Papillons…

[Kyrabee]

I recently lost on of my cats. She was my first cat and the other one is probably my last one. I feel I am a dog person at heart. I am now retired and not gone so many hours as when I was working so would like another dog.

Anyway, I live in a manufactured home with a small yard. I am looking at a small dog. 20lbs tops. I am not crazy about a ‘rescue’. I have seen my friend struggle greatly with her little rescues. The all had issues. I want a known quantity and a trainable dog. I want a dog I can litter box train (for late night and bad weather potty needs). Way back when (40 years ago), there was a Papillon in my cocker’s obedience class and that little stinker was whip smart. I don’t want a dog that needs grooming. I know Papillon’s require brushing but not so much clipping. I have had and loved my beagles. I would want a 13 inch but I know them and they can be frustrating on the training side.

Anyone have a Papillon? No urgency at all. I still have a 15 yr old cat that I am not sure I want to hassle him with introducing a dog. And I am for sure not going to get a new dog in the middle of winter.

TIA
Susan

[sativum]

Not a papillon, but I have a cavalier king charles spaniel and he hits many of your requirements. He doesn’t have a typical “small dog” temperament. He’s been easily trainable - I don’t know if he cold be litter box trained, but he is completely house trained, and if he needs to go potty at night will let me know and I can just let him out the back door to do his thing for a minute or two (including our Wisconsin winters). I have not had to brush him a lot. My guy is a bit bigger - about 23 lbs - but most are under 17 lbs,

[Kyrabee]

The reason for the litter box is that I cannot access the yard directly out any of the house doors. I have to go out, across and down off the porch or out through the garage. I was hoping to put a litter box in the garage so I could just open a door at night or in really bad weather.

I am a little leery of The Cavalier King Charles spaniel and health problems. They look like lovely little dogs.

Susan

[OnAMission]

I’ve known a couple Papillons and they were wonderful bright little dogs. I’d get one (or a mix of some sort from a pound/good rescue) in a heartbeat.

[GraceLikeRain]

Paps are a high energy very bright breed. They can be PITAs as typical house dogs but are awesome for someone who wants to do obedience, rally, agility, etc. or is super active.

https://papillonclub.org/articles-is-a-papillon-right-for-you/

A middle ground that’s often overlooked is getting on the waitlist with a few good breeders who may be retiring a breeding bitch in the near future. They are often a little past the young wild years but are still not too old, especially for a long lived breed.

https://papillonclub.org/breeders-2021/

[Flurry84]

Papillons are great: highly intelligent and full of joy. Very loyal to their people. They have single rather than double coats so grooming is pretty basic and they always look good. I had a friend who was a breeder-judge for yrs. so I got to know them pretty well. It would be good to make some contacts before you actually want to purchase one as they have small litters.

[lenapesadie]

A friend of mine got a Papillon pup recently. She’s been a breeze to train and I’m certain she could be box or pad trained. Very pleasant puppy. Super cute too of course.

TBH, I was shocked at the energy levels this pup has. She needs a lot more exercise than I imagined, not being familiar with the breed prior.

[Kyrabee]

GraceLikeRain. Your middle ground would be totally doable. I am older (66) and really don’t have to have a puppy.
I would like to do rally and obedience, hence wanting a really trainable dog.
Thanks for the websites.

[pony_grandma]

It’s my heart breed. My girl Hunny was the joy and light of the family for her 15 yrs of life. Gramps called her a Poopillon. She was a poop, the queen of the farm property. I desperately want another. But I’m waiting until I retire so I can be home full time with a pup.

The hard news is that the prices are out of sight now. I actually can’t afford one. They normally have small size litters. I was just watching a Pap puppy video today I’ll share.

Bella just wants to play! (best papillon puppy music video) - YouTube

You"ll definitely need good area rugs for carpet traction for the zoomies!!

[mommy_peanut]

Haven’t had much experience with Pappies in some years. The ones I did know, came from fantastic breeders, that actually did stuff with their dogs & bred for sound temperaments.
What I remember was they were fun, smart, happy dogs, that always seemed willing to work/train.

I’m a big dog (GSDs & Labs) person at heart, but I already have my next dog picked out.
An acquaintance breeds fantastic working line GSDs.
She also breeds what I’d call “working line” long haired Chi’s.
They are NOT the typical bug eyed, nervous nellies I was so used to seeing.
These guys rule the roost & push the GSDs around.
Other than normal brushing & nail trims, they don’t seem to require much maintenance.
While it’ll be another year or two before I’m ready, I can’t wait to being one home & do some nosework, agility, etc with he/she.

[S1969]

Agree with what’s been said above - they are very active little dogs and a favorite among people who are looking to stay active in dog sports but smaller than their primary breed for whatever reason. Quite a number of people active in my breed also own Papillons.

You might find a breeder looking to place an older one; I have seen far more breeders placing 1-2 year olds for various reasons than retiring their bitches and placing in pet homes. I know that is something that does happen but I don’t think it’s as common as it might seem. I’ve seen more often placements of younger males that are finished champions but not good enough to campaign as specials. So, if you’re not against a male, that might be another option.

To get in on those situations, you really need contacts in the breed as they tend to get placed among friends and friends of friends. Definitely reach out to breeders and the parent (or regional) clubs for that.

[Arlomine]

I have one and LOVE him!
I am a diehard Boston Terrier lover and Owner, and this little Papillion just dropped into my lap. I’m sold. This dog is incredibly smart, very perceptive… Super trainable, and very cuddly once he decides that you are aware that he is small and could be damaged.
They do tend to be yappy, I’ve had to wrap my head around that and get used to it.
Two thumbs up here!

[starsandsun]

The ones I’ve known are wicked smart, very pretty, and yappy. Like stand at the edge of water and bark for 10 minutes without stopping yappy. But seem to be easy to train and enjoy their work!

[McGurk]

I had a friend who had a Papillon and took it with him on wilderness canoe and camping trips. He was a huge advocate for the breed, and said it was the smartest dog he every owned and wonderul companion dog.

I don’t know a lot about them otherwise, but I was impressed by Dan’s passionate advocacy for the breed and the fact that it the dog had a life similar to a farm dog.

[js]

We had a Papillon, wonderful dog, full of energy and funny, very quick to learn. They do like to run and get exercise but that can be as little as tossing a ball down the hallway or going for walks, they don’t have to have a yard. I know plenty of people with Pappys that live in apartments. We also had cats, she never had issue with them. Our CoCo was a rescue and never a lap dog but she did like to be up on the couch or bed but not snuggling. She did have terrible separation issues but I don’t think that is because of the breed. They can have some health issues like other small dogs. I would love to have another one.

[Mosey_2003]

When I worked at Culver’s we had a lady that was a breeder that would always bring her bitch through the drive-thru and we all LOVED her. Super cute and personable. Lady also happened to work at the salon where I would get my eyebrows done and I would always ask about the dogs, she had a long healthy retirement after she was done showing.