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The toy bulldog is an
extinct Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...
unrecognised
breed A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist seve ...
of small
bulldog The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is a stocky, muscular dog of medium size, with a large head, thick folds of skin around the face and shoulders and a rel ...
that existed in
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
during the 18th and early 19th centuries. The same name is used for unrelated, but similar-appearing dogs, that are mostly modern crosses between bulldogs and pugs, which are also not a recognised
dog breed A dog breed is a particular type of dog that was purposefully bred by humans to perform specific tasks, such as herding, hunting, and guarding. Dogs are the most variable mammal on Earth, with artificial selection producing upward of 360 globall ...
.


Original attempts

Early dog breeders worked in two different directions, to decrease the weight to a desirable 20 pounds or so and create a new toy bulldog breed: # One method was to downsize the
bulldog The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is a stocky, muscular dog of medium size, with a large head, thick folds of skin around the face and shoulders and a rel ...
by selecting smaller individuals for breeding. This was not very successful, due to medical complications with breeding below normal-sized dogs. Natural
dwarf Dwarf, dwarfs or dwarves may refer to: Common uses *Dwarf (folklore), a supernatural being from Germanic folklore * Dwarf, a human or animal with dwarfism Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a sh ...
bulldog puppies are occasionally borne by normal-sized parents, but they were neither the healthiest, nor the most fertile dogs, and their own puppies were often regular-sized dogs. Thus, this version of the breed was never established. # An alternate attempt at creating a
toy A toy or plaything is an object that is used primarily to provide entertainment. Simple examples include toy blocks, board games, and dolls. Toys are often designed for use by children, although many are designed specifically for adults and p ...
bulldog was via crossbreeding French bulldogs with standard bulldogs or with the crossed offspring. Several dogs were presented as breed candidates by "The French Toy Bulldog Club of England" to the Kennel Club. English
breeder A breeder is a person who selectively breeds carefully selected mates, normally of the same breed, to sexually reproduce offspring with specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist ...
s and Kennel Club representatives refused to call a mixed-breed dog a "bulldog", and this variety of dog has also not developed to the point of a recognized breed. The breeding programs were dropped, and the line of dogs bred from these early attempts died out.


Modern dogs

Nowadays, the term ''toy bulldog'' is occasionally used to describe a small variety of another cross also called a ''miniature bulldog''. They are not an established breed, but rather a
hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two diff ...
produced by crossbreeding bulldogs with
pug The Pug is a breed of dog with the physically distinctive features of a wrinkly, short-muzzled face, and curled tail. An ancient breed, with roots dating back to 400 B.C., they have a fine, glossy coat that comes in a variety of colors, most ...
s or the crossed offspring.


References

Extinct dog breeds Toy dogs Bulldog breeds Dog breeds originating in England {{dog-stub