Bichon Frisé

The French word {{lang|fr|bichon}} comes from Middle French {{lang|frm|bichon}} ('small dog'), a diminutive of Old French {{lang|fro|biche}} ('female dog', cognate with English bitch), from Old English {{lang|ang|bicce}}, and related to other Germanic words with the same meaning, including Old Norse {{lang|non|bikkja}}, and German {{lang|de|Betze}}.Auguste Scheler, Dictionnaire d'étymologie française d'après les résultats de la science moderne, "bichon".Donkin, Diez, An etymological dictionary of the Romance languages, "biche". Some speculate the origin of {{lang|fr|bichon}} to be the result of the apheresis, or shortening, of the word {{lang|fr|barbichon}} ('small poodle'), a derivative of {{lang|fr|barbiche}} ('shaggy dog'); however, this is likely impossible, since the word {{lang|fr|bichon}} (attested 1588) is older than {{lang|fr|barbichon}} (attested 1694).Centre National de Ressources Textuelles et Lexicales, "bichon".{{cite web|url=http://www.myetymology.com/french/barbiche.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714142246/http://www.myetymology.com/french/barbiche.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=14 July 2011 |title=French etymology of barbiche |publisher=myEtymology.com |access-date=10 October 2012}} While the English name for the breed, Bichon Frise, is derived from the French {{lang|fr|bichon à poil frisé}} meaning 'curly haired small dog'.{{cite web|url=http://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/bichon-frise/|title=Bichon Frise Dog Breed Information|website=Akc.org|access-date=11 December 2017}}

File:Goya Alba1.jpg, painted by Francisco de Goya in 1795, featuring the Duchess of Alba and her Bichon{{Citation|title=María Cayetana de Silva, 13th Duchess of Alba|date=2020-12-02|url=https://arthive.com/publications/3743~Love_Story_in_Paintings_Francisco_Goya_and_Mara_Cayetana_de_Silva_the_Duchess_of_Alba|work=Art Hive|language=en|access-date=2020-12-08}}]]

The dogs found early success in Spain and it is generally believed that Spanish seamen introduced the early breed to Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Their association with European nobility began in the 13th century, entering the royal courts of Spain, Italy and France.{{Cite web|date=June 14, 2021|title=Bichon Frise History: Time's Sociable Survivor|url=https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/dog-breeds/the-bichon-frise-historys-sociable-survivor/|access-date=2021-10-22|website=American Kennel Club|language=en}} In the 14th century, Italian sailors rediscovered the dogs on their voyages and are credited with returning them to continental Europe.{{cite web |url=https://bichon.org/history-of-the-bichon-frise/ |title=History of the Bichon Frise |work=bichon.org |access-date=11 July 2019 |archive-date=13 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210413153046/https://bichon.org/history-of-the-bichon-frise/ |url-status=dead }}

The Bichon à Poil Frisé was recognised by the Société Centrale Canine in 1933.{{cite web|url=http://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/bichon-frise/detail/#history |title=Bichon Frise Page |work=AKC.org |publisher=American Kennel Club |date=2012 |access-date=10 October 2012}} It was definitively accepted by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale in October 1959.{{r|fci}}

Some of the dogs were brought to the United States in 1955[http://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/bichon-frise/#standard "Get to Know the Bichon Frise"], The American Kennel Club. Retrieved 30 April 2014. and to the United Kingdom in 1973.{{Cite book|last=James|first=Elizabeth|title=Bichon Frisé: Dog Expert|publisher=Pet Book Publishing Company Ltd.|year=2015|isbn=978-1-906305-74-1|pages=22|language=English}}

The Bichon Frisé is a small dog, standing {{convert|23-30|cm|0|abbr=on}} at the withers and weighing approximately {{convert|5|kg|0|abbr=on}}, the weight varying in proportion to the height. The skull is rather flat, but may appear rounded; the muzzle tapers only slightly, and constitutes two-fifths of the length of the head. The nose is black, the eyes dark and round.{{r|fci}}

The coat is loosely curled in spirals or corkscrews, with a thick soft undercoat. It is always pure white; only in dogs under a year old may it be slightly tinged with beige, this extending over no more than 10% of the area of the body. The head and legs are proportionate in size to the body.{{cite web |url= http://www.fci.be/uploaded_files/215gb98_en.doc |publisher=Fédération Cynologique Internationale |work=FCI.be |title=FCI-Standard No. 215: Bichon Frisé (Bichon à poil frisé) |date=11 May 1998 |access-date=20 February 2018 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120831203023/http://www.fci.be/uploaded_files/215gb98_en.doc |archive-date=31 August 2012}}

A 2024 UK study found a life expectancy of 12.5 years for the breed compared to an average of 12.7 for purebreeds and 12 for crossbreeds.{{cite journal | last=McMillan | first=Kirsten M. | last2=Bielby | first2=Jon | last3=Williams | first3=Carys L. | last4=Upjohn | first4=Melissa M. | last5=Casey | first5=Rachel A. | last6=Christley | first6=Robert M. | title=Longevity of companion dog breeds: those at risk from early death | journal=Scientific Reports | publisher=Springer Science and Business Media LLC | volume=14 | issue=1 | date=2024-02-01 | issn=2045-2322 | doi=10.1038/s41598-023-50458-w | page=| pmc=10834484 }}

An American study looking at immune-mediated hemolytic anemia found a predisposition to the condition in the Bichon Frise, with 9% of cases belonging to the breed despite being 2% of the control population.{{cite journal | last=Miller | first=Sybille A. | last2=Hohenhaus | first2=Ann E. | last3=Hale | first3=Anne S. | title=Case-control study of blood type, breed, sex, and bacteremia in dogs with immune-mediated hemolytic anemia | journal=Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association | volume=224 | issue=2 | date=2004-01-01 | issn=0003-1488 | doi=10.2460/javma.2004.224.232 | pages=232–235}}

A study in the UK found the Bichon Frise to be predisposed to gall bladder disease (excluding gall bladder mucocele). The Bichon Frise was found to be 9.26 times more likely to acquire a non-mucocele gall bladder disease than other dogs.{{cite journal | last=Bandara | first=Y. | last2=Bayton | first2=W. A. | last3=Williams | first3=T. L. | last4=Scase | first4=T. | last5=Bexfield | first5=N. H. | title=Histopathological frequency of canine hepatobiliary disease in the United Kingdom | journal=Journal of Small Animal Practice | volume=62 | issue=9 | date=2021 | issn=0022-4510 | doi=10.1111/jsap.13354 | pages=730–736}}

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File:Toby the Bichon Frisé.jpg|alt=|Pet trim

File:Honey Dreams Dancer & Sahra.jpg|Show cut

File:16yearoldbichonfrise (cropped).jpg|At sixteen years old

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{{efn|name = a|{{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|iː|ʃ|ɒ|n|_|ˈ|f|r|iː|z}} or {{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|iː|ʃ|ɒ|n|_|f|r|ɪ|ˈ|z|eɪ}}; from {{langx|fr|bichon à poil frisé}}, {{IPA|fr|biʃɔ̃ fʁize}}, meaning 'curly haired dog'}}

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{{Wiktionary|Bichon Frisé}}

{{reflist|45em|refs=

[https://www.fci.be/en/nomenclature/BICHON-FRISE-215.html FCI breeds nomenclature: Bichon à Poil Frisé (215)]. Thuin, Belgium: Fédération Cynologique Internationale. Accessed April 2024.

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Category:FCI breeds

Category:Companion dogs

Category:Toy dogs

Category:Dog breeds originating in the Canary Islands

Category:Dog breeds originating in Belgium

Category:Bichon