Breeding

Unique French Bulldogs import most of our male Studs from overseas. We source strong, healthy dogs from around the world. This is a big undertaking, but we are strong believers in ‘outcrossing’ as this significantly reduces the risk of health defects.

Line breeding or inbreeding? Never!

This compounds health problems, particularly if there is a problem recessive gene present. For example, if a female and male have an issue a breeder is unaware of, mixing their DNA could likely result in the birth of puppies with health problems.

Here at Unique French Bulldogs we only ever breed two to three litters from each female and are always importing or buying new males. Breeding these Limited number of litters from out girls means they put through less physical stress and will find their forever homes at a younger age. If a female needs a cesarean to birth a litter she will be desexed and rehomed as her health will always come first.

There are a number of significant welfare issues associated with pedigree dog breeding. These include exaggerated physical features, inbreeding and inherited diseases.

Pedigree dogs exist due to deliberate and selective breeding for specific traits by dog breeders. Breeding animals are primarily selected based on their physical appearance. This primary focus on appearance often causes a number of health and welfare problems.

Each pedigree breed has a ‘breed standard’ which is a set of strict guidelines describing the way the breed should look. The breed standard mainly focuses on physical features and may also include a small section on temperament. ‘Breed standards’ typically require very specific and narrow physical criteria. Adherence to the breed standard is also used by judges in the dog show ring.

Unfortunately some of the breed standards required for French Bulldogs are extremely exaggerated looks very flat face, abnormally large eyes, a hooked tail etc. Exaggerated features can cause pain and distress to dogs and seriously compromise their welfare and their ability to lead a normal comfortable life. For some breeds overtime, these physical features have become increasingly exaggerated, for example, breeders have selected for even flatter faces or even shorter legs, further compromising animal's welfare.

Inbreeding (also referred to as line breeding) means mating animals that have one or more relatives in common, for example, mating a grandfather dog to his own granddaughter. Inbreeding is deliberately and routinely practiced as part of pedigree dog breeding usually in an attempt to breed for a particular ‘look’. However, it is scientifically proven and well recognised that inbreeding increases the incidence of inherited diseases such as inherited blindness, blood disorders, and metabolic problems.

Other negative effects of inbreeding documented include decreased immune system function, decreased viability, decreased reproductive ability and the loss of genetic diversity (i.e. decrease in genetic variation). Collectively, these adverse effects of inbreeding are known as inbreeding depression.

As the level of inbreeding or line breeding increases, the risks to the puppies’ health and welfare increase. Importantly, scientific evidence demonstrates that by mating unrelated parents, there is a significant reduction in the risk of the offspring suffering from an inherited disease.

PEDIGREES/ BIRTH CERTIFICATE ARE SIMPLY A RECORD OF LINEAGE.