Apart from their snoring capabilities, French Bulldogs don’t usually make a sound unnecessarily. In fact, they may even make you wonder if they bark at all. Being a companion dog, they enjoy staying close to their human friends. These little mutts with their adorable faces are so fun-loving that they create an atmosphere of liveliness around them. By all means, French bulldogs are personable through and through, but does all that come with a hefty price?

For those of you who have never had a French Bulldog, some questions might linger in your minds. Do French Bulldogs shed their coat? Will I need to spend my day picking up hair around my home? Does the lost fur create a lot of mess? How bad can all this get? Should I prepare for the worst to happen?

Stop right there for we have all been down that road of questions related to maintaining pets. Here, I have made my utmost effort to answer some of these questions.

Why Do Dogs Shed?

Almost all dogs shed their fur coat for a new one. It is in their genes to do so. Just as our hair keeps on falling while new strands grow, a dog’s fur coat keeps on being replaced but for different reasons.

Dogs keep on shedding hair throughout the year. It is not something way out of the ordinary because it is a normal process which gets rid of weak and damaged hair to get healthier strands.

In addition to that, the fur of a dog regulates its body temperature to an extent. Dogs lose their fur coat during summers to keep cool. In winters, a new coat appears. Some dog breeds that are better suited for cold climates usually have a thicker fur to keep them warm. Fur replacement and loss allow dogs to survive in and adapt to harsh climates.

There are several other reasons for dog hair to fall besides as a way to control body temperature. The volume of hair laid across a dog’s entire body depends on its food. Undernourished dogs often shed more than well-fed ones. Hair follicles of dogs with a poor diet become too weak to anchor hair in place, increasing the frequency of shedding.

All in all, shedding is normal for dogs and it’s for their own good. The amount of shedding, however, varies from breed to breed.

How Much Do French Bulldogs Shed?

It is natural for a French Bulldog to shed hair. These dogs have a single coat with short hair. Looks can be a bit deceptive at times and a short, smooth fur coat must not mislead you into thinking that your pet’s undercoat will not fall out.

However, unlike other breeds of dogs, this breed sheds moderately, meaning that its fallen hair will not create a mess around your house. A French Bulldog loses its coat twice a year: once during spring and once during fall. The good news is that its fine, short hair can be groomed quite easily.

How to Minimize Shedding

While you cannot and should not prevent shedding, there are ways to minimize it. It is necessary to keep your mutt well-groomed, especially your French Bulldog which is prone to allergies. Without good care, your pooch can easily fall prey to bacteria and infections, both of which will not be ideal conditions for your dog to find itself in.

French Bulldogs aren’t difficult to maintain. They might be one of the most low-maintenance dogs in the world. Below are some methods with which you can keep shedding to a minimum by keeping your furry friend’s hair healthy.

Brushing

Unlike other breeds, you do not usually need to cut the hair of your French Bulldog. However, brushing its hair occasionally is essential to keep its coat healthy. Use a stripping comb or a fine-toothed brush with close bristles specially designed for dogs.

If you do not have any tool to brush your buddy’s hair out, try rubbing a clean, wet cloth gently onto its body. You may even use silicone gloves to collect all the fallen hair off your dog’s body.

Groom its fur once a week. Wrap up your grooming exercise by spraying coconut oil over its fur.

Bathing

Bathe your dog every month for healthy hair. While you are giving your pooch a bath, make sure that there are no signs of pests like lice or infections on your dog’s coat. These skin problems can increase shedding of hair.

The choice of shampoo is important too. Get a hypoallergenic shampoo made for dogs. Ordinary shampoos made for human adults or babies are a little harsh on dogs.

Give baths every month or so, but make sure you don’t overdo it. Too many baths can rob your dog of its essential oils and make its skin dry.

Checking Folds and Scalp

French Bulldogs get infections often, so do not forget to thoroughly clean your pet’s folds and wrinkles which are breeding grounds for bacteria. These dogs are prone to skin allergies with dermatitis of facial folds being one of them. Make it a habit to check your dog for any sign of skin ailments once a week. Look for scabs, spots, lesions or flaky skin. If you find that your buddy has any skin ailment, take it to the vet to get the issue treated immediately.

Oiling

The natural oils of your mutt are crucial for healthy hair. If there are any dry patches over the skin of your Bulldog, try minimizing them as they can make its hair brittle and, hence, prone to excessive shedding. Apply coconut oil to your dog’s fur at least every month or two or spray it after giving your dog a good bath. Coconut oil helps prevent bacterial infections as it is known for killing bacteria. A dog free from infections is not likely to shed hair too often than a dog who is infected by these microorganisms.

Supplementing

There are a few things you can add to the diet of a Bulldog to make it lose less hair. Just like humans, dogs need supplements for nutrients they might need but what their food might not be providing. Fatty acids are known to make hair healthy and strong, so your dog needs an adequate supply of them to keep its hair healthy. Therefore, feed fatty acid supplements to your pooch for a stronger fur coat. Try adding these supplements to your pet’s diet to avoid excessive fur loss.

Changing Food

It might happen that your dog starts losing a bulk of its hair because the dog food you have been using does not suit it. For instance, most dog foods have too many grains in them, which are used as fillers with no nutritional value for your little buddy. Avoid food which is not nutritious and look for items that offer all the essential nutrients which are vital to your dog’s health. You may even opt for a grain-free diet.

Your French hound’s shedding can even be due to a poor diet. Try a diet rich in Omega-3 and -6 fatty acids. See how your pooch reacts to a new diet. If you find that your mutt is shedding fur far more controllably than before, go for that diet.

Exercising

Regular exercise can reduce the amount of hair loss in your French Bulldog. These mutts do not require too much exercise either. Simply roaming around the house or jumping off sofas can be enough for it. However, it is your duty to make sure it gets this much exercise each day and does not keep lying in one place all day.

How to Keep Your Furniture and Home Clean

Although a French Bulldog will not create a lot of mess while it sheds its fur coat, you still need to keep your home tidy. Dog hair can fly to all sorts of unusual places. I remember observing my pup’s hair nicely gliding over my bowl of soup until it finally sank into the hot soup, ruining my meal. You wouldn’t want that, would you?

Plus, some people are allergic to dog hair, which makes cleaning it even more important. There are some very basic steps which you can follow to make sure your house is well-maintained:

Furniture Throws

You can cover your furniture with throws that come in all shapes and sizes. Cover sofas, recliners and sitting chairs with spreads to make fallen hair less visible. What makes a house look messy is dog fur which stands out on furniture made of contrasting colors, but you wouldn’t want your house to look unkempt. Furniture throws and spreads will cover up hair falling off your mutt’s body.

If you can’t go for stylish furniture accessories, go for ordinary bedsheets. You always have the option of covering sofas with a bedsheet which can be carefully removed whenever there’s a guest at your door.

Vacuum Cleaning

Get a vacuum cleaner from the nearest electronic shop. It will be best if you have one that is specially built for vacuuming pet hair. With a vacuum, you can clean any place in your house. The nozzle of vacuum cleaners can even reach inside a sofa, over curtains and under rugs. All you need to do is switch on the power button and clean out hair as well as flakes of dandruff.

Clear out carpets and recliners and make every nook and cranny of your house fur-free with a vacuum. Not only will your house look neat, but you will also feel good.

Breathable Mat

Various home décor brands and pet care outlets have breathable mats designed especially for pets shedding their fur. Place this mat near you on a sofa and let your amicable French Bulldog recline beside you on your couch. The mat will collect all the hair falling from your dog’s body without having you diligently pick the fallen fur. You may then clean out the mat in a bin. Breathable mats save you the hassle of caring too much about housekeeping.

When Does Shedding Become Alarming?

Despite it being a natural process, shedding can be indicative of some other serious problem with your furry friend, especially when there is excessive shedding. There are several visible signs to look out for in order to understand the issue your pet might have. While many of these problems can be treated at home, do consult a veterinarian to find a permanent solution.

Here are some signs you need to keep an eye out for:

• Shedding in patches instead of full body shedding
• Itching on the body (you might want to replace the collar because some dogs are allergic to certain materials)
• Scaly skin
• Dry patches anywhere on the body
• Fleas
• Sores which are open and not healed
• Dull and dry hair
• Balding and shedding in patches
• Skin irritation

Causes of Excessive Shedding

Excessive shedding is never normal. If you notice too many hair strands than before, it might be that your dog has a disease which needs to be treated by a professional. Following are some causes for excessive shedding;

• Poor nutrition
• Cancer
• Food allergies
• Sunburn
• Thyroid or liver diseases
• Lactation
• Pregnancy
• Parasitic attack
• Fungal attack
• Bacterial infections

Only your vet is qualified to tell you the exact cause. Hence, if you see anything out of the ordinary, rush to the vet.

Final Thoughts

French Bulldogs are a truly cheerful pet that more and more people should own. The fact that they do shed their coats should not put you off from getting them. This dog’s fur is not hard to maintain. Investing only ten to fifteen minutes on grooming your pet is enough to keep it healthy and hearty.

Do remember that you only need to bathe it once a month and brush its coat once every week. This is not much as compared to the time you need to set aside for grooming other breeds. Thus, while French bulldogs do shed their coat, they do not shed their fur frequently enough to make a mess.