Spunky, powerful, friendly, and gosh darn downright too cute, the Victorian Bulldog is sure to give all other bulldogs a run for their money. With some declaring they are the best bulldog breed around!
A big statement indeed, but after learning about this breed’s history and why they even exist in the first place, you may find yourself to be a believer in that statement.
With a fascinating origin, great personality, and some highly desirable traits — as you’re about to see — the Victorian Bulldog is becoming an increasingly popular breed that’s on a lot of peoples’ watchlists. Let’s find out if a Victorian Bulldog pup is in your future!
Victorian Bulldog Breed Characteristics
| Other Names | Mollett Victorian Bulldog |
| Breed | Designer Breed |
| Group | Non-Sporting |
| Recognized | No |
| Lifespan | 10-12 years |
| Size | Medium |
| Height | 16 and 19 inches at shoulder |
| Weight | 55 to 75 lbs |
| Coat Colors | all-white, brindle, fawn, tan, and red |
| Grooming Needs | Low |
| Exercise Needs | Low to moderate |
| Training Needs | Low |
| Suitable For Apartments? | Yes |
| Suitable For Families? | Yes |
| Suitable For Singles? | Maybe (doesn’t do best when left alone for longer periods) |
What is a Victorian Bulldog?
The Victorian Bulldog is a newer Bulldog breed that’s a cross between English Bulldogs, Bull Mastiffs, Bull Terriers, and Staffordshire Bull Terriers. While a mix of bully breeds, they are closer in appearance and health to the original bulldog who was known for their commanding appearance, powerful athleticism, and great health.
The Victorian Bulldog can sometimes be mistaken for an English Bulldog at first glance, but when side-by-side, there is no mistaking the difference between the two breeds.
Victorian Bulldog vs English Bulldog
The Victorian Bulldog is taller, more slender, weighs less, has a longer face, less round head, and experiences fewer health issues vs the shorter, boxy, and heavy English Bulldog who experiences several health issues often due to their short face and rectangular body shape. .
While the English Bulldog is recognize.d by all major dog breeding institutions, the Victorian Bulldog is currently not.
However, this is not due to any unfortunate issues, but simply due to the Victorian Bulldog being too new of a Bulldog breed for organizations like the AKC to say there is a set-in-stone breed standard. This will surely change in the coming decades.
History / Origin
The Victorian Bulldog is both a new and old breed. What we mean by that is the Victorian Bulldog is an attempt to bring back the Old Victorian Bulldog — similar to the Old English Bulldog. These old doggos were quite different from the English Bulldog, which is what most people think of when they hear the word.
Larger, stronger, more athletic, and free of the breathing problems that run rampant amongst English Bulldogs, they were incredibly healthy and excelled at their work.
While modeled off the Old Victorian Bulldog — first bred by Carlos Woods — the new Victorian Bulldog — first bred in 1985 by Ken Mollett — isn’t quite the same breed with them sitting a bit smaller on all fronts. They are less muscular and smaller boned, giving them a much more slender and less intimidating appearance.
The Victorian Bulldog was “recreated” by Mollett by carefully selecting different bully breeds like the Bullmastiff, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, and, of course, the English Bulldog for breeding.
Behavior
Kind, gentle, and a tad quirky best sums of these marvelous pups. They are incredibly playful and have the tendency to take on more than they can handle. Whether that’s attempting longer walks than their stamina calls for or playing with bigger dogs. This all makes them pretty great dogs for families with kids of any age.
They can be protective dogs, and are quite alert, but usually don’t bark much or show strong aggressive behavior to strangers. Their faces can look a bit old man grumpy, but it really doesn’t reflect their enthusiastic behavior.
The Victorian Bulldog loves being around people and usually always wants to be with someone. But be careful because this can make them a bit destructive if they’re left alone for too long.
Size
Standing between 16 and 19 inches at the shoulder and weighing between 55 and 75 pounds, the Victorian Bulldog sits nicely in the medium-size dog group. Due to their shorter legs, they are about the shortest dog found in this group size.
Appearance
Like most Bully breeds, the Victorian Bulldog is muscular and wide, but notably less so than many of the other breeds that fall into this group. They are a medium-size dog with a big head and short nose.
They have longish-wide ears that hang alongside their round face. Their coats can feature a number of markings and colors: all-white, brindle, fawn, tan, and red.
Their face droops a good bit, giving them what some call a grumpy old man-appearance, and yes, like many bully dogs, they can drool a good bit. Because the Victorian Bulldog is still a work in progress, the appearance differences between them is greater than say the English Bulldogs.
Health
It’s critical to talk about health problems when it comes to the Victorian Bulldog because it’s the whole reason they exist in the first place. While adorable, the English Bulldog is an unhealthy and deeply troubled breed plagued with health issues due to humans taking breeding practices too far.
We love these dogs, but it’s impossible to hide the fact that many live incredibly short lives fraught with health issue after health issue because of their genetics.
The goal of the Victoria Bulldog can be seen as a noble cause as it sets out to erase a number of health problems that English Bulldogs face. It sets to eliminate the fact that 80% of English Bulldogs are delivered by Caesarean section due to their large heads.
That females have to be artificially inseminated because the males can’t properly mount. It sets out to eliminate the fact that every single English Bulldog suffers from Brachycephalic Airway Syndrome to some degree.
While considerably healthier than the English Bulldog, the Victorian Bulldog still sees some health issues due to selective breeding. They, like many medium-sized breeds, are at increased risk for hip dysplasia. A well-rounded diet when young and growing and maintaining a healthy weight throughout their life can help reduce hip dysplasia’s severity and may help lower the risk.
Lifespan
Thanks to their healthier genetics, the Victorian Bulldog enjoys a longer life expectancy than their Enlight relatives. 10 to 12 years is their general life expectancy, but many Victorian Bulldogs have been known to enjoy a longer life living to 15 years or so. This gives them a slightly better than average life expectancy for a medium-size dog breed.
Care
One of the things that makes the Victorian Bulldog popular is their grooming, training, and general care needs fall on the lower and less-demanding side of the scale. However, like all dogs, it’s essential you fulfill your dog’s needs, so they live a longer and healthier life.
Food Needs
Raw, wet, or dry kibble, the Victorian Bulldog does great with the common diets for dogs. While they can be quite energetic, they are equally, if not more so, couch potatoes that love to struggle up to you and sleep their day away.
As well, they handle less demanding forms of exercising better due to their shorter legs and bigger bodies. All of this means that weight management is key for these pups as this breed can be prone to weight gain and obesity.
Fortunately, with regular moderate exercise and the rare high-calorie treat, it’s often much easier to prevent a Victorian Bulldog from becoming obese compared to some of the other bully breeds.
Training
Like with all breeds, the earlier you start training, the better. The Victorian Bulldog gentle and intelligent nature makes them great candidates for positive reinforcement training, and they shouldn’t struggle to pick up basic training commands.
They are naturally kind and gentle around other dogs, and when either raised with or trained to be, they are great with all kinds of other animals.
All-in-all, if you’ve never trained a dog before or this is your first dog, the Victorian Bulldog is an excellent candidate for you.
Grooming
Grooming is pretty low maintenance with the Victoria Bulldog. They have very short hair and don’t shed too much. They will require brushing a few times a month, along with a bath every month or so.
Unlike the English Bulldog, their skin flaps aren’t as deep and aren’t as prone to skin infections and grime building up. However, they still have them, meaning you’ll want to regularly inspect them.
If you don’t want to do a lot of grooming work, but don’t want to go to the doggy salon, the Victorian Bulldog is a great dog to look into.
Where to Find A Victorian Bulldog?
At Tindog, we recommend recusing whenever it’s possible. With the Victorian Bulldog being a newer breed that’s designed to be significantly healthier than their English cousins, it’s going to be next to impossible to find one in a shelter.
If you’re determined to rescue a Victorian Bulldog, we recommend checking out rescues that specialize in reducing bully breeds or bulldogs.
Victorian bulldog puppy
Victorian Bulldog puppies can be quite rambunctious and full of energy for the first year or so. After age 2, they normally mellow out fairly significantly but will retain the rambunctious sass.
Victorian bulldog price
Victorian Bulldog puppies don’t come cheap and commonly sell for between 1,500-3,000 USD, and some breeders with notable stock will charge up to $5,000.
Facts & Frequently Asked Questions
Are Victorian Bulldogs aggressive?
While they can be protective over their family, they are rarely aggressive unless severely provoked or trained to be. The original bulldogs had a strong prey drive and were used for blood sports like bull baiting. Fortunately, this has largely been bred out of the modern-day Bulldogs like the Victorian or English Bulldog.
However, in some rare cases, a bulldog may be aggressive with smaller animals if left untrained. Fortunately, training them to be kind to all should be pretty easy.
Can Victorian Bulldogs swim?
It is not recommended to let a Victorian Bulldog go swimming as it’s incredibly dangerous and can quickly result in them drowning. Their legs are too short, they are too stocky, and may struggle with some degree of breathing issues due to their shorter muzzle.
How much should a Victorian Bulldog weigh?
A female Victoria Bulldog should weigh between 55 and 65 lbs, while males should weigh between 65 and 75 lbs. Puppies will weigh around 10 lbs around 8 weeks and reach their final size sometime between their first and second year. They often double in size between months three and six, then see their growth significantly slow down after.
What is the difference between a Victorian Bulldog and an English bulldog?
English Bulldogs are shorter, stockier, heavier, have larger heads, and shorter noses vs. the Victorian Bulldog, who also see significantly fewer health issues.
Conclusion
Has the Victorian Bulldog’s unique history and desirable health traits turn you into a believer that they are the best bully breed around?
Whether it has or not, it’s impossible to deny these dog’s appeal, which additionally includes a great friendly personality that is perfect for kids of all ages. As well, they are lower maintenance than many other dog breeds around their size or bigger. They have a short coat that’s easy to take care of and prefer moderate exercise over the strenuous kind.
Nor are they the biggest eaters around or have serious training demands. They love other dogs, no matter their size, and when raised around other animals or trained, they truly get along great with everyone.
All-in-all, the Victorian Bulldog is one fantastic dog breed that would be a perfect fit for a multitude of different households and family types. As well, it’s truly great to see humans taking a responsible approach to dog breeding, which often doesn’t have the best history.
At Tindog, we don’t hide that we prefer people to rescue over buying, but it’s incredibly important for us to commend healthy breeding practices. Here’s to you, Victorian Bulldog.
