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ALL
ABOUT COTON DE TULEARS
The Coton de Tulear originated in Madagascar. They are a companion dog and
are shown in the toy import register class. Coton's are a charming, small
white dog with fluffy cotton hair. The Coton sheds very little of it coat
and has no doggy dander or odors, they are allergy friendly. The Coton
does need to be groomed for 10-20 minutes every day so that their long
luxurious coat doesn't tangle or knot.
They are known as the anti stress dog. The Coton has an incredible sweet
nature and is devoted to its human companions. They are hearty dogs that
like all seasons of the year. This breed is extremely healthy , they are
long lived about 16 years. Probably the most outstanding characteristics
of the Coton is its behaviour. They are very intelligent, easy to train
and loving, loyal and devoted to its human family.. The Coton is alert,
agile very fast and a lively companion. The Coton can be very wary of
strangers and it takes time to earn there friendship.
When you are sitting a Coton usually snuggles on your lap or rests close
by you. All Cotons love to be close to their owners at all times and you
might find this little dog follows you around. Cotons are calm, sturdy
dogs that enjoy the rough housing of children and other pets (cats &
dogs). Cotons can smile and often do so. They are a happy, beautiful,
affectionate, compact size, clownish, healthy little balls of fun. A Coton
retains a puppy-like joy through out its life, often walking on their hind
legs, jumping, and rushing around & making grunting noises.
The Coton is an extremely rare, ancient purebred. They look a little like
a miniature Old English Sheepdog with hair covering their eyes. They weigh
around 5kg - 7kgs and are 10-12 inches tall. Most Coton's are white
with champagne, brown, gray, black or cream coloured ears. They have dark
expressive brown eyes. The Coton de Tulears are a bundle of joy, which
will bring smiles laughter & complete devotion to its owners.
The Coton is a relatively easy breed to groom to keep their coats looking
elegant and beautiful. The Coton's hair is soft and should look wind blown
and natural in appearance. Cotons enter the world either all white, white
with champagne or black ears and also tri colored. These spots of color
usually disappear or fade. Brown fades to cream, Black fades to gray.
In most cases the color fades leaving the dog looking nearly pure white by
adulthood. I think that a little color gives Coton's character, but
if showing in the UK the body of the Coton should be white in color. The
adult Coton hair does not fall out all over your home, they stay in the
coat waiting for you to groom the coat to remove them. Most Cotons that
are spayed or neutered do not shed at all. The only times a Coton does
shed its hair is when the female is experiencing hormone changes due to
pregnancy or her having a season. Cotons destined for the show ring are
not allowed to be cut or trimmed in any fashion. In fact the only parts of
a Coton permitted to be trimmed are their feet and pads.
THE MANY ORIGINS OF THE COTON DE TULEAR
In their home country the Coton is known as the royal dog of Madagascar
and has even been honored by having its picture on a postage stamp. There
are many stories about how the Coton de Tulear first became a breed in
Madagascar. One such story says the Cotons were said to have originated
because of a ship wreck in the 15th century. French sailors would sail in
the region of Madagascar. They had little white dogs on board their ships
said to be the ancestors of the Bichon. These dogs were used to kill the
rats on the ships and also to help the ladies on board the ship from
becoming bored. It is alleged that one of these ships sank during a
vicious storm. The little dogs all managed to swim to safety and mated
with the local dogs. This was the start of the breed know as the Coton de
Tulear.
The Coton's then hunted in packs to kill wild boar. In Madagascar there
are lots of rivers filled with crocodiles. It would have be sheer suicide
for the Cotons to cross the river so they used their intelligence to fool
all the crocodiles. The Coton pack would find the narrowest route to cross
the river and then they would send 2 Cotons back to the widest part of the
river. These Cotons would then bark and attract the crocodiles attention
so that their pack would be able to cross in safety. As Cotons are much
faster than crocodiles on land, once the croc's attempted to catch the two
little heroes they would just run off. Once it was also safe for them to
cross the river they would. After a hundred years or so the locals began
to see how intelligent these beautiful dogs were especially at their
skills of crossing rivers. As there were no bridges in Madagascar at that
time they also thought about training the dogs to assist them on crossing
rivers. These little dogs were so charming and beautiful that they
attracted the attention of the royalty and the nobles of Madagascar and it
was declared that no one could own a Coton unless they were of royal or
noble blood. If a peasant was caught with one of these little dogs they
could be sentenced to death. This is probably why this breed is still a
very rare and pure bred.
Another story about the Cotons origins, was that when the French settlers
came to Madagascar the ladies brought with them little white dogs thought
to be ancestors of the bichon. These dogs also mated with the local dogs
and the Coton was said to have been bred.
The next story is a little like the first. A ship from France came to the
port Tulear of Madagascar willing to trade some of their goods. On board
the ship were ladies who had with them little white dogs. These dogs were
trained to jump and dance on their hind legs to entertain the ladies on
long tedious journeys, they also caught the rats on board the ships. Once
the ship had docked, the crew began trading their goods with the residents
of Madagascar. On this day a noble man happened to be in the port looking
to buy goods when he saw what was thought to have been bichons dancing and
entertaining the passengers. Astonished by the little dogs abilities and
intelligence, the nobleman offered the ships captain a great deal of money
for these dogs. Once again they managed to mate with the local dogs and
the Coton was born.
The last story is the least believable, French troops apparently brought
bichon dogs with them to Madagascar, and once again they mated with the
local dogs and the Coton emerged from this partnership. This explanation
is quite odd, because normally the French troops wouldn't travel with dogs
especially small ones. With all of these stories the Cotons still out
smarted the crocodiles and hunted in packs in the wild before they were
caught & domesticated once again. The Coton also still became the
property of the royalty and the nobles only. All peasants were sentenced
to death if they were caught owning one.
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Coton de Tulear is now solely used as a companion dog. These elegant
small white dogs have the most endearing personality and are
unique from any other breed. Cotons look a little like stuffed
cuddly toys and have even been described as a miniature Old
English Sheepdog. Don't be fooled by the Cotons looks, these small
dogs are determined, untiring, and very willing to please. The
Coton is devoted to its owner, and he will love you and your
family as much or even more than you love him.
Cotons are calm sturdy dogs
that enjoy the rough housing of children and other household pets.
They are very slow to anger and make excellent companions for
children and are always ready to play lots of games like chasing,
ball games and even hide and seek. In fact Cotons will eagerly
follow your children on many adventures. They love all weather and
enjoy playing in the snow, having a dip in the paddling pool and
will even follow the children through puddles and mud.
Coton de Tulears are willing
to do just anything to please you all he asks in return is lots of
love and cuddles. Cotons love to be with their owners at all
times, they do not expect your attention constantly and are happy
to sleep if you are busy just as long as they are near you. Within
its family the Coton is a beautiful and spirited little dog. The
Coton is extremely intelligent, alert, easy to train, cuddly, and sensitive.
This robust hardy little dog is always ready to take you to a dog
show, agility tournament, hiking or even just a ball game in the
park. Cotons make excellent obedience dogs and require very little
in the way of discipline, the worst punishment that you can do to
a Coton is to ignore them as they thrive on human contact. Cotons
keep a puppy-like joy through out their life. At home they are
very playful and even clownish doing many party tricks, they are
fond of walking on their hind legs, rolling over and even jumping
onto a sofa landing in a sleeping position. They love to chase one
another and grunt when they get excited. Cotons can run very fast,
jump very high but are not overly active. If you require your
Coton to do lots of walking it would be happy to walk all day, but
if you are unable to go for long walks they are just as happy in
the back garden.
This breed is healthy and
vigorous and will adapt to anyone's life style either living in
the country or city. Cotons make an excellent choice of pet if you
live in a small house, they are content to spend most of the day
lounging around occasionally having a charge around. The Coton can
definitely fit into nearly everyone's life style if you are
willing to spend your time with them. Cotons are a bundle of joy
and always brings lots of smiles and laughter to their families
lives. No wonder they have earned the name the anti-stress dog.
One of the greatest
pleasures about owning a Coton is when you come home they are
always pleased to see you, it doesn't matter if you have been away
for 10 minutes or even 3 hours they greet you with chortles,
smiles and dancing, this is all because they adore and love you so
much. Most Cotons are usually very quiet dogs whom seldom bark,
although they will alert you if there is someone at the door. All
Cotons are very cautious with strangers and it takes time to win
their confidence.
The Coton de Tulear is a
relatively easy breed to groom to keep its cotton like coat
looking beautiful. The Coton sheds little of its hair and has no
doggy dander or odour so this makes the breed a perfect choice for
people with allergies. The Cotons hair is soft and should look
wind blown and natural in appearance. The adult Cotons hair does
not fall out all over your home, it stays in the coat waiting for
you to groom the coat to remove them. Most adults whom have been
spayed or neutered do not shed at all. The only times the Coton
does shed a little more is when the female is experiencing changes
in her hormones due to being in season or pregnancy.
It is important that you
groom your Coton every day for at least 15 minutes, to prevent
cotters. Grooming daily should start from the first day that you
get your puppy. Even though the puppy's hair is short and doesn't
need grooming every day, when he becomes an adult, his coat will
need daily grooming so introduce him to grooming early and make it
a pleasurable experience for him. Grooming is an excellent way to
bond with your Coton.
Cotons destined for the show
ring are not permitted to get their coat cut in any fashion,
infact the only part of the Coton allowed to be trimmed are their
feet and pads. Many Cotons who have champagne colour in their
coats have been known to look nearly pure white as the champagne
fades when your Coton matures.
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Coton de Tulear Breed Guide written
by : Jo-Anne Hitchen (edited)
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