The idea behind our breeding our Boston Terriers and French Bulldogs stems from the love of our dog companions and the amazing friendship that they provide us. We adore every single one of them and enjoy caring of our dogss from the day they are born, giving them the most enriching start to life as possible through their developmental stages, as they mature into well-behaved adults that have personalities and traits as great as their parents.
We are committed to greatly researching the breed and investing our efforts into being as true to the breed standard as possible, and to give them the best phenotypic and genetic traits that protects their overall health and welfare. Working with other renowned breeders worldwide, we aspire to gain knowledge from our learnings and achieve excellency.
All of our dogs compete in dog shows throughout North America, gifting us with the pleasure of showcasing the amazing attributes that they have. Our babies (Boston Terriers and French Bulldogs) are part of our family and that bond shines through in their behavior. That combined with our focus in quality instead of quantity, our carefully planned breeding and litter schedule makes each dog even more special.
We absolutely do not isolate our dogs in kennels or crate them for the day, instead, we opt for raising them in our home as the family members they are. We find that the cosy and loving family setting enables both the adults and puppies to really socialize, learn and play together in a safe environment whilst also getting used to human interaction and experiences, such as music being played and being around children. Preparing them to be completely ready to move into a home environment where their personalities can shine and become a special part of your lives for many years to come is our duty. We look for the most ideal “forever homes” for our babies, where the owner’s lifestyles can suit that of our beautiful frenchies. Therefore, we are always available for a Caramuru puppy owner to solve any problems and doubts for the entirety of its life
BEHIND A BREEDING
There are many critical considerations when making a pairing for breeding. This decision is the single most important influencer in the quality of the breed. The invocation of the word “quality” isn’t meant to convey “cost” (although there is typically a correlation). Rather, in this case, “quality” means the health and happiness of the animal, and the quality of their appearance.The primary goal of any reputable breeder first and foremost is health. As such, a quality breeder will typically perform both genetic and evaluatory testing of both the sire and the dam long before breeding is even considered. Furthermore, it’s also done periodically to ensure consistent results. While VERY costly, genealogical testing and medical imaging ensure that a breeding pair are biologically compatible and won’t encourage the proliferation of undesirable traits which could impact the overall health and quality of life of the resulting litter.
The second most important consideration is adherence to the breed standard. Of course the breeders judgement of look and behavior are critical influencers in the decision making process, but everyone loves their own brew. Hence the importance of conformation showing and getting the opinion of independent paid professions to confirm a dog and to do so until the dog gains a championship title. There is a significant amount of expense involved with confirmation showing starting with litter registration, show entry costs when the come of age, transportation to and from shows, expenses related to handling, and potential boarding expenses if the dog is shown nationally.
ARRIVAL
It’s often said that Large breed dogs have large litters, and small breed dogs have smaller litters. It’s not a hard rule, and of course there are exceptions, but in our experience the average frenchie and bostons litter is 2-3 puppies. Don’t forget that we are primarily in this for showing, so we’ll hold 1 or 2 for that purpose depending on the quality. This difference in litter size is one of the reasons why large breed dogs are typically less expensive. It’s simple supply and demand.
Finally meeting the new puppies is a magical moment, but it is also very stressful. This is when the hard work really starts. For us, everything else is secondary to helping momma take care of babies. During the first month of their lives, we need to ensure the pups are fed, pottied, and cleaned every 2 hours. Sometimes even more often if a pup requires intensive care.
After the first month, the pups become a bit more self-sufficient and the mother starts getting the hang of her duties so the feeding can be spaced out a bit more. Administering all of this intensive care is exhausting, but it is also rewarding to spend these magic moments with the babies! Putting your life on hold and living this kind of unconventional schedule isn’t possible to do more than 1-2 times per year.
PUPPY EVALUATION
Now that our litter is older we can start to see the bone structure, the musculature, and experience their personalities. At this stage we’ll start to consider which puppies will be shown, and who will find a home with you. Part of our responsibility as breeders is to ensure that the people we are involved with also breed responsibly. To those ends all of our puppies are placed with pre selected families who agree to a spay/neuter contract unless a specific breeding agreement is established.
If by the end of all of that process we’ve had a litter that is large enough, and have a baby who is ready to go to a good family, our costs will have added up to a small fortune. In summary, small flat faced breeds, such as English Bulldogs, Pugs, and in our cast Boston Terriers and French Bulldogs, cost more than puppies from breeds that are bred naturally and do not require a surgical delivery.
The average cost for a litter from a quality breeder who adheres to these practices are somewhere between $5,000-$7,000. We advise you to stay away from breeders who charge significantly more or less than that. In order to reduce prices, once must consider what corners are being cut. Health testing? Where are the parents coming from, and were there compatibility considerations? Will they behave and look like a Frenchie? And what happens if your Frenchie develope a problem? Are they committed enough to guide and support you, or was it just a business transaction and you are on your own?
DEFINITE NO-NOS
If you are serious about quality, as defined earlier, off colors should be an immediate detractor. Grey, black & tan, liver, "merle", or any other cute names like blue, lavender, chocolate, and blue eyed... are all DISQUALIFYING COLORS.
These names are a sort of marketing gimmick invented to convey rarity, or uniqueness, in order to justify a higher price. But “disqualifying” means that by the AKC Breed Standard, which is like the blue print for our breeds that reputable breeders use as their guide for breeding, does not allow those colors and they are seen as FAULTS. An example of this is the fact that that the “merle” coat color does not naturally occur in Boston Terrier - French Bulldog. It is a result of other breeds being mixed with Boston Terriers and French Bulldogs. So, if you buy a merle, you are by definition not buying a purebred.
Furthermore, when you start mixing other breeds, you likely don't know the genetic history of that breed and what other possible problems you may be adding to the gene pool, or the potential negative impacts whether it be temperament variations or new health problems. If you are OK with not knowing what you are getting, then why not then adopting a pet in need?
What's more:
Color breeders will usually ONLY concern themselves with producing the color or trait they market as rare, instead of the three pillars of a good breeding program (temperament, health, conformation). The first to go out the window is health. Why do DNA testing? Mix two merles, get a liter of merles. Temperament?!?! That's your problem! And conformation isn’t even possible given it’s a disqualification. So that cute puppy could grow up to behave and look very differently from a Boston Terrier - French Bulldog, with poor health to boot.
We frequently get emails from people who’ve fallen into the scam of so-called "rare" colors. So much so that it was one of the main reasons to document our response here. So please DO NOT buy a "rare color" Boston Terrier or French Bulldog!
READY TO GO?
Puppies are usually ready for their “forever home” anywhere between 9-12 weeks of age. Occasionally, we’ll hold on to multiple puppies as they may require more evaluation. That means that they are both very candidates for show and we haven't made up our minds on which one it will be yet. It’s happened more than once that the puppy we thought was the best show candidate turned out to be on the smaller side or too big for its age to be shown successfully. Because our breeding program is small, we must be selective, and we can't afford to have anything other than the highest of standards when it comes to who stays. Sometimes those older puppies will be made available for the right homes.
Getting an older puppy is actually a benefit to you! Usually they will already have some amount of training as far as house training / potty training / leash training. They will have had more vaccines to them and will be more mature as far as temperament and size, so you will have a better idea of what they will look like / their behavior than if getting a little bitty puppy. And lastly, they will likely be the best representation of the breed since they were by birth a candidate for showing.
VISITATION
We frequently hear from people who would like to come to our “facility” to window shop. He he! It’s hard not to chuckle at that! Our “facility” is just our home. It’s not always convenient to have people over for a spur of the moment meet and greet or a petting session. So please, don’t be put off if we decline your request to do so.
Many times we do have puppies that aren't fully vaccinated yet and we don’t want strangers possibly exposing them to anything harmful. While we do vaccinate, we wait as long as possible to expose them to the outside World in order to ensure their immune systems are ready. We’ve tragically lost young puppies in the past to viruses that were brought home by a visitor, and it’s not something we ever want to happen again :-(
LIMITED REGISTRATION
It's not uncommon for us breeders to see stories about people breeding their not unhealthy dogs, even with inherited disorders to pass on. These people consider themselves breeders because they think breeding is just about matting dogs, not carying for the betterment of the breed.
A true breeder can be recognized by the attention they give to maintaining the best practice possible, by not only guaranteeing the healthiness and happiness of their puppies, but by also caring for and nurturing the adult dogs, so that there is no downside to their breeding.
A substandard breeder will focus purely on profit potential instead of doing the right thing. We, serious breeders, have a commitment not only to the breed, but to the puppies as individuals, a responsibility to find the best home imaginable to support the precious life that was given to them, placing the dogs interests above any kind of profit. Proving that money is not our goal but their health and happiness is.
If you are considering whether you want to be a serious breeder you need to first, consider the risks and costs it may involve. This includes the extensive research, long hours put into raising and caring, facing the possibility that not all puppies may survive or may require large veterinary bills, realizing that the money gained from breeding is not as much as you may initially think after all of the proper precautions and care is undertaken. Breeding, when done correctly, involves many expenses not always immediately clear to the unfamiliar eye.
These costs include health tests, stud fees, artificial inseminations, c-section, ultrasounds, supplements and vitamins, the best food for their dietary needs, veterinary visits, vaccination shots and de-worming. Other things to taking into consideration are show entries and handling expenses, newborn puppy care (especially challenging the first few weeks where you never sleep), time invested in researching the breed, conversing with other breeders, studying health, genes and bloodlines in order to create the most exceptional puppies possible.
Substandard breeders, will not go through all the nuances and detail as we do. And with the lack of experience they end up producing undesirable traits such as long noses, thin legs, lengthy tails, thin and elongated bodies, and bad ear placement… and very often bad temperament. Breeding should always be focused on the individual dogs involved rather than merely putting a male together with a female in heat. Experienced breeders have an extensive understanding of the history of their lines, the genetics and morphological traits that may be carried onto litters, and will eliminate less desirable traits to maintain a high standard of the classical breed characteristics.
Our limited registry is made so our dogs will be the perfect companion to their home. Limited registries are made with an agreement on not to reproduce with spaying and neutering possibly required.
Caramuru Bostons & Frenchies encourage you to watch our weekly (sometimes daily) videos and pictures on Instagram. It will give you the oportunity to see our all of our dogs and uor favorite pictures. Here is the link for our instagram: @caramuru.bostons.frenchies
