Medium-sized muscular dog with loose wrinkled skin, distinctive wrinkled face, and pushed-in nose, known for its gentle but courageous disposition
Originally developed in medieval England for bull-baiting, descended from ancient mastiff-type dogs. After blood sports were outlawed in 1835, refined into the gentle companion breed known today
“Conveys impression of determination, strength, and activity. Alert, bold, loyal, dependable, courageous, fierce in appearance, but possessed of affectionate nature”
Quoted from FCI standard n°149. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Breed reference from The Dog API.
Drawn from sources, not opinion: FCI breed standard; McMillan et al. 2024, median age at death. An empty column means we hold nothing for that side, not that there is nothing to say.
The Bulldog standard is published by the FCI (Fédération Cynologique Internationale), the international federation of pedigree-dog clubs, and it is what show judges apply. This section sums up what it says about coat and colour and size. It does not assess any one animal: use it to know what to ask the breeder.
Fine texture, short, close and smooth (hard only from shortness and closeness, not wiry)
Undesirable
Shortened from FCI standard n°149 — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.
The colours and patterns the standard admits, and what it prefers, discourages or disqualifies in each. An accepted colour says nothing about health.
Weight (kg)
Size categories by adult weight, from Montoya et al. 2023.
An adult's measurements, per the standard. It does not say how big this puppy will be. Quotations from the FCI are in English, as the standard publishes them; the headings are ours.
Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the Bulldog in general; any individual animal can differ.
Known hereditary risks for the Bulldog breed, and the specific documentation to request from any breeder before paying a deposit. A responsible breeder will have these readily available; deflection is a red flag.
3 conditions documentedThis is breed-level literature, not veterinary advice about an individual animal — your vet knows the animal.
Health checklist (PDF)Found in more than about one in twenty of the breed's dogs screened, or described as common in the sources.
An inherited eye condition, first described in Mastiff-type breeds, that causes raised patches on the retina from puppyhood; it changes how the retina looks but rarely affects sight. It is recessive and common in this breed — in a screen of nearly 5,000 Bulldogs, roughly one in four carried at least one copy.
What to ask for
CMR1 DNA test (VMD2/BEST1 gene mutation), on both parents
An inherited high level of uric acid in the urine (SLC2A9 gene) that makes urate bladder and kidney stones likely; a stone blocking a male dog's urethra is an emergency. It is recessive. It is common in this breed — in a screen of nearly 5,000 Bulldogs, roughly one in three carried at least one copy and about one in thirty carried two. Once known, it can be managed with diet and monitoring.
What to ask for
Hyperuricosuria (SLC2A9) DNA test result, on both parents
An inherited eye condition, first described in Mastiff-type breeds, that causes raised patches on the retina from puppyhood; it changes how the retina looks but rarely affects sight. It is recessive and common in this breed — in a screen of nearly 5,000 Bulldogs, roughly one in four carried at least one copy.
What to ask for
CMR1 DNA test (VMD2/BEST1 gene mutation), on both parents
An inherited high level of uric acid in the urine (SLC2A9 gene) that makes urate bladder and kidney stones likely; a stone blocking a male dog's urethra is an emergency. It is recessive. It is common in this breed — in a screen of nearly 5,000 Bulldogs, roughly one in three carried at least one copy and about one in thirty carried two. Once known, it can be managed with diet and monitoring.
What to ask for
Hyperuricosuria (SLC2A9) DNA test result, on both parents
Documented in this breed, but no source says how many of its dogs carry or have them. That is a gap in the evidence, not a sign they are rare.
An inherited tendency to form calcium oxalate stones in the bladder or kidneys, caused by a variant in uromodulin, a protein in urine that normally stops crystals forming; stones are usually found at around three years old and often come back. It is recessive — dogs with two copies are at risk, carriers usually are not. The university laboratory that identified it reports it in this breed but has not published how common it is.
What to ask for
Hereditary calcium oxalate urolithiasis type 1 (CaOx1) DNA test result, on both parents
An inherited tendency to form calcium oxalate stones in the bladder or kidneys, caused by a variant in uromodulin, a protein in urine that normally stops crystals forming; stones are usually found at around three years old and often come back. It is recessive — dogs with two copies are at risk, carriers usually are not. The university laboratory that identified it reports it in this breed but has not published how common it is.
What to ask for
Hereditary calcium oxalate urolithiasis type 1 (CaOx1) DNA test result, on both parents
Median survival 9.8 years
95% confidence interval 9.7–10.0 years, from 4,743 recorded deaths among 11,143 dogs
Mortality hazard 1.78 (1.73, 1.83) relative to crossbred dogs, whose median is 12.0 years.
Measured in the United Kingdom from 584,734 dogs. Median survival is not a prediction for an individual dog.
McMillan, K.M., Bielby, J., Williams, C.L., Upjohn, M.M., Casey, R.A. & Christley, R.M. (2024) Longevity of companion dog breeds: those at risk from early death. Scientific Reports 14, 531.
