The breeds · companion
AKC Non-Sporting · UKC Companion · FCI standard 283
Coton de Tulear.
FCI 283 utilization: companion dog (Group 9, Section 1.2 Coton de Tuléar), without working trial. UKC: its only purpose is to be a charming companion; the 'Royal Dog of Madagascar', owned only by royalty under the Merina monarchy from the 17th century. RKC: recognised officially only in 1990 but seen on the island of Tulear for several centuries. FCI history: introduced to France before recognition in 1970. Wikipedia: the national dog of Madagascar..
Breed sets the odds. The parents set the dog. Every number here shows its source, its spread and how sure we are. Nothing on this page is a prediction about one dog.
The body
What the breed is built like. Registry standards give an ideal, not a range.
Height at the shoulder
AKC, UKC and FCI agree on the ideal; low/high are the outer limits the AKC and UKC allow. Wikipedia (secondary) also prints a Coton de Tuléar Club of America standard of 9 to 13 in, with a rare 'Tall Coton' of 15 to 17 in; that reads as an older club standard, runs above every registry standard read (AKC maximum 12 in, UKC 12 in, FCI 11.8 in) and is shown in the text but not used for low/high.
Weight
low/high span AKC, UKC and FCI (7 to 13 lb). The Wikipedia 18 lb ceiling sits above every registry figure and is shown in the text only.
Coat
Registries differ on how much colour is allowed; the AKC disqualifies black on the body while Wikipedia's club colours include black-and-white.
Shedding
Registry bands reported as printed. The non-shedding and hypoallergenic claims are Wikipedia's alone; no registry source read makes them and no allergen study was read.
Heat tolerance
Derived from the standard's coat (long, dense, but a soft cotton coat with no stated heavy undercoat = 3). No measured data.
How long they live, and what they cost
Measured on real dogs, with the sample and the spread. Never a guess.
Median lifespan
McMillan et al. 2024 / Dogs Trust table. Only 44 deaths, and the upper bound is not published, so high is blank. UK population. Wikipedia describes the sample as 44 dogs; the table gives 319 dogs, 44 deceased. The breed is not in Teng et al. 2022. The AKC page 15 to 19 year band is not used here.
The dog at home
What the breed asks of a day. The first thing most homes get wrong.
Exercise need
RKC is a UK registry band, not a study; mapped by the library rule (up to 30 = 30).
Exercise need
AKC bands are not mapped to minutes; RKC supplies the minutes figure.
Energy
AKC breed page trait score, 1 to 5: a breed-club tendency, never a measurement.
Grooming load
RKC band mapped by the library rule (every day = 4). The standard asks for an untrimmed coat, so the daily brushing is the load.
The work
What it was built to do in the field, and what a test or trial asks of it.
Role
Companion breed throughout; no source read gives a working role.
Field trial standard
No working test applies.
How common the problems are
Evaluated dogs skew toward breeding stock; the numbers are still the best there are.
Hip dysplasia
OFA's own breed statistics. OFA-evaluated dogs skew toward breeding stock (owners and breeders submit films, and poor results are less likely to be submitted), so this is not the rate across all dogs of the breed; the true population rate is not known.
Elbow dysplasia
OFA's own breed statistics. OFA-evaluated dogs skew toward breeding stock (owners and breeders submit films, and poor results are less likely to be submitted), so this is not the rate across all dogs of the breed; the true population rate is not known.
Most common disorders
Thin: one editorial sentence and the RKC scheme list; no disease prevalence figure was read.
More
akc bands
Fourteen AKC bands in one row; the selector reads each by name. Breed-club ratings: a tendency, never a measurement.
What to ask a breeder for
The health clearances the breed’s own club and registry name. Reference only: what to ask for, never a statement about any dog’s health.
- UKBreed club health scheme (details on the RKC page's linked breed club page, not read)Breed club scheme · The Royal Kennel Club, Coton de Tulear breed page (size, exercise, grooming, shedding and lifespan bands; About this breed; Toy group text; health testing)
- UKEye testing (best practice)BVA/KC/ISDS Eye Scheme · The Royal Kennel Club, Coton de Tulear breed page (size, exercise, grooming, shedding and lifespan bands; About this breed; Toy group text; health testing)
How to read this page
Every value carries a label. Measured means peer-reviewed data on many dogs. Studied means peer-reviewed, smaller or indirect. Breed club means a club or registry states it. Editorial means expert opinion with no measurement behind it. Where two good sources disagree, both are shown and neither is averaged.
Published when the entry rests on the best information available from no fewer than three independent sources, checked by a second pass that did not write it. 7 sources on this page. Found something wrong? Tell us and the correction is logged with its date.
- Also called
- Coton de Tuléar, Coton, Royal Dog of Madagascar
Every breed, read the same way.
The breed index grows as entries clear the standard. Gun dogs first.
All published breedsYour coton de tulear, on the record.
Log the days, the miles and the birds, and the KENAI app keeps the dog’s story beside the breed’s. Free to start.
Get the app