Are French Bulldogs Good For Seniors, Retirees, And Older People

The French Bulldogs are charming and super adorable dogs. Nobody can resist themselves from cuddling with these cutie pies. Frenchies are actually smart and intelligent dogs that make great companions to all people irrespective of age barriers.

You might be considering a lot of breeds for your retired parents, but here is a suggestion from us. Yes, it is none other than cute little Frenchies.

Are French Bulldogs good for retirees? Obviously, yes. Frenchies are the perfect breed for seniors, retirees, and older people. They fit perfectly into the lifestyle of retirees. Frenchies are much easy to live with, rather than any other dog breeds. They are low maintenance dogs that easily adapts to a smaller space.

Of course, you would need to know more about Frenchies before buying one for your parents. You obviously have to make sure that your gift wouldn’t trouble them. So, here is all you need to know about French Bulldogs.

How Living With A French Bulldog Would Be? Temperament Of French Bulldogs

The French Bulldogs make great companions to humans. They would overpour love and affection to their masters. Frenchies are perfect lapdogs. They, in fact, crave warmth and comfort of their masters and would prefer to lay aside you all the time.

The Frenchies make great family dogs. They get along with kids and other pets easily. Also, French Bulldogs are good baby sitters. The territoriality of Frenchies would prevent anything from reaching out to your kid.

French Bulldogs would either sleep all day or would be hilariously active. They are fun to watch when hyperactive. Frenchies, in fact, will keep everyone at home entertained. You will never feel lonely when they are around. They would act as a therapist.

The French Bulldogs will be mostly quiet. They don’t bark unless they find someone strange intriguing into your home.

Frenchies would love to play with the ball. They love chasing the ball.

The French Bulldogs are stubborn but are easy to train. They are intelligent and pick up lessons quickly. But, their stubbornness may affect training once you start training stringently.

French Bulldogs take up lessons quickly when you keep the lessons fun. Positive reinforcement is the exact strategy to deal with while training French Bulldogs.

You can live at great ease with a French Bulldog. You don’t have to put a lot of effort to raise Frenchies, and hence, they are a good breed of dog for retirees and seniors.

Let us now look at a few more characteristics that make French Bulldogs a perfect breed of dog for seniors.

Why Do French Bulldogs Make Great Companions For Retirees And Older People?

Small size

The smaller size of Frenchies makes it easy to handle for older people.

It would be difficult for retirees to handle a heavy and large size dog. Humans usually start losing their energy upon getting older. And, the kind of dog they would require is small and easy to handle.

In that case, Frenchies being small, lightweight, and easy to handle perfectly fits into their lifestyle.

Adaptable with small space

We start battling with our mobility to move around as we become older. People would become uncomfortable in large spaces due to their difficulty to roam around. They would prefer small spaces or apartments after their retirement.

The small size of the French Bulldogs makes them comfortable in small spaces. The French Bulldogs make great apartment dogs.

Requires little exercise only

Some breeds of dogs would require intense exercise sessions daily. The seniors and retirees might not be active or healthy to meet the exercise requirements of such dogs.

Hence, the dogs that only requires a little exercise are the right ones for elderly people. Frenchies belongs to that category. A brisk walk would meet the exercise requirements of French Bulldogs.

Get along well with children

The retirees and older people would always prefer a dog that gets along well with children. Yes, most of the kids spend vacations with their grandparents. And thus, it is of utmost importance for grandparents to make sure that their doggie is child-friendly.

The Frenchies are too good with kids. Their small size and playfulness make them perfect for kids to spend time.

Smart and entertaining

Retirees and older people nowadays have to fight with loneliness. What they need is an entertaining companion. Frenchies are great entertainers. They will keep older people engaged and loved.

The Frech Bulldogs belong to the category of emotional support dogs. They are thus, good for beating the depression and mood swings commonly seen among older people.

Requires little grooming

Some breeds of dogs require regular grooming sessions to keep them clean and healthy. Retirees and old people would not be fit for such daily grooming needs. What they prefer would be a dog with the least grooming needs.

The French Bulldogs are low maintenance dogs. You don’t have to groom them daily. They have a short coat that would require to be brushed once or twice a week.

Easy to train

Frenchies are smart and intelligent, and thus are easy to train. But, their stubbornness can be a drawback.

You can train Frenchies easily through positive reinforcements. All you need is a little patience.

Yes, Frenchies altogether make a great companion for retirees and older people.

However, just like any other dog breeds, the French Bulldogs also have some drawbacks. And therefore, you should also know the negative aspects of Frenchies before buying one.

Some Aspects Of French Bulldogs Older People Should Know Before Owning Them

Health issues

The French Bulldogs have an irregular body. The body shape of Frenchies is a drawback to their health.

Frenchies have serious breathing problems when they are over-exercised or worked. They also tend to overheat in summers. You should have an eye on them during peak summers as they are prone to heat strokes.

The French Bulldogs are not the ones for outdoors. They fit well into the interiors of your house and mostly be uncomfortable in the outdoors.

Frenchies are also prone to a number of health issues including arthritis, eye diseases, allergies, and so on.


The French Bulldogs are known for gassiness. They fart most of the time. Gassiness is a concern among most of the flat-faced breeds.

Commercial dog food makes the gassiness in Frenchies worst. You can try out a home-based diet for Frenchies including more vegetables and real meat to fight against their flatulence issues.


Frenchies are free thinkers. Their stubbornness can be hard to deal with if you are not patient enough.

You can train them through fun and games. Positive reinforcement also works up to an extent. But, never try to be stringent on your rules.

Terrible swimmers

Frenchies are terrible swimmers. Their breathing problems and irregularity of body features make them really bad at swimming.

Therefore, it is far better to keep them away from water sources.

Digging Or Burrowing habits

The Frenchies often spend their leisure hours digging the courtyard, especially when they are anxious. They may start digging your garden due to separation anxiety when they are left alone at home.

Therefore, it is essential to keep an eye on your Frenchie and prevent him from digging your courtyard.


As said earlier, French Bulldogs are, of course, a great breed for older people and retirees. French Bulldogs make a great companion to older people helping them to beat their aging blues and loneliness.

The French Bulldogs are low-maintenance or easy to maintain dogs that fit perfectly into the slow lifestyle of older people.

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