As with all living creatures, Frenchies do have some serious health concerns. If you are looking at my website, I assume you have an interest in our breed. Because French Bulldogs are a "manmade" breed, that is we engineered their look to our desires, we have bred them against Mother Nature's supreme design. If you will read our bred standard you will see that it requires certain "rules" in body conformation to succeed in the showring. Unfortunately, these "rules" don't always follow the laws of nature.
I'll try to briefly outline some of the concerns and health issues within our breed. Of course, it is impossible when breeding any animal to accurately predict the eventual health issues of offspring. That's why it is so important to be careful when producing a litter of puppies, hence knowing your breeding frenchies ancestory....or pedigree. However, no matter how careful one is, health problems can occur, resulting from genetics that happened in breedings long past.
Some major concerns are Intervertebral Disc Disease, Hemivertebrae, Stenotic Nares, Elongated Soft Palate..........
Spinal concerns....First and foremost is the spinal problems in this breed. Because french bulldogs have never been easy to reproduce, the gene poole is small and concentrated.. there is far less breeding stock to choose from when one considers reproducing a litter ....and because this breed is a man made breed, problems occur. One is spine abnormalities....hemi vertebrae and intervertebral disc disease are the catch phrases. French bulldogs are a dwarf breed, and conditions exist in french bulldogs that don't in most other breeds. No matter how careful we reputable breeders are, things happen. There was no health testing for most of French Bulldogs existance, technology for health testing didn't exist for the early breeders. Im sure concerned breeders of long ago bred the healthiest specimens to be had. Spine problems range from nonexistant to terrible, this is a common concern of most dedicated breeders. Of course, I am barely touching the tip of the proverbial iceberg, this is a cautionary page, but if more information is desired, there are many sites that can go into specifics. Go to the French Bulldog Club of America website, or FrogDog.Org.......for further links.
Breathing problems....Next, as this is a brachycephalic breed (flat faced) breathing problems abound...from minor to major, frenchies can have difficulty in breathing when stressed, whether from activity or heat. An enlongated soft palate, and stenotic nares (pinched nostrils) are two main problems. In this breed, part of the cooling system is restricted.....the long nose in other breeds. Without a sufficient way to cool the body, frenchies can heat up fast, and with compromised breathing, frenchies can be in trouble in short order. An enlongated soft palate can partially block the trachea, and while some find the snorting sounds some frenchies make cute, in actuality this can signal trouble. Overexerted breathing stress can actually collaspe the trachea. Pinched nares can be surgically corrected, and while rather expensive, the soft palate problem can be as well. Usually this is successful, but sometimes adhesions and polyps follow later. Although these 2 concerns are "correctable"...they are inherited problems...who wants to breed frenchies that pass these traits? Who wants the heartache of these troubles?
Breeding information.... I am asked often why french bulldogs are so costly........well, I'll enlighten those of you that faint at the "sticker shock" when asking puppy prices. Hopefully, you'll have a good basic understanding after you read this. To begin with, anyone wanting to show and eventually breed a litter of frenchies should purchase the very best parent stock they can afford. Yes, a top pedigree and a top puppy usually go hand in hand. In all dog breeds, there is a breed standard, that is a "list" of body basics that a show quality french must have to enter the ring. Following this guideline will certainly help a newbie with correct body structure.. Then, the search begins, and to everyone out there looking for a frenchie, be it show or companion, locating a good reputable breeder is a must. Once you have found that breeder who is willing to take their time talking with you and answering the hundred questions you will have, the wait for that special puppy begins. Most quality frenchie puppies are available for $2000.00 and up for companion puppies, and $3000.00 and up for show potential puppies. And the show potential puppies are just that...they have potential to develop into a ringworthy showdog...sometimes the best puppy at 12-16 weeks turns out to be a companion puppy at 5 months. That is very disappointing to the puppy buyer, what will that person do with a frenchie that is less than show quality? Anyway, the would be breeder begins a task of education, pedigrees to be studied, shows to go to to see what "lines" or types appeal to him.....talking with exhibitors, visiting frenchie folk, learning whatever can be learned before acquiring the future of his frenchie "kennel". Of course doing health testing on the breeding stock, showing and hopefully finishing the puppy to it's championship...........this is all very costly. Consider gas costs, time involved in training, caring for, motel fees, entry fees $20 and up per show, and the list goes on. Ok, so now the parents are finished champions. (you are lucky if you have both parents......stud fee is another story if you breed out of your kennel) Now the wait for the little bride to be to come in season. The day is here......you notice a red stain on her bedding.....she's in season. Now off to the vet after you've watched her for 7-8 days. It's progesterone time.....she needs a baseline hormone test....that tells the veterinarian it's either time to breed or wait and redraw the test again in a couple of days..........and each test runs $40 or more. Im pretty lucky, usually I only have to have 2-3 tests per breeding. Ok, after the little bride is "right there".....in comes doc with his equipment and the stud dog.......and it's artificial insemination (AI) time...........$45 or more and this is usually done twice. However, a transcervical implant can be done....that's $45 for the AI and $70 for the endo proceedure the vet does to get the specimen "up there" at the cervical door...so to speak. Usually this proceedure is just done once....or the most expensive proceedure is placing the specimen in the uterus or surgical implantation $200 or more...so.........now on to the next stage. An ultrasound at around 35 days to determine if the little bride is going to have little frenchies........that's usually around $45-$50. If the news is happy, you wait for the approximate 63 days, and out comes puppies!!! Wish it were that simple. The vet gives you the date on which the C-section can be anticipated.......then the worrying starts. So, now hopefully everything has gone smoothly, and you go in on that date and leave the veterinarian's office with a new litter of beautiful babies....averaging 3 a litter. But of course you have the C section to pay for......and if all has gone well, that may be only $500.....or up to $700-$800. After you leave a little poorer, you take your precious babies and mommy home and the real worry and work begins. Up several times a night for the first week, anything and everything concerns you......are they breathing ok? Was that a rattle in the lungs of your favorite? Are they pooping ok? panic..........maybe or maybe not....but hopefully all goes well with the "kids". Thousands of hours later, the babies are up on their feet and are ready to be weaned...your eyes have circles under them, you haven't had a good nites sleep in several weeks but you are....almost done with the "hard" part and ready to enjoy the patter of little feet running around. Nothing is cuter than 6 week old frenchie puppies, they look like baby bunnies.
So that was a very short and basic list of costs.........if you have your own stud dog for this litter, you may be lucky and produce a litter for around $800..and that's the low side. ..not including costs for the bitch, or sire....and also not including costs to get the parents to the breeding point. If you had to "hire" the bridegroom......expect an additional $600 - $1500 or more for that litter!
Recently, I had a gal talk with me regarding inherited health issues in dogs, primarily frenchies. She asked several questions, trying to educate herself so that when she was ready to adopt she could make an informed decision. I answered her questions, and she then contacted a breeder that had puppies available. She asked those questions to that breeder. His answer was rather frightening. He told her that he did not do health testing on parents, that his frenchies were as healthy as everyone elses. That frenchies were bulldogs and everyone knew bulldogs had health issues. He also replied that if you adopt a frenchie you should expect to take it to the vet for problems......he was angry that this lady was trying to make the best decision about adopting a puppy based on answers he gave her. Personally, this "breeder" sounded like he was more concerned about making money than breeding healthy frenchies. ALWAYS do your homework, education is the key to buying the most healthy puppy you can.
NUTRITIONAL NEEDS/SKIN AND COAT PROBLEMS/ALLERGIES
Many folks have asked me over the years about allergy related problems with french bulldogs.....my answer is yes, this breed has problems with allergies.......what kind of allergies? Personally, I believe alot of this is brought on by the diet an individual frenchie is eating. Of course, allergens can be from the environment. But let's talk about food related allergies and the frenchie.
