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Updated October 2011

Did you ever wonder why your Coton de Tulear isn't eating? Or, why your Coton is chewing on the legs of your table? Maybe you wondered why your Coton de Tulear barks at strangers or other dogs?

The Coton de Tulear Breeders of Excellence would love to answer your questions. Between us we have over 100 years of experience breeding this wonderful little dog known as the "Royal Dog of Madagascar." Please read our combined bio's on the "About Us" page and let us help you learn more about your new Coton. If you are just starting your search for a new Coton de Tulear puppy, we can help you too! We would also love for you to share a picture of your white fluffy or even Fluffy's friends. You can upload a picture by clicking on the "choose file button." After you choose your picture, just hit the upload button. It's as simple as that!

Please know that the Coton de Tulear Breeder's group is no substitute for your Vet, and you should always call your Vet first when it comes to the health of your puppy. Things like vomiting and diarrhea are very serious in a puppy and you should always seek medical attention from your Vet immediately.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Here are some recent questions from our web visitors:

Question: Hi, I hope someone can answer my questions or at least help me to understand. We bought a Coton from a breeder that does not belong to Breeders of Excellence. This breeder raises her cotons in her home. She supplied us with information that led us to believe these pups were bred with utmost care and excellent background of the parent dogs. She talked about how she had to pay a lot of money for her breeding dogs. We went to her place which was out-of state from where we live. (by the way, we paid $1200 for her). I did talk to one of the breeders of excellence, and her prices were higher, so we decided to go with the breeder that we visited. We just took her to the vet for her 2nd set of shots (11 weeks)...and the breeder informed us she has grade 1 of medial patellar luxation. He gave us information about it. In this piece, it says that if it progresses to stages 2,3 or 4, she could end up being lame, need anti-inflammatory meds or surgery. I also read that it could develop into arthritus and cause pain. I see now that we made a mistake, perhaps, by not buying our coton from a breeder of excellence. I will certainly recommend others to do that. In the contract we signed which promises a 1 yr. health guarranty, it states several conditions that are not covered in the contract,including the luxating patella. We read and signed it, not realizing there could be a problem. I wish now, of course, that we had questioned her further. That is the basic background. We love our little puppy, and she is bringing us so much joy. Can you please tell us if this disorder is a common one for cotons? Is there anything we can do now to prevent her progressing to another stage of this disorder? One of the reasons we chose this breed, is the claim of such superior health. My last dog had many health problems as he aged. Any information or advice you can give us would be most appreciated. Thank you. Sincerely, Jonnie and Dave Clark

Answer: Hi Jonnie and Dave: Thanks for contacting The Breeders of Excellence. We are sorry to hear about your puppy. The following response is a collaborative effort of the group.

Luxating patella is a common small dog problem. Most reputable breeders test the parents for luxating patellas and only breed dogs with good patellas. Having said that, even if the parents are good, it doesn’t guarantee they won’t produce a puppy with a luxating patella. All the breeders can do is to test and breed the best. Here is a link to The Orthopedic Foundation fro Animals, it explains some of the details about luxating patella, http://offa.org/pl_overview.html The OFA is the official registry for health testing as well. You can look up individual dogs to see their health testing.

We would recommend that you don’t allow jumping (also for the spine) off furniture, etc, going up and down stairs or climbing. Walking is a good way to build up the muscle around the kneecap. It is also important that you don’t let your dog get overweight, as excess weight can cause unnecessary strain, as well as other health problems. Because the puppy is so young, it could just be that the patellas can easily be manipulated. An orthopedic vet told one of our breeders that puppy patellas can easily be manipulated as they are like rubber, which is why the OFA does not even recognize puppy grades. Grade 1 only means that it can be pushed out of the groove manually. One breeder had a puppy that was diagnosed with luxating patella at 10 weeks, she went for a second opinion and she was fine. She is now 5 years old and no signs of any trouble. This may or may not progress into anything, so hopefully nothing will come of this. If it goes to a 2 or 3 we are talking about a small dog not a large breed, so it isn’t as serious as a large breed dog. One of our breeders had patella conversations with her vet, (one of the world’s leading repro Vets), as one of her puppies was born with a grade 4 yrs ago. They worked with her to help stretch muscles/ligaments she just turned 6 and has yet had to have surgery, she doesn't experience pain and it doesn’t it limit her ability. Her vet says the condition is not painful and rarely is surgery necessary. They say 90% of small breeds have some sort of luxation. He said there are far worse conditions than luxating patella's. Each individual dog is different, and we're sure your Vet will guide you in the right direction.

We hope that helps, and please let us know if you have any further questions.

Question: I purchased a colored Coton de Tulear puppy and he is now 1 year old. He is losing all of his color. What is wrong with him?

Answer: Most Cotons who are born with color are born with the dilute gene. This causes the color to fade. Some will fade to white. Others will fade to light beige or fawn.

Question: In my research for a Coton puppy, one breeder told me that boys make better pets. I really want a girl, but I also want the one that will be the best pet. What do you think?

Answer: We know a lot of breeders prefer the boys. Personally, we find that boys and girls both have lovely personalities. We can't say that we like one any better than the other. It's just like when you interact with children. Sometimes, the little boy is the one we prefer and sometimes, it's the girl.

Question: My Coton puppy who is 6 months old gets me up every night to potty around 4 am. When can I expect him to start sleeping all night?

Answer: We tell our puppy buyers to do your best not to get up with the puppy at night. Put his crate beside your bed and stick your fingers in or tap the crate rather than getting up with them. The puppies are just like children. If you get up with them tonight at 2am, you may have to get up with them the next night at 2am and so on and so on. You will soon be able to tell if the sounds they are making is an emergency or not.

Question: When should I spay/neuter my new puppy?

Answer: There is a very good article on early spay neuter on our "Health page". This may be something that you would like to bring along to your Vet for discussion and come to a more informed decision on early spay/neuter.