I just wanted to share my experience for anyone thinking of getting a frenchie as they are one of the popular breeds at the moment.
I got my puppy from rescue centre. I have had lots of other dog breeds in my life but not frenchies. When I researched the breed I feel the info is out of date as it is pre the breeds intense popularity and therefore intense breeding of the breed, which I believe has led it to collapsing.
Frenchies used to be quite a sturdy healthy breed but now I would say the number one issue that owners experience is that of chronic, long term, multiple allergies, needing ongoing medication (apoquel, cytopoint injections monthly £75) special diet, cotton bedding, supplements, pet friendly cleaning
, medicated shampoo (malaseb bath is £40 prescription only from the vet) etc etc.
The ear infections can also lead to the need for Teca surgery (inner ear ablation). I know a lot of frenchie owners and pretty much all of them are itchy and have recurrent ear infections.
The insurance costs me £123 per month, nuff said...
The breathing issues they have can often be solved by Boas surgery however this sometimes doesn’t work and it is major painful surgery for the dog and very expensive.
Lots of frenchies are not reliable on housetraining due to being a stubborn breed and many of them have spinal issues which not only gives them an uneven gait (which means jumping is not recommended) but also means they don’t always get clear warning when they need to go so accidents are inevitable.
They have poor temperature control which means you basically live with a reptile who needs a constant temperature in a narrow range. Cool mats in the summer, coats in the mildest winter weather.
Frenchies can play rough with other dogs and children, couple this with their stubborn personality and the fact that they are spoiled and you can get a lot of frenchies that are explosive and bite. They are not easy to train so a lot are coming into rescue very reactive to other dogs and unreliable around children.
The separation anxiety is normally quite bad. I am a home body and I do the school run twice a day. If I leave him I need to make sure he is enclosed and has no access to chew anything.
They tend to be lifelong chewers.
Frenchies are very slow to mature typically being fully mature between 2 -3 years old. This means that an outwardly healthy puppy will not show signs of back and disc issues until they are older, allergies, breathing issues etc.
They are also heavy shedders.
If you have deep pockets, home a lot and dog experience and you are rescue minded I would encourage you to rescue one of these dogs. They are very cute and adorable but the above is sadly a reality for this breed now.