The Petite LeFleur is an evolving dog breed.   It was started in 1998 by LaGene(Jean) Flowers with the accidental breeding of a pomeranian to a toy poodle.   Both of the dogs were of show quality and had champion parents.   The resulting offspring were very unique looking and had absolutely wonderful temperaments.   After several more crosses it was discovered that if you used quality poodles and pomeranians the resulting puppies looked very similar to each other and had similar temperaments.   The cross was particularly good at correcting faults in each of the original breeds.   By the second and third generations crosses Jean had figured out how many of the qualities (coat, ear set, tail placement,etc.) were inherited and a detailed breeding program was started.   Why does anyone decide to take two purebred dogs and mix them? One must remember that all purebred dogs were developed from cross breeding other purebred dogs and they were bred for several generations before they actually started breeding true.  A good breeder always has goals in mind and aims for those goals.   A good breeding program is developed around those goals.   It is never about the money to be made, since there are alot of expenses and work involved in a good breeding program.  

The Petite LeFleur is not a so-called designer dog.   Designer dogs are just two different breeds bred together for the sole purpose of making money.   No thought is ever given to the quality , health, or temperament of the resulting puppies.   Many of the pomeranians and poodles used for these designer crosses are very poor representatives of their breeds.   When I (Jean) started this breeding program every thought was given to the quality, health and temperament of the resulting offspring.   My husband, Brian, is also very involved with the dogs and acts as a sounding board for any of the breedings I plan.   We want the Petite LeFleur to be a unique looking family companion.   In order for it to be a good family pet it must be above all else healthy and of good temperament.  

We are currently working with the Continental Kennel Club (the third largest registry in the U.S.) to start the registration process of the Petite LeFleur.   Below you will find the Standard of Perfection that we have drawn up for this unique small breed.

PURPOSE: The Petite LeFleur has been developed as a companion and as such must be healthy, long lived, and of good family temperament.   Therefore, proper structure, movement, and soundness are vital to the breed.   An unhealthy, poorly moving dog will not make a good companion.   A dog that is a good family companion should be able to walk, run, jump, and play with its master.   This involves athleticism especially in a small dog where even a short distance is a long way to run.   A poorly built dog is not an athlete.  A good family companion must also be mentally sound.   It should never be shy, aloof, or mean..   A good pet is always happy, outgoing, friendly, and most of all trustworthy especially around children.

GENERAL APPEARANCE: An alert happy dog, unique in appearance, always of willing temperament.  It should always be a delight for any family to own.   A Petite LeFleur should be of a size that makes it easy to live with, even in a tiny apartment, and easy to travel with.   In appearance it is a small,compact,well balanced dog with a striking appearance.  

HEAD: The head is well proportioned to the body, never looking too small for its body.   The skull has a pronounced stop, but is never round or apple headed.   The muzzle should be the same length as the skull, with plenty of chin, never too pointy or snipey.   A scissor bite is preferred, but a level bite is acceptable.   An undershot bite is a serious fault.

EYES: The eye is of medium size and almond shape.   A large or round eye is considered a fault.   The eyes are to be as dark as possible.

EARS: There are two types of ears possible.   An erect is preferred.   The erect ears should be as small as possible and set high on the head.   The drop ear is also possible but not preferred.   It should be carried high on the head and carried forward , not to the side like a hounds ear.   Both types of ears are to be presented shaved clean.

NECK AND SHOULDERS: The neck is of medium length and in proportion to the length of the back.   The neck should be set high on the shoulders.   The shoulders are to be laid back enough to provide adequate reach of the front assembly.

BACK AND BODY: The back should be short and level.   The body is cobby and well rounded.   It is not to be boney and flat sided.

REAR: A well angulated, strong rear is necessary for a sound moving companion dog.   The rear should be well angulated, but never overangulated and sickle hocked.   A rear that is too straight will lead to serious knee problems a common problem in small dogs.   The croup should be as level as possible leading to strong, free movement of the rear legs.

LEGS: Always straight.  Front legs: Straight from the shoulders to the toes.   Slight toeing out is permissable, but never a fiddle or crooked front.   Rear legs: Straight when viewed from the rear.   The stifles should not point out , nor should the rear be cow-hocked.

TAIL: The tail is always important to the finished picture.   The tail is left natural.   It is set high on the back and carried flat over the back.  A corkscrew tail is considered a fault.

MOVEMENT: A Petite LeFleur moves with strong reach and drive, much like a large dog.   When moving its legs should turn neither in nor out.   Its movement should be that of a very athletic dog so that despite its small size it can keep up with its owner.

SIZE: Under 12 inches at the shoulder and less than 10LBS.  in weight.   All things being equal, the smaller dog is preferred.   Never should size be preferred over soundness.

COAT: There are several types of coats that occur, but the kind preferred is that of the non-shedding type.   This coat is thick, stand-offish,and has a slight curl to it.   The texture should be slightly coarse, but not of terrier-type.   It should not be soft and silky, causing it to lay flat.   It covers the entire body including the face and legs.   The coat may be scissored or left natural.   The ears are shaved.

COLOR: Color is unimportant.   The Petite LeFleur may be of any color or color combination.

TEMPERAMENT: A good companion is a dog that is confident, friendly, outgoing, and always trustworthy.   They should never be shy, aloof or afraid.   Their temperament should be that of a dog that has never met a stranger.

Since the Petite LeFleur is a developing breed their types somewhat differ, but all must be used in the breeding programs to add all the characterists needed.   Soundness and good structure is more important than type(prettiness).  Type is an easier thing to breed in than is good physical structure.   It would be nice to already have several perfect dogs , but that just isn't possible.   We prefer the up-eared dogs, but we must occassionally use the down-ears if they have better structure.   Never do we breed down-ear to each other as you will only get down ears.   We never breed a pom coated to a pom coated as you will never get the proper coat.   We prefer to never use the pom coats--but we can never totally rule them out.   Most of our puppies are sold as pet quality only as we are very picky about what we breed.   We are still doing some first generation crosses (Pom to Poodle) to bring in colors and physical attributes needed from each of the breeds.  

When we decide to sell a puppy we judge it on how it fits the standard we have set up for The Petite LeFleur.   Even though we are not showing them yet, as a breed we still consider some of them to be of show quality, so they could be shown when we start showing .   These are the different ratings we give our dogs and puppies.

SHOW QUALITY: These are our top quality dogs or puppies and are very seldom for sale.   They always have up ears, correctly carried tails, proper coats, and good fronts and rears.   They are not over 10 LBS and most are under 6LBS.

BREEDING QUALITY: These are the dogs or puppies that can be bred and produce show quality offspring.   They may have either up or down ears, correctly carried tails, good fronts and rears, their coats may not be exactly what we want, but they can produce good coats.   We only consider the exceptional pom coated ones to be of breeding quality.

PET QUALITY: These are the dogs or puppies that have down ears set off to the side, not as good of tail carriage, too big or too small, pom coats, flat coats, or they may be a little weak in the front or rear.   Most of the time we sell puppies that we consider to be of breeding quality as pet quality as we prefer they go to homes where they are altered.

If you are interested in this new and exciting breed feel free to talk to us anytime about them.