Papillons are the smallest of the Spaniels and the breed dates back to Renaissance times and have been affectionately featured in portraits of long-ago royalty painted by Europe's most renowned artists. The Papillon is a beautiful breed with lots of enthusiasm, athleticism, and versatility. Despite being a toy breed, they are known to be quite hardy and can adapt to many different lifestyles. They are well loved in the dog sport community for their drive, trainability and fun personalities. They are excellent agility dogs and are consistent winners at the sport's highest levels. They also make fabulous pets and companions, who are very dedicated to their people and have lots of handler connection and focus.
Papillons don't have quite as extreme "breed splits" as Border Collies and Whippets do, which is nice, although you do see lines bred for different reasons. Mostly they are bred for companionship and conformation, but some lines are targeted towards sports. They are friendly, outgoing, sweet little dogs but can have behavioral issues, like softness/sensitivity, shyness, and issues that most small breeds can be prone to, like barking, nipping, potty training problems, etc. although I find most of those issues to be more associated with improper handling. They are a breed that make extremely capable and impressive sport dogs and do thrive with training, but do not require extensive training to be stable and happy. They can be perfect pets with very little struggle.
Papillons are a fairly healthy breed, who's required testing is only for eyes, heart, patella and a few DNA testable diseases. Like any other dog in my program, I test my Papillons for:
Full panel DNA
OFA hips
OFA elbows
OFA shoulders
OFA spine
OFA heart
OFA patella
OFA eyes
I'm breeding Papillons with sports and trainability in mind, with sound structure and health, but I will also place puppies into good pet homes. Our first Papillon litter should be expected in 2025.
Papillons don't have quite as extreme "breed splits" as Border Collies and Whippets do, which is nice, although you do see lines bred for different reasons. Mostly they are bred for companionship and conformation, but some lines are targeted towards sports. They are friendly, outgoing, sweet little dogs but can have behavioral issues, like softness/sensitivity, shyness, and issues that most small breeds can be prone to, like barking, nipping, potty training problems, etc. although I find most of those issues to be more associated with improper handling. They are a breed that make extremely capable and impressive sport dogs and do thrive with training, but do not require extensive training to be stable and happy. They can be perfect pets with very little struggle.
Papillons are a fairly healthy breed, who's required testing is only for eyes, heart, patella and a few DNA testable diseases. Like any other dog in my program, I test my Papillons for:
Full panel DNA
OFA hips
OFA elbows
OFA shoulders
OFA spine
OFA heart
OFA patella
OFA eyes
I'm breeding Papillons with sports and trainability in mind, with sound structure and health, but I will also place puppies into good pet homes. Our first Papillon litter should be expected in 2025.