PaPillon:
“
Butterfly” in French, ‘Delightful Companion’ in English
By Angela Pickett
Wildfire Papillons
F
ine-boned, dainty, elegant.
These three words describe
a Papillon to perfection!
However, a prospective
owner of this delightful
breed should be aware that
those words do not correlate to a couch
potato or a lap dog! Papillons love to play
and just be dogs. Given a choice, a Papillon
would much rather be running around the
house chasing a ball than sitting quietly
watching boring television. They are not
hyper dogs, but outgoing dogs with fun-
loving personalities. They want to be the
life of the party and will work the crowd if
given the opportunity.
Papillons are very intelligent dogs,
excelling in obedience, tracking, & agility.
They can also be trained to do service
work. They are big dogs in a little package
and are the “do-it-all” toy dog. Most are
happiest with a job to do that involves
interaction with their owner. They love to
please and can be trained with consistent
positive reinforcement. With their
intelligence, they can easily manipulate
their owner to get their way. Suddenly, you
will realize that you have been outsmarted
by a Papillon!
The hallmark of the breed is the big
beautiful butterfly ears. The ears are large,
round and should be well fringed. When
you look at a Papillon you should never
think Chihuahua! The Phalene is equally
as beautiful with their dropped ears. The
Papillon coat is silky, much like human
hair. When you touch a Papillon coat it
is cool to the touch. They should not be
double coated like a Pomeranian. Papillons
are small, measuring between 8"-11" at the
withers and usually weigh 5-8 pounds.
Papillons are a generally healthy breed.
Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) has
been linked to Papillons; however, recently
the DNA marker was found for PRA in
Papillons. A simple DNA test swab can
now give a definitive diagnosis for the
blinding disease on a Papillon and more
importantly, on dogs used in breeding
programs. Responsible breeders are very
careful not to breed dogs with genetically
linked problem in their breeding programs
“
Fine-boned,
dainty,
elegant.
These three words
describe a Papillon to
perfection!”
258 •
S
how
S
ight
M
agazine
,
N
ovember
2012