French Bulldog Looks

It's a dog with a short and smooth coat, compact yet strongly built, and frequently referred as a Pug or a Boston Terrier, and sometimes called a bat, piggy and the like. the Frenchie is, indeed, a charming dog.

French Bulldogs are bred around the world. In the United States, the American Kennel Club (AKC) standard is followed, but Europe and South America (FCI), Canada (CKC), Australia etc have their own standards and particularities. The Breed Standard is a document which describes what a dog should look and act like. It is the French Bulldog blueprint. It is the breeder's job to interpret this standard and try to breed as close to it as possible.

The Frenchie should be a small dog, but not a fragile and light one, as "toy" breeds usually are. Their bodies are muscular and proportional. Their tails are short and kept close to their body, but are never docked or cropped. Their heads are square and strong. Their lower jaws must be longer than the upper one, but their teeth should not be visible with their mouths closed. The super important "bat ears" should be round at the top and stand erect, facing forward. A Frenchie's expression should be sweet, alert and intense. It is an unique expression, different from all other breeds. It makes us sure that they understand our every word and every action. Although this has absolutely nothing to do with their decisions to obey us or not, such stubborn little creatures that they are!

Frenchies come in many coat colors, like brindle, black masked fawn (sometimes called "red") and cream. Some of these colors are not accepted by the Breed Standards, and consequently, cannot be shown. Some of these colors are liver, black and tan, black (solid, without any light markings like brindles) and blue. Some of those non acceptable colors have been linked to genetic disorders. Ticking (small, dark ticks on a white background) are highly undesireable. Check out some of the French Bulldog coat colors below. Please note that the color names of certain coat colors are still being debated over by many breeders in North America and around the world.

For more detailed information on French Bulldog Looks, please refer to the French Bulldog AKC Breed Standard (.pdf format), and the French Bulldog FCI Breed Standard (.doc format).

A fad color is a coat color disqualified by the FBDCA/AKC French Bulldog Breed Standard. These colors are also often referred to as rare colors. Those who intentionally breed disqualification (DQ) colors in French Bulldogs are motivated only to make money. No responsible breeder would breed against their breed standard. A reputable and responsible Frenchie breeder should only breed dogs conforming to his or her country’s parent club French Bulldog Breed Standard. Those irresponsible breeders who breed for and advertise "rare" colors are intentionally spreading unacceptable color genes through the gene pool and causing problems for reputable breeders whose main concern is to produce quality puppies that conform to our Standard. These irresponsible breeders producing fad colors are motivated by greed, since by calling their disqualified colors rare they are able to sell them for very inflated prices.

Please educate yourself about French Bulldog fad colors and why they are bad.