History 

This French Molosser, with its giant-sized head, is probably the closest relative of the Molossers of ancient Europe.   Some consider this breed to be a direct descendant of the Alans/Alaunts of the Middle Ages.  Others believe that the Bull Mastiff or the Bulldog have been used in the creation of the Dogue De Bordeaux.

The history of the Bordeauxdog is full of fighting.  The breed has been used for hunting, guarding (of his human family, house, and property), and pitted against all kinds of animals in the ring; bears, wolves, tigers and lions.

In 1863, the first French dog show took place in Parisin the Jardin d'Acclimatiation. The Dogue De Bordeaux was entered under their present name.  However, Perre Megnin did not write the first standard of the French Mastiff until 1869.  There have been different types of Dogues in the past; the Toulousetype (Toulousain), the Paristype (Parisian) and the Bordeauxtype (Bordelaise).  The latter being the ancestor of today's Dogue De Bordeaux.  The Paristype had more wrinkles and was often a heavier built dog.  The Toulousetype was a smaller and broader dog with a very heavy head.  Professor Kunstler (the man who wrote the first standard for FCI in 1910) considered the Toulousetype to not be a Dogue, but rather a Bouledogue (Bulldog).  The Toulousetype was probably closer related to the Spanish Bulldog, if any difference at all.  There was also the Doguin, a smaller and lighter Dogue.  It was believed to have been developed by crossings to the Bulldog.

In the 1800's, the breed was hardly known outside of its native regions but some exports took place to England as early as 1885.  This breed, like most of the other Molosser breeds, had a very tough time at the beginning of the 1900's and was threatened with extinction after WWII.  Considering the long war and the hard battles in France, it is almost a wonder that the breed survived at all.  The Dogue de Bordeaux popularity was limited a long time after WWII and it was not before the 1970's that the breed began to grow considerably in numbers.

First imported into the US in the 1960s by Dr. Phillip Todd and Steve and Wendy Norris, it wasn't't until the 1980's when the United States saw a small Dogue boom occur.  In 1986 Touchstone released Turner and Hooch, showing a big messy slobbering Dogue which was believed to be a Bull Mastiff or mutt.  In reality, it was the Dogue de Bordeaux.  They are recognized world wide by FCI and are recognized here in the United States by UKC and AKC.