The beginnings of the French Bulldog start with ancient Greece. An ancient Grecian tribe known as the Molossians bred massive dogs for work and war, known as the Molossus breed.

From the Molossus breed came a sub-family of breeds and from those sub-families countless breeds including St. Bernards, Great Pyrenees, Rottweilers, Pittbulls, Newfoundlanders, and a breed known as the Bullenbeisser. The Bullenbeisser, now extinct, was used for bull-batting a blood sport where dogs would attempt to immobilize a bull by latching it’s strong jaws onto the bull’s snout. These dogs would give way to the modern day breeds we know as “bulldogs”; there are the Olde English Bulldogs, English Bulldogs, American Bulldogs, and French Bulldogs.

When discussing the history of the French Bulldog, we should also add the influence of three countries: England, France and America. England provided the foundation for our modern Frenchie: the old bulldog. Breeders in France developed the smaller bulldogs into a distinctly “French” type and American breeders set the standard for the “bat ears.” The Bulldog in England  was an athletic, strong long- legged dog.