Body:
Topline - Rising progressively, but not excessively, from the withers towards the loin. Thatconformation - also called roach-back - is typical for the breed.
Back - Broad and muscular, firm without slackness.
Loin - Short, broad and arched.
Croup - Well sloping.
Chest - Cylindrical and well let down (slightly under the elbows); very well sprung ribs, so-called"barrel shaped". Fore chest, broad and square-shaped, seen from the front.
Underline and belly - Tucked up but not whippety.

Tail: Naturally short, ideally long enough to cover the anus, set low, ratherstraight, thick at the base and tapering at the tip.A kinked, knotted, broken or relatively long tail that does not reach beyond the point of thehocks, is admitted. It is carried low. Even in action, the tail must not rise above the horizontal.

Forequarters:
General appearance: Forelegs upright (and straight) seen in profile and from the front.
Shoulder - Must be well laid back.
Upper arm - Short, thick, muscular, slightly curved.
Elbows - Close and tight to the body.
Forearm - Short, straight and muscular.
Carpus (Wrist) - Solid and short.
Metacarpus (Pastern) - Short and slightly oblique seen in profile.
Forefeet - Round, compact, of small dimension, i.e. “cat feet”, turning slightly outward. The toesare tight, nails short, thick and black.

Hindquarters:
General appearance: The hindlegs are strong and muscular, a little longer than the forelegs,thus raising the hindquarters. The legs are upright as seen both in profile and from behind.
Thigh - Well muscled, firm.
Hock joint - Quite well let down, neither too angulated nor too straight.
Tarsus - Solid.
Metatarsus (Rear pastern) - Short.
Hind feet - Round, compact, turning neither inward nor outward.

Gait / Movement: The legs moving parallel to the median plane of the body,whether seen in front or from behind. Free, movement with good hind leg thrust.
Skin: Firm.


Hair: Smooth coat, close, glossy and soft, without undercoat.

Colour: fawn, brindled or not, with or without white spotting.Coat with colouring:
Brindle: Fawn coat moderately characterized by transversal dark brindling creatinga 'tiger-marked' effect, strongly brindled coats must not cover out the fawn ground colour. A blackmask may be present. Limited white spotting is admissible. Fawn: Solid coat, from light fawn to darkfawn, sometimes presenting a paler colouring of the inclined parts, with or without a black mask,although masked subjects are preferred. Sometimes accompanied by limited white spotting.
Coat with white spotting:
Brindled with moderate or important white spotting: So-called 'pied', the spottingbeing ideally distributed over the entire subject. Some blotches on the skin are admissible.
Coat with white spotting:
Fawn with moderate or important white spotting: So-called 'fawn and white', thespotting being ideally distributed over the entire dog. Some blotches of the skin are tolerated.The nose is always black, in all coat colours, never brown or blue. The all-white subjects providedthe edge of eyelids and nose are black - are admitted but not bred for, because of a risk of deafness.
Size and Weight:
Height at the withers: Males: 27-35 cm. Females: 24-32 cm. A deviation of 1 cmabove and below the standard is tolerated.
Weight: Males: 9-14 kg. Females: 8-13 kg.
500 g more than the standard weight is allowed when the subject is typical.

Faults: Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault andthe seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degreeand its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog.

• Strongly flecked with black brindle with white coat.
• Fawn and white coat strongly red speckled.
• In fawn coats, deep black trace extending along the spine.
• White stockings in brindles and fawns.
• Light-coloured nails in brindle and fawn.
• No roach back.

• Muzzle too long or excessively short.
• Tongue visible when mouth is closed.
• Light eyes (hawk eye).
• Excessive depigmentation of the lips, nose, eyelids, the rim of which should never be entirely depigmented.
• Pincer bite.
• Arch back (camel back).

• Aggressive or overly shy.
• Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities.
• Lacks type: insufficient ethnic characteristics which result in the dog not really resembling other subjects of the breed.
• Completely closed nostrils.
• Torsion or lateral deviation of the jaw, resulting in the tongue constantly being visible.
• Dog with lower incisors articulating behind upper incisors.
• Dog with permanently visible canines (fangs), mouth being closed.
• Heterochrome eyes (wall eye).
• Colour of nose other than black.
• Ears not carried erect.
• Taillessness or ingrown tail.
• Dewclaw on hindquarters.
• Reversed hock.
• Long, wired-haired or woolly coat.
• Colour not in accordance with what is prescribed in the standard, namely black, black with fawn markings (black and tan) and all dilutions of black with or without white spotting.
• Size and weight outside the standard limits.
• Respiratory distress.
• Deafness.

Note:

• Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.
• Only functionally and clinically healthy dogs, with breed typical conformation, should be used for breeding.

Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog and on the dog’s ability to perform its traditional work.