I’m Luke Summerhayes and I love Furfrou.
Today, poodles are considered show dogs; performing tricks or having their fur trimmed into elaborate hairdos. Tiny toy poodles are popular in Japan, larger breeds are seen strutting their stuff on the streets of fashionable Paris, and various sizes in between delight dog owners the world over.
Originally, Poodles were water-dogs, bred to help hunters collect ducks that were shot and fell into the wetlands. The name poodle comes from German, perhaps sharing an origin with the English word puddle, referring to the shallow waters where it would work. Most experts believe poodles were first bred in Germany, though some suggest they originally came from France.
Furfrou is a poodle-like Normal-type Dog Pokemon with long white fur, a slender build and an elegant, upright air. Beneath the white coat it has black skin, visible around its face and paws, though more can be seen when Furfrou adopts alternative hairstyles.
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Trimming its fluffy fur not only makes it more elegant but also increases the swiftness of its movements.

Ultra Sun
There was an era when aristocrats would compete to see who could trim their Furfrou's fur into the most exquisite style.
Ultra Moon
Left alone, its fur will grow longer and longer, but it will only allow someone it trusts to cut it.

The Heart Trum, as the name suggests, features pink hearts and highlights. The star trim similarly has blue hearts and the Diamond Trim orange diamonds. Of those three, of course I like the Heart Trim.
The Debutante trim fahsions the fur into a large hat, with yellow bow. The Dandy trim has a gentleman’s hat, with green highlights, while the Matron Trum has purple accessories. Of these three, the Dandy Trim that renders Furfrou a distinguished gentleman is my favourite.
The La Reine, or the queen, trim, has a royal air. The Kabuki and Pharoah trims respectively have hairstyles like Japanese high fashionistas or Ancient Egyptians. Despite my love of Japan, the country where I live, I think the Pharoah trim which appeals to my childhood love of Egyptology, is my favourite of these three and indeed of all ten.
The name Furfrou combines fur with Frou Frou, unnecessarily elegant, for its very elegant hair. The Japanese name is Trimmien, combining trim with Chien, the French for dog. When this Pokemon was introduced, it had the unique ability Thick Fur, raising its defence. Today that ability is shared with more Pokemon, but its still Furfrou’s forte.
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Historically, in the Kalos region, these Pokémon were the designated guardians of the king.
The boost in defence is substantial, and certainly Furfrou can be made into a useful stall or wall Pokemon, but it has never been a truly competitive monster. Not only that, so far it is one of the only Pokemon which has not appeared on the Nintendo Switch, though that will change with Pokemon Legends ZA, which I hope not only brings back Furfrou’s abundant hairstyles, but also gives us even more.
Music for Luke Loves Pokemon is by Jonathan Cromie. Artwork for the show is by Katie Groves. If you enjoy the podcast, find out about my other shows at podcastiopodcastius.org, get in touch on bluesky @podcastpodcast, or support the show at patreon.com/podcastiopodcastius.
I love hearing from Listeners! Up next are furfrou and Espurr, so hit me up about those or any other Pokemon. Even if you don’t feel like doing any of that, thank you so much for listening.
I love Furfrou. And remember, I love you too