About the breed
The Bichon Frise is one of the small and solid dogs, balanced and intelligent. The black eyes and muzzle contrast with the snow-white fur and the tail looks like a feather that curves around the spine.
The unique wool, similar to snow-white cotton, the miniature size and the abilities of the circus artist made the Bichon Frise an extremely popular dog. She is gentle, affectionate, intelligent and makes an ideal pet even for inexperienced owners. These French dogs used to be indispensable circus performers, now they can also be seen in the circus arena. But for the most part, the Bichon Frise acts as a decorative faithful companion of a person.
Bichon Frise
The Bichon Frise is a cheerful little dog known for its fluffy white coat and friendly nature. Originating from the Mediterranean, this breed excels as a companion due to its playful and affectionate nature. Bichons are intelligent and easy to train, making them excellent family pets. Their hypoallergenic coat requires regular grooming to maintain its appearance. With their charming personality and love of human interaction, Bichon Frises are perfect for those looking for a loving and loyal companion.
La race, en bref
Country of origin
France - Belgique
Weight
3 – 5 kg
Height
23 – 30 cm
Hair type
Long
Size
Small
Type de poils
Court
The breed standard
The Bichon Frise is a sturdy little dog known for its cheerful nature and fluffy, curly white coat. With dark, expressive eyes and a black nose, this breed exudes charm. The Bichon has a feathery tail that arches over its back and typically weighs 3 to 5 kg. The height is 23 to 30 cm.
Exigences de l’exercice
Compassion pour le propriétaire
Amitié avec des étrangers
Niveau d’énergie
Capacité de jeu
Avec d’autres animaux de compagnie
Breed Characteristics
With family
The Bichon Frise is gentle and playful, making it a great companion for children. Its friendly and affectionate nature ensures positive interactions with children.
The Bichon Frise generally gets along well with other pets and animals. Their friendly and social nature allows them to interact positively, making them a great addition to multi-pet households.
Physical qualities
The Bichon Frise, one of the small dog breeds; It attracts attention with its shiny and soft black nose and fluffy white feathers. The round head structures become more visible depending on the shaving style. It has a medium length and non-pointed face. The forehead area is not clear. They have a perfect appearance with their round head, large dark eyes, ears disappearing among their dense feathers, long neck and healthy teeth aligned like pearls. Another feature that completes this beauty and distinguishes it from other breeds is its black lips among its white feathers. It has a sweetness that becomes more evident with its round and large eyes, black nose and lips.
The Bichon Frise breed has long, furry ears. It hangs down, in proportion to its body. Its ears extend towards the back of the head and have a woolly texture. Its sensitivity to sounds is normal, but it may react suddenly to loud sounds. Due attention should be paid to the cleanliness of their ears for their health.
The Bichon Frise breed has facial features that are positioned proportionally on its round head. Its eyes are dark and blend in with the dark circles around its eyes. This image adds a different depth to the area around their eyes. One of the most striking parts of its face is its dark and round eyes. It is as cute as a teddy dog with its large dark eyes and dotted nose. They usually sport an alert expression with their sparkling eyes and lively gaze.
Both jaws are broad, with regular incisors; a scissor bite is preferred, with a full dentition.
It has a white-colored hairy body, curly in texture, and soft and silky in appearance. It has a proportional body structure with its tail, ears, eyes, mouth, and legs. It is one of the small non-sporting breeds. Under its double-layered feathers, it has an unexpectedly muscular body compared to its small body. Body structures may differ between males and females.
Girls and boys scream with affection when they see these little pet dogs that look so much like little clouds! The dog’s undercoat is soft and dense. The coat is curly, voluminous due to the spiral-shaped outer hairs. The length varies from 7 to 10 cm. The Bichon Frise will not get wet even in a downpour thanks to its thick undercoat.
Front legs
The front legs are straight, the bones are thin. The shoulders are oblique, forming an angle with the top of the leg. The elbows located near the chest smoothly merge into the right forearm. The feet are round with black pads and claws, well assembled. When standing, the dog places its paws straight.
Hind legs
The hind legs of the Bichon Frise begin with a wide pelvis, thighs with well-developed muscles and vertical legs parallel to each other. The knee is neither turned inward nor outward. The tibia is similar in length to the thigh. The hock joint is well defined, the metatarsus is thin. The legs are rounded, the characteristics of the pads and claws are the same as those of the front.
What colors predominate in the Bichon Frise? Up to 12 months, the puppy’s coat can be beige (a mixture of white and champagne), covering no more than 10% of the animal’s body. An adult dog has a shiny snow-white coat.
Life expectancy
Standards and Classifications
The Bichon Frise is recognized by several major kennel clubs around the world. These include the American Kennel Club (AKC), the United Kennel Club (UKC), the Canadian Kennel Club (CKC), the Kennel Club (UK), and the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI). Each of these organizations maintains breed standards and offers guidance on the care and showing of Bichon Frises, helping to preserve the breed’s unique characteristics and promote responsible ownership.
FCI Classification
- Group 9: Toy and Companion Dogs.
- Section 1: Bichons and Related Breeds -1.1 Bichons.
What to Expect When Caring for a Bichon Frise
Caring for a dog involves daily exercise, regular feeding, grooming and veterinary care. Expect camaraderie, loyalty and joy, as well as responsibilities such as training, cleaning up after themselves and providing a safe environment.
In general, the health of bichons is good, but there is a predisposition to some diseases:
- Eye diseases – volvulus of the eyelid, cataracts, corneal dystrophy.
- Epilepsy – accompanied by convulsions, involuntary urination and stools, excessive salivation.
- Hypotrichosis – with this disease, there is partial or almost complete hair loss.
- Dermatitis – accompanied by itching, inflammation of the skin, covering all layers of the skin. Dermatitis can be infectious or allergic.
- Diabetes mellitus – occurs due to a lack of insulin.
- Urolithiasis is a very dangerous disease, it is difficult to treat, it manifests itself in the disorder of the dog.
- Allergic reactions.
- Dislocation of the knee joint – can be congenital and acquired, manifested by lameness and pain.
- Kidney disease.
- Atlantoaxial instability – displacement of the epistrophy (axis) – the second cervical vertebra relative to the first (atlas). Leads to spinal cord injuries and the development of neurological deficits. It is accompanied by unbearable pain.
The Bichon Frise dog breed needs proper care, which mostly consists of combing and trimming (grooming). These dogs are usually trimmed at special hairdressers, although some owners learn it on their own.
Also, always keep your pet’s ears and eyes clean and trim its nails about once a week. Bathe your dog 2-3 times a month.
Being a small dog, the Bichon Frise does not require intense exercise, but its need for physical activity should not be ignored since it is a very dynamic dog. It is good that it exercises moderately every day, through at least two daily walks, playing (fetch the ball and other similar things) and playing with other dogs of its size.
The Bichon Frise is highly adaptable and thrives in both homes and apartments. Their small size and moderate exercise needs make them well-suited to apartment living, as long as they are regularly walked and played with. This breed enjoys indoor activities and is known for its friendly and affectionate nature, making it an ideal companion in a variety of living environments. Regular grooming is essential to maintain its fluffy, white coat.
Character and behavior
The Bichon Frise tends to be cheerful, energetic and playful, while being sensitive, affectionate and gentle. Due to its dynamism, it usually needs more exercise than other dogs of the same size, although it is not a nervous dog, but quite the opposite. The Bichon Frise is a dog that loves to receive affection from its family, rest with them at home and enjoy their company. Therefore, it is essential to pay enough attention to ensure that it leads a healthy and happy life.
The Bichon Frise tends to socialize easily, whether with people, dogs or other animals. It is especially sociable with children, a characteristic difficult to find in other small breed dogs. Despite this, it is important to socialize puppies to reduce the risk of shyness or aggression when the dogs are adults
Socialité
Relation avec la famille humaine
Attitude envers la solitude
Tendance à aboyer
Amitié avec les chiens
Adaptabilité
La vie en ville
Convient comme premier chien
Tolérance aux températures chaudes
Tolérance aux températures froides
Did you know?
- The Bichon Frise is compared to a dandelion or a snowman, and the dog also resembles snow-white cotton candy.
- The first bichons lived on ships, their duties included catching ship rats.
- The coat of the Bichon Frise is similar to that of a Mongolian goat.
- Representatives of the breed were considered an expensive trophy, they were often exhibited in barter transactions.
- Henry III was madly in love with bichons, he kept several of these animals. The monarch never parted with them. Even when solving state affairs, the ruler took a basket with dogs to meetings. The basket hung around his neck. The reign of Henry III (1574-1589) was the peak of the fame of the Bichon Frise.
History of the breed
The Bichon Frise breed belongs to the ancient types of dogs, it has existed for more than two millennia. The history of the bichons is not easy and very interesting. They had to survive on the streets as mongrels, perform in circus arenas, catch rats on ships and even be pets of royalty. These snow-white dogs can be seen in portraits painted during the Renaissance in France. It was at that time that the bichons were very popular with wealthy nobles, they were kept even at the royal court.
Let’s take a closer look at the further history of the French breed:
- Second half of the 19th century – Bichons began to appear in families of low-income French people. Together with their owners, the dogs often performed on the street, amused passers-by with their tricks and thus earned money for the family. They also gained fame as talented circus dogs. Bichon Frise is also used as a guide for the blind. During this period, their popularity is at the highest level.
- The 20th century – French cynologists took up breeding work, improving the breed.
- 1956 – French settlers brought several Bichon Frise dogs with them to America.
- 1966 – the first Bichon Frise breed lovers club was formed.
- 1973 – the breed was officially recognized in the USA.
Today, snow-white French dogs are very popular. They have proven themselves to be ideal companions who can cheer up anyone at any time.