Why are French Bulldogs and Goldendoodles all over Miami? Here’s your answer

The ranking of America’s Most Popular Dog Breeds of 2021 is here

A French bulldog at Blanche Park in Coconut Grove, Miami, Florida. Photo by Nicole Lopez-Alvar. (Courtesy of Nicole Lopez-Alvar)

MIAMI – They’re cute, they’re tiny, and they’re mighty — they’re the French Bulldog, and they seem to be taking over Miami by storm.

Here’s why.

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Rover has released their third-annual ranking of “America’s Most Popular Dog Breeds of 2021,” which ranks the top 20 most popular dog breeds in the entire country, as well as the top five trending dog breeds out of the top 35 U.S. cities.

This year, one of the U.S. cities they analyzed was Miami, and the Magic City’s most popular dog breed of 2021 is none other than the French Bulldog, affectionately known to French Bulldog-owners as the “Frenchie.”

A French Bulldog and a chihuahua mix in Miami. Photo by Nicole Lopez-Alvar (Courtesy of Nicole Lopez-Alvar)

Following the Frenchie (in consecutive order) came the English Bulldog, Pomeranian, Miniature Schnauzer, and the Maltese.

According to Rover, nationally, mixed breeds reign as the most popular dog breed, followed by Labrador Retriever, Golden Retriever, German Shepherd, and, you guessed it, the Goldendoodle. Chihuahua fell out of the top tier, after ranking third in 2020.

The Goldendoodle jumped up in ranking from number nine in 2020 to the top five in 2021, with “Doodle” ownership doubling in the U.S. since 2016, according to Rover’s database of millions of dog profiles.

Goldendoodles are also the second most popular puppy breed in the U.S., behind only mixed breeds.

As Miami is a metropolitan city, where hundreds of thousands of residents live in condominiums, the rise in the compact and family-friendly Frenchie truly makes sense. Furthermore, the rise in the Goldendoodle, where those looking for a larger, family-friendly dog (that is compact enough for an apartment), is just as rational.

Nevertheless, these findings come as “Pandemic pets,” (dogs adopted or purchased during the COVID-19 pandemic), surged in 2020, when thousands of Americans spent weeks on end quarantined in their homes.

Rover states that 67% of dog owners welcomed a dog into their family in the past year alone.

For the complete list of popular dog breeds, and for deeper a look into their full report, click here.

Did you adopt or buy a dog during the pandemic? Let us know below! Or, email me at nlopezalvar@wplg.com.