History of the Coton de Tulear is a breed named for the city of Tulear (also known as Toliara) in Madagascar. This small breed of small dog is still a rate breed around the world, as it has even faced extinction at times due to having a small gene pool. But there are breeders and organizations dedicated to preserving it.

Barbichons traveled the Mediterranean aboard trade ships. At various ports, the little white dogs disembarked possibly mating with other local dogs. This created a slightly different characteristic with each breed. The Barbichon was brought to the Tenerife in the Canary Islands by Spanish sailors and was later referred to as the Bichon Tenerife, now extinct. They are the ancestor to the Bichon Frise and Coton de Tulear.

In the 15th century sailors and possibly pirates brought the Bichon Tenerife to the islands of Mauritius and Reunion in the Indian Ocean. It is thought while on the island of Reunion the Bichon Tenerife either mated with local dogs or underwent a gene mutation which brought about a longer straighter cotton coat. These little dogs were called Coton de la Reunion. Madagascar was a bridge of connection between the continents of Asia and Africa and was a popular stop for maritime trade. The Coton de Tulear is thought to be descended form the Cotons on Reunion island. How the Cotons ended up in Madagascar is a mystery containing many legendary tales.

Some time during the 17th century these cute wild dogs with the cotton-like coats given as gifts to please and impress the Merina nobility. They became known as the “Royal Dog of Madagascar”. The French began colonizing the island as the spice routes to India and the middle east were developed in the late 17th century. In 1658 there was recorded evidence of little white dogs in the book “History of the great Isle of Madagascar” written by the regional Governor Etienne de Flacourt.

In 1974 Dr. Jay Russell was studying the lemurs in Madagascar and was the first to export Cotons to the USA. The first litter was in 1976 under kennel name Oakshade. Not until 2014 did the AKC officially recognize the breed.