Remarkably, the French bulldog cannot breed on its own. They have to be artificially inseminated because their anatomy prevents mating! One website says that because of their “short legs and narrow hips, Frenchies are a bit clumsy when it comes to mating”. In other words, they can’t do it and they need human intervention.
I find that remarkable but what is doubly remarkable is that the French bulldog is incredibly expensive at the price of a Rolex. In fact, a French bulldog may be more expensive than a Rolex because in America they can cost as much as $19,000 according to my research. Although the average is around $5000. That still makes them as expensive as a Rolex fresh off the shelves of a jeweller.
That’s the first weird point to make today. The second point is that people like to take their French bulldog is out along the promenade or the sidewalk for a walk on a lead. If you’ve got your French bulldog on a lead, you are, in effect, walking around with a Rolex dangling out in front of you for anybody to steal. It seems to me to be impractical to go for a walk with the French Bulldog simply by virtue of the value of the dog.
Back in the old days, it wouldn’t be a problem walking around with a very expensive dog but nowadays dog theft is on the up and up. Thieves have realised that is more profitable stealing and selling on dogs than it is dealing in drugs partly because if they get caught, they are handed down a very weak punishment whereas if they get caught drug dealing, they spend 10 years in jail.
The value of this dog breed is truly remarkable because not only as mentioned can they not mate properly on their own, when they are bred by artificial insemination the resulting ‘product’ has 21 inherited diseases! This is an incredibly unhealthy dog. Perhaps it is the unhealthiest dog of all.
To cap it off, the New Scientist tells us that “French bulldogs are the shortest-lived dog breed in the UK”. The Independent newspaper tells us that French bulldogs have a life span of just 4.5 years, which seems unbelievable.
The French bulldog has a flat face which causes breathing problems. We know all about those. In recognition of the inherited health problems of French bulldogs, breeding flat-faced dogs was banned in Norway in 2022. They decided that the practice was cruel and resulted in health problems that were in violation of Norway’s Animal Welfare Act.
That last sentence is true for pretty well any country with decent animal welfare laws. It is certainly true in the UK where they have animal welfare laws that are at least the equal of Norway’s but we’ve not banned that faced dogs such as the French bulldog in the UK and it will never happen. It should happen and what is triply remarkable is that this is the most popular dog in the UK!
Dognapping gangsters unleash inspiration!
Peter James is an author. He lives with his wife Lara and two dogs Labradoodle and the Goldendoodle. James heard about dog walkers in the UK being mugged because if dog walkers are walking five dogs the value of those dogs could be £50,000!
Yesterday I saw a dog walker walking five handsome dogs on a pier. I think it was in America actually. And a thief tried to steal them as he probably he thought he was stealing about $50,000. Easy money if you can get it. Only on this occasion, the dogs refused to be stolen! They pulled the thief back towards the dog walker. That’s quite a neat solution to dog theft.
Anyway, back to Peter James. He said: “Some of them [dog walkers] are walking with the equivalent value of a Rolex watch [or several Rolex watches!]. I can’t imagine my wife or I walking and having one of our beloved dogs stolen. That’s what got me passionate about the subject.”
In his latest novel, Peter James has written another Roy Grace thriller which is about a Sussex police detective in the 19th century and the protagonist investigates the murder of a farmer who tries to stop thieves stealing five of his puppies and uncovers a murky underworld.
James was inspired by a conversation he had with the Chief Constable of Sussex police, Jo Shiner, who told him that one of the biggest problems the force has to deal with is the illegal dog trade. It certainly is.
Well said about humans becoming gods in creating pets. Only God did a much better job of it! Sometimes humans in their self-indulgence mess up terribly at least in terms of animal welfare as the remarkable aspect of this dog breed is that they are so popular despite the negatives.
Michael thanks for this information on ” French Bulldogs”. A reason for Lady Gaga’s dog walker being shot at to steal her French bulldog pets on their daily walk.5 years is too short a lifespan for any dog and we humans have become God in breeding our pets.