French Bulldog and toy breeds?
patpearce February 8th, 2008
French Bulldog and toy breeds?
I was wondering how the temperment of French Bulldogs are toward toy breeds,
like the pomeranian???
Pat writes -
Well it depends on the specific frenchie. Most get along with other dogs very well. It has been my personal experience that the frenchie LOVES big dogs - the bigger the better.
Some frenchies have a very high prey drive and yappy, fluffy, little dogs can bring that to the fore.
If you a thinking about a frenchie and have a pom or any other dog/breed - I would seek a frenchie from a knowledgeable French Bulldog breeder. Explain that you have an existing dog and what the temperament and dominance level of the dog is. A knowledgeable breeder will be able to help you match the best dog/pup available with your existing dog or will be able to tell you that of the dogs available none are a good match with the existing dog.
This does require that you have knowledge of the temperament of your dog. If you don’t know how your dog is with other dogs, you can go to an obedience class (talk to the instructor ahead of time) and ask for help in determining how your dog gets along with other dogs… If it is comfortable with a wide variety of dogs of differing dominance level and different genders - or if it takes exception to a really dominant dog or what ever. The instructor will be able to help you determine what your dog is comfortable with and how well it understands dog language. You can then talk with the breeder from a point of greater knowledge.
Anytime you are adding a dog to you ‘pack’ you would be wise to KNOW the temperaments and dominance levels of each of your existing dog(s).
In VERY general terms it is often better to match a male and a female together, the next best match is two males, and then the least desirable would be two females together. Now having said that….. individual temperaments are more important than the general rule. If you have a dominant female (and females are most often the more dominant dog - the males often don’t care who is in charge as long as they have a warm bed and plenty of food) then a very laid back girl would be a good choice, altho a laid back male might be better, depends on what is available. If however you have a laid back male (or very laid back female) then most other dogs would be appropriate matches - knowing that the new dog may then be the dominant dog. In the dog world, a laidback dog is happy to have a leader. And of course the humans should be the true pack leaders, which makes the dogs happy and feel secure. The exact dominance levels are not as critical, IF the humans are the true leaders.
A knowledgeable breeder will know the temperament of her available pups/dogs. And will be able to help you choose the best match for you.
You may want to choose an older pup or young adult which is easier to match up with an existing dog. If you choose an older dog, then there are a number of things that you KNOW (or the breeder does), the exact temperament and dominance level, the size of the dog, and many times an older pup or young adult will be house trained, leash trained, and crate trained and has been on car rides. And If you work and can’t get home at mid-day to exercise a puppy, an older pup or young adult just makes sense as the older dog will be able to ‘hold it’ for the day whereas a puppy will not. Housetraining is almost impossible if you can’t be at home mid-day to take the baby out.
I know this is more than you asked, but this should help you to make a better decision about any dog, frenchie or other, that you may decide to bring home. And of course any decision has to be taken with the idea that you are making a lifetime commitment to the dog - a time of 15 +/- years.
Good luck
Pat
