French bulldogs will soon become the most popular dog in the country

Not surprising, really

Most Popular Dog
(Image credit: Rex Features)

Not surprising, really

It seems like everyone is obsessed with French bulldogs at the moment. Want proof?

Well, the beloved Frenchie is likely to become the UK's most popular dog by 2018, according to dog welfare organisation The Kennel Club. If this happens, it will overtake the Labrador retriever for first place, a breed which has held the top spot for the last 27 years.

The Kennel Club revealed that the popularity of French bulldogs increased by 47% in 2016, with breed registrations going up from 14,607 in 2015 to 21,470. They expect that 2017 will see another 7,000 registrations, meaning there will be over 28,000 Frenchies in the UK.

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The A-list love a French bulldog too, with pictures of their squishy face pooches appearing on their celebrity social media accounts on almost a daily basis.

Chrissy Teigen and John Legend, Lady Gaga and Hugh Jackman are all proud owners of Frenchies, as are David Beckham, Hilary Duff and Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson.

The late Carrie Fisher also owned a French bulldog, her beloved Gary, who frequented many a red carpet with the Star Wars actress. He now reportedly lives with her daughter, Billie Lourd, and her Frenchie, Tina.

Most Popular Dog Carrie Fisher and Gary

Carie Fisher with her French bulldog, Gary, in October 2016

However, the Kennel Club has some concerns about the sudden rise in popularity.

Their secretary Caroline Kisko says: 'It is very unwise for anyone to buy one simply because they think it looks cute or is a fashionable choice. Anyone doing so could inadvertently be contributing to an impending welfare crisis' reports The Telegraph.

'While it's normal to want to show off your dog, when celebrities do it, it usually results in a surge in the popularity of breeds, which is not a good thing as it opens the doors to unscrupulous breeders who see it as an opportunity to breed lots of them without due care to health and welfare.'

And with the average life span of a Frenchie being around 10-12 years, buying this breed (or any other breed for that matter) is a decision that should not be taken lightly.

Lucy Abbersteen
Beauty Contributor

Lucy is a freelance beauty editor and contributor at Marie Claire, and has written for titles including Glamour, Refinery29, Popsugar, woman&home and more. She was previously Marie Claire’s junior beauty editor. During her career, she’s covered everything from backstage beauty at fashion week to interviews with famous faces like Drag Race royalty and Little Mix. As for her beauty ethos, she’s a big advocate for not having to spend a fortune on beauty products to get good results, and when she’s not got beauty on the brain you’ll find her reading or hanging out with dogs.