French Bulldog "puppymills"

Mrs Vivien Watkins recently warned us in her breed notes in Dog World, about exporting to various countries. Even Europe where we think things are safe, one must take great care. Some members may, like me, have been concerned by the numbers of puppy inquiries they have recently from France. I asked my friends in that country, and was dismayed to learn about the situation of our breed there at the present. Francoise Girard kindly agreed to tell us about things there, and Jean-Pierre kindly translated her article for us.
Maureen Bootle (Tommyville)

At the end of the 40´s the French Bulldog breed had become very rare in France due to the WWII. There were very few breeders and not so much people asking for buying a Frenchie. Some of breeders imported quality dogs to "rebuild" a breed which had become very "poor". Must of imported dogs came from UK (Earlstedads, Bomlitz, Quatt), some from Switzerland (du Poutzon, von Erckenbuhl). Fawn colour was not allowed. The brindle dogs had good coats and pied dogs were seldom spotted. Due to the importation, some fawn dogs were born from time to time, as those imported dogs had some fawn genes. For the breeders, this was a disaster as those puppies could not have any pedigree. So to hide the shame(!) some breeders saying they were mongrels they were put down or sold as pets for peanuts. So, there were only LOF dogs (pedigree dogs LOF=KC pedigree).
In 1980, only 164 pups were born. Should you want to buy one, you had to be patient and sometimes wait for months.
In 1990, 67 breeders produced 437 pedigree puppies LOF.
In 1995, 119 breeders produced 606 pedigree puppies LOF.
In 2000, 229 breeders produced 1600 pedigree puppies LOF.
In 2002, 318 breeders produced 2440 which mean in only 2 years an increase of 52.5%!
The breed is now the 13th most important one for the production, among the different breeds of dogs.
Unfortunately we cannot be delighted of the sudden popularity of the breed. It is mainly due to the use of the French Bulldog image by publicity in all sort of media, including TV. The pup request increased the prices too, and a lot of puppy mills began to think it was very profitable to breed Frenchies.
For those farms, only, money is important and the selection has not interest. So they buy bitches at the lowest possible prices taking no care of the quality. They have a maximum of litters without taking care of bitches´health and then, when they cannot have pups any more, they sell them as pets for a low price or simply kill them. They want to earn the maximum of money in the minimum of time during that breed is in fashion.
In an other way, a lot of people having only a bitch for their pleasure, suddenly thought it could be interesting to have pups from their bitch, even if they knew nothing in breeding and had no capacity or correct place to do so. The profit of a litter of 4 puppies, 1200 Euro each would ease the situation!
The pet stores imported from Eastern European Countries puppies without any type. just called French Bulldog on the cages where they were for sale.
Up to 1995, there were very few Frenchies without pedigree. Nowadays, lots of people breed, even if the dog was bought in a pet shop without known origin, or without any pedigree. Even with their low quality, those puppies, often bought 60 or 70 Euro in the Eastern Countries, are sold there for 800 or 900 Euro.
So we have at the same time an important increase of the production and an impoverishment of the type.
At the Dog Shows you have dogs of good quality or medium quality. You always find the same dogs at the best places. I you know well the breed and the breeders, you´ll see that the typed dogs come from the best lines, produced by Europeans Breeders, who were already present in the breed 20 years ago, even if they produce less now. Happily with the hard selection, you keep the results in the long term.
You can see too in the shows a lot of poor quality dogs. A poor selection gives narrow chests, too small heads, too long bodies, too thin legs. Happily, all those faults don´t appear all together on the same dogs, but the general results is a lack of homogeneity in the breed which will be very hard to rectify.
Up to 1980, the French breeders did not show a lot outside France. A lot of French dogs had good brindle coats but often lack of substance (light legs, narrow chests) or if they had a compact body, the legs were often not straight. At that period, the best breeders imported some dogs or went outside the country for mating their bitches (Holland, Germany). The result was a fast improvement in the best lines. The bodies are more compact, the legs more solid. But the Dutch breeders have always worked with English lines with fawn genes. So the French breeders, who went to Holland for mating, had problems with fawn pups: the fawn did not exist! The President of the French Bulldog Club and a majority of the committee members were fiercely opposed to see that colour admitted.
In 1991 a new President came with new elections and it was then possible to talk about that colour. In 1992 the French Club officially asked to the French Kennel Club (SCC) to change the standard and they agreed immediately. But it was only in 1995 that this colour was officially admitted.
There are still few fawn dogs in France and as the breeders took them out of breeding during years and years, most of the fawn dogs of those last years were of poor quality. Now there more and more born every year, but as no statistics are published by the Club, it´s difficult to have a real idea of the evolution of the different colours.
The owners have changed a lot too. Twenty years ago, most of them were true lovers, whose parents or grand parents already have had Frenchies. They knew perfectly well the breed, its origins, and the character of the dog. among them you had a lot of artist and "eccentric people". Nowadays, the "client" (yes we can say that) want a dog "like Raymond" a very well known pied dog you can see on a French TV program! He will not even ask if the character of the breed is adapted to his way of life.
As for the dealers, they want to sell their pups as quickly as possible and for the most expensive price.
Formerly unthinkable, you can now often see abandoned Frenchies. Bad conditions of life either in the kennel or with the new owners knowing nothing of the breed and you can have a dog aggressive, dirty or destructive. Exactly the opposite of what we know of a French Bulldog, who loves human beings and likes its company.
So the situation in France is very worrying, all the more the Club, which has the breed responsibility, did not make progress a lot. They work exactly the same way as ten years ago when there were a very low production. A lot of political fights stop any possible reform. A lot of good breeders don´t feel supported and are bewildered. Unfortunately, the French Kennel Club (SCC) only admits one club for each breed. So there is no competition, no dynamism.
Happily there will always be room for very good and serious breeders. But the damage of those last past years take a longtime to repair.