Can Taylor Swift Turn the Samoyed Into the Next Frenchie?－By Allie Jones, WSJ

When Travis Kelce stepped off his new wife’s private jet last month in Palm Beach, Fla., his travel companion caught people’s attention.

Paparazzi snapped photos as a fluffy white Samoyed puppy trotted down the airstair, appearing at home in its new billionaire lifestyle. When the canine made its tabloid debut on TMZ the next day, Swifties were agog: “Cat lady” Taylor Swift , it seemed, had become a dog mom.

Swift’s influence on consumer behavior is undeniable. She can sell out stadium tours, inspire fans to buy branded merchandise and replicate her outfits , and even boost entire economies . Could she and Kelce make Samoyeds the next French bulldogs?

This is the talk of “the Samoyed grapevine,” said Deborah DeFonzo, a breeder who runs Atomic Samoyeds in Hampton, N.J.

“It’s all abuzz,” she said of the breeder community, which is relatively small. The American Kennel Club ranked Samoyeds the 55th most popular breed in the U.S. in 2025, right between the Weimaraner and the Chesapeake Bay Retriever. Swift and Kelce would be the biggest modern celebrities associated with Samoyeds. A representative for Swift did not respond to requests for comment.

Searches for Samoyeds on the American Kennel Club website jumped 15% the week Swift and Kelce’s Sammy made its runway debut, according to Brandi Hunter Munden, vice president of public relations and communications at the AKC.

Rachel Fealko, a third-generation Samoyed breeder in Ann Arbor, Mich., said she’s been getting more emails since word of Swift’s pup hit the internet. “In the past couple of years in general, I feel like the secret of Samoyeds has been unlocked,” she said. This summer, she received 50 applications for the three puppies she had available for sale.

“When I was younger and I told people I had Samoyeds, they had no idea what they were,” Fealko said.

Should Swift’s dog inspire a true rush on Samoyed puppies, the breed would not be the first to gain popularity thanks to its celebrity associations.

“We’ve seen it in Dalmatians when ‘101 Dalmatians’ came out, or retrievers when ‘Marley & Me’ came out, or French bulldogs when Lady Gaga got her French bulldog” in 2014, said Munden.

Several other celebrities, including Reese Witherspoon, Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson and Megan Thee Stallion have since gotten Frenchies; the breed has ranked number one in America for the last four years.

“Even with the movie ‘Coco,’ we saw people searching for Xoloitzcuintlis,” the Mexican hairless dogs featured in the Disney film, Munden said.

Back in 2009, many Americans were unfamiliar with Portuguese water dogs, until President Obama brought Bo home to the White House. The breed has since jumped almost 20 places on the AKC’s most popular breeds list, from 62 to 43.

Samoyed puppies from reputable breeders cost between $4,000 and $7,000. Breeders cautioned would-be Sammy owners to consider the maintenance. Samoyeds, which originated in Siberia as reindeer-herding dogs for the Samoyedic people, have a unique “double coat” that requires professional grooming every six to eight weeks.

“If people don’t want to take the time or the expense of keeping their coat up, this is not the breed for them,” said Lynette Blue, a breeder and AKC judge who runs Polar Mist Samoyeds in Oregon.

Judi Elford, a breeder who runs Vanderbilt Samoyeds in Ontario, said she did not sell Swift and Kelce their puppy. She has, however, sold two Samoyeds to Kyle and Kristin Juszczyk, the San Francisco 49ers fullback and sportswear designer, who attended Swift and Kelce’s wedding. Their dogs, Mozzarella and Pierogi, have appeared in Instagram ads for Purina and the Farmer’s Dog. A representative for Ms. Juszczyk said the couple was unavailable to comment.

“I’ve had people reach out to ask me, ‘Did they get it from you?’” Elford said. “But I really have no clue who Taylor and Travis got it from. And in any event, nobody’s going to tell you, because there must be an NDA on that.”

（*Prices are in USD）