Brindle Beauties: Diving into the Unique Colors of French Bulldogs
Rocky Kanaka
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Have you ever seen a dog with tiger stripes before? Brindle French Bulldogs are a common and standard color variant of the popular and oh-so-adorable French Bulldog breed. Best known for their giant bat-like ears, squished faces, and round little bodies, brindle French Bulldogs have the unique distinction of looking a little bit like small, plump tigers.
If you’re obsessed with Frenchies and have been trying to decide what coat color you like most, you might want to consider brindle. Gorgeous and unique but accessible and no more expensive than other French Bulldog colors, the brindle Frenchie is as beautiful as it is goofy, charming, and social.
In this guide to the tiger-striped brindle French Bulldog, we’re talking about all the ins and outs of owning one of these pups and comparing the looks of a handful of them from Instagram.
Meet 5 Brindle Frenchies From Instagram
Brindle is a standard color/patterning for the French Bulldog and is recognized by the American Kennel Club. This means that not only can brindle French Bulldogs be AKC registered, but they are also eligible to be shown in breed presentations and dog shows.
Typically just called “brindle,” you may hear some people also refer to this color variant as a tiger brindle French Bulldog. The standard brindle French Bulldog is sometimes compared to a tiger since their coats are red and black striped. While the tiger brindle French Bulldog is the most common, there are also other varieties of brindle Frenchie like the brindle and white French Bulldog or the blue brindle French Bulldog.
Let’s meet 5 brindle Frenchies with Instagram accounts to see just how many varieties of “brindle” there are in this breed!
1. Mousse the Brindle Frenchie
This incredibly handsome senior pup is Mousse, a classic tiger brindle French Bulldog whose best friend is a massive Cane Corso named Rocco! Mousse is a troublemaker, even in his golden years, but he never gets in trouble because who could resist that adorable little face? When a brindle French Bulldog’s base coat is a light red like Mousse’s, they are sometimes called fawn brindle French Bulldogs.
2. Pimpao the Brindle & White French Bulldog
This gorgeous little brindle and white French Bulldog is Pimpao from Brazil! A goofy little piglet-dog, Pimpao has the classic tiger-striped brindle on patches of her body but is white everywhere else. This color variation is also recognized by the AKC, and dogs with this coloration are often referred to as brindle-pied French Bulldogs. Piebald French Bulldogs have a solid white coat with patches of a secondary color.
3. Esther the Reverse Brindle French Bulldog
Meet Esther, a reverse brindle French Bulldog who lives an exciting life full of other animal friends—including a kitty cat! Reverse brindle Frenchies are also sometimes called black brindle French Bulldogs. This is because the “reverse” of brindle—a red background with black stripes—is a black background with red stripes! Darker than standard brindle Frenchies, reverse brindles are every bit as gorgeous.
4. Darcy the Brindle Grey French Bulldog
Darcy is a sweet senior Frenchie from New Jersey with a unique coat color! A grey or blue brindle French Bulldog, Darcy also has a few touches of grey thanks to a lifetime of love and fun. Blue brindle French Bulldogs can be lighter, or darker than Darcy, but they all have a blue/grey base coat with light fawn or red striping. Very light blue brindles may be called lilac brindle French Bulldogs, and are fairly rare.
5. Rex the Brindle French Bulldog
Let’s finish this list of lovely pups off strong with another classic brindle French Bulldog! If you were in any doubt about why these dogs are sometimes called “tiger brindle.” let Rex show you what they mean! Rex has super-defined black stripes on a red/fawn background and is a great example of how vibrant the brindle patterning can be when a pup is younger.
Brindle French Bulldog Basic Info
Brindle coloring doesn’t affect the personality, health, or size of a French Bulldog. Coloration is almost never a determining factor in a dog’s temperament unless the color comes from a genetic health-related mutation. In the case of brindle Frenchies, they are typically healthy, happy little pups whose coloration has no effect on their lives. As with all Frenchies, the brindle French Bulldog is a ton of fun to own, but there are some important considerations to make before you can decide this breed is right for your lifestyle.
Brindle French Bulldog Temperament
Sometimes called little clowns, French Bulldogs are goofy and mischievous, always on the hunt for something to investigate, a human to entertain, or a snack to snag from a plate. French Bulldogs can be a little stubborn and hard to train thanks to their willful sometimes absent-minded personalities. Despite a distinct independent nature, most French Bulldogs are highly food-motivated and willing to participate when offered treats.
Affectionate, loyal, and easy-going, life with a French Bulldog is a ton of fun, as long as you don’t mind the occasional chaos. French Bulldogs are vocal and easily overstimulated, but not particularly interested in learning tasks or doing extensive exercise. Very social with humans, French Bulldogs can be a little pushy around other dogs and often require extensive socialization beyond puppyhood to enforce appropriate play and behavior.
All-in-all, French Bulldogs are bright little rays of sunshine who occasionally turn into gremlins after midnight…or around 2 pm.
Brindle French Bulldog Size
French Bulldogs are small-medium dogs typically standing around 11-13 inches tall and weighing 16–28 pounds.
Brindle French Bulldog Health
Unfortunately, owning a French Bulldog is often full of vet visits and expensive medical bills. A breed notorious for having a host of health problems, French Bulldog owners warn others that yearly expenses can be in the thousands, even if you are taking incredible care of your pup. In particular, French Bulldogs are prone to allergies, skin infections, vision problems, and breathing issues.
Because they are brachycephalic (or short-nosed) they struggle to breathe in the heat, during exercise, or at high altitudes. The French Bulldog’s breathing problems are so bad, that most airlines ban the transportation of this breed for fear that they will suffocate at altitude. Similarly, heat, environmental allergies, and their basic physiology can make life very uncomfortable for a French Bulldog.
Other very important health concerns to be aware of include:
- Eye issues (e.g. cherry eye, glaucoma, cataracts, eye injuries)
- Skin issues (e.g. skin allergies, skin infections, autoimmune skin disorders)
- Hip and elbow dysplasia
- Patellar luxation
- Back problems
- Heart issues
- Environmental and food allergies
Where To Find Your Own Brindle French Bulldog
There are tons of reputable French Bulldog breeders around the country, and many can be found via the American Kennel Club’s breeder marketplace or the French Bulldog Club of America’s breeder referral page. If, however, you are interested in adopting a French Bulldog, check out one of these resources:
Brindle French Bulldog FAQ
There are a million questions to ask before getting any kind of dog, so you probably still have some things on your mind. Here we’re answering a few of the internet’s most common questions about brindle French Bulldogs to hopefully touch on one or more of your own thoughts, ideas, or concerns.
How much is a brindle French Bulldog worth?
The average brindle French Bulldog price when you purchase a pup from a breeder is around $1,500—$7,000+. French Bulldogs from breeders are rarely advertised for less than $1,500, so this is not an unusual price or based on rarity. Frenchies with rare coat colors will naturally cost more. For example, a blue brindle French Bulldog price will probably exceed the price of a standard brindle Frenchie.
Are brindle French Bulldogs rare?
No. Brindle is a fairly common and traditional French Bulldog color variety that occurs naturally within the breed. Some breeders will claim that brindle is rare in order to charge higher prices, but it is not considered a rare French Bulldog color in reality.
Are blue-brindle French Bulldogs rare?
Yes. Blue is an accepted and fairly common color for French Bulldogs, but blue-brindle is not. Most brindle Frenchies have a red, fawn, or black base color, and blue brindles may not be considered standard for the breed.
What’s the difference between merle and brindle French Bulldogs?
Both merle and brindle French Bulldogs are two-toned with a solid base-coat color and patterning in a secondary color. This is where the similarities stop. Brindle Frenchies have a solid coat color with tiger stripes and are usually a combination of black and red/fawn. Merle French Bulldogs are solid white or light grey with black splotches that appear more random than the stripes of a brindle pup.
Here’s a quick side-by-side comparison of these two color variations for your reference. Hope (left) is a brindle Frenchie and Rory (right) is a merle French Bulldog. 
Sources: @MyFrenchieHope and @Rory.the.Merle.Frenchie
Can you breed a brindle to a merle French Bulldog?
Yes, but it’s very uncommon. The reason people ask this question is that breeding two merle Frenchies to each other can be very dangerous and produce “double merle” puppies who may have fatal or life-threatening birth defects. Because brindle French Bulldogs do not carry the merle gene, there is no risk of producing a double merle puppy by breeding these two color varieties together.
Most breeders would avoid combining brindle and merle Frenchie genes purely because the results wouldn’t be particularly aesthetically pleasing.
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