Thursday Thirteen – 13 Best Reasons to Own a French Bulldog
I’ve taken a certain amount of grief for a list I created for frenchbulldogz.org, called ‘Top Ten Reasons to NOT Own a French Bulldog‘. The list wasn’t created to be cruel, or for pointless reasons – it was created to help stop people from buying a Frenchie without understanding what they were getting themselves into.
That said, there are also a ton of really good reasons to consider a French Bulldog as a pet, so here are my thirteen personal favorites.
- Low exercise needs = perfect pet for lazy people. OK, maybe that’s not a great reason to pick out a dog, but it’s realistic – if you’re not a jogger, you’re better off not getting a breed that requires hours and hours per day of intensive exercise. Frenchies will adjust their exercise needs to your preferences, although all Frenchies require at least two good walks per day.
- Minimal barking. I’ve had a handful of really barky Frenchies in my life, but the most barking Frenchie on the planet pales in comparison to the average Jack Russel.
- Soft ears make wonderful relaxation tools. Forget those destress squoosh balls – after a hard day, what you really need is to pet some Frenchie ears. They’re like warm, soft velvet.
- Freckle bellies. There’s just something about a freckle belly that just demands rasberry kisses.
- Big, brown, sensitive eyes. Yeah, I know – all dogs have them, but Frenchies know how to work those eyes. They have eerie hypno powers, and can enslave a mere human with a single glance.
- Wiggle butts. The short stump tail of a Frenchie leads them to wiggle their entire butts when their happy. Nothing says ‘happy to see you!!’ like a wiggling butt.
- Frog sits. I was amazed the firs time that someone from France accused me of calling French Bulldogs ‘Frog Dogs’ as a sort of ethnic slur against French culture. I’d always thought it was abundantly obvious why we call them Frog Dogs – it’s because of their distinctive, rear leg extended sit positions, which cause them to resemble nothing so much as a swimming frog. Frog sits rock.
- Chicken leg sits. The other great sit position in the French Bulldog repertoire, the chicken drumstick sit is where your Frenchie sits with just their lower leg popped out behind them. It makes them look like they have fat little chicken drumsticks stuffed underneath them.
- Snorking noises. Yes, I know – some of those noises aren’t cute, they’re the result of impaired breathing. That said, I have some of the best breathing Frenchies I know of, and they still manage to make the most adorable snorking, snuffling noises. We call it ‘pig latin’.
- Frenchies make great listeners. No matter what I have to say, there’s always a Frenchie willing to sit and listen intently to me. Chances are, what they’re listening for are the words “Want a cookie?”, but I’ll take any audience I can get.
- Three ring circus in every dog. French Bulldogs have been called ‘the Clown in the Cloak of a Philosopher’, and it’s a remarkably apt description. Those serious miens hide the soul of some seriously weird and wonderful dogs.
- Big dogs in small bodies. Frenchies are the perfect dog for people like me, who usually prefer large breeds. I don’t want a shivery, shaky, nervous toy under foot – they’re too breakable for my taste. Frenchies are rough and tumble dogs – true bull and terrier breeds. They’re also one of the few small breeds even the most macho of men isn’t ashamed of walking.
- Absolute adoration. It’s true that some Frenchies are utter sluts, willing to fling themselves at anyone who offers them a cookie. Every so often, however, you’ll encounter a Frenchie who adores you with such complete and total adoration that it’s both a privilege and a gift. Once you’ve experienced this kind of devotion, no other dog breed could possibly do.
Cedarhill Animal Sanctuary Needs Help
If you can afford a little post Christmas giving, please consider making a donation to Cedarhill Animal Sanctuary. Cedarhill provides refuge for exotic and domestic cats, and is a non profit, 501(c) charity.
On December 27th, Cedarhill suffered a devastating fire. They lost the entire building that houses their laundry and medical facilities, but they also lost the housing for their senior domestic cats, and every single one of the seniors that were housed there. I can’t even imagine the emotional pain this must have caused them.
From the Cedarhill website:
On Thursday morning, December 27, at approximately 6:30 am, the Senior Cat House at Cedarhill Animal Sanctuary, Inc. burst into flames. The house went up in flames so fast that the cats didn’t have a chance to get out….two managed to escape, but 45 of my beautiful senior babies perished in the fire. My grief is beyond words as I sit here at my desk and look out at the burned ruins smoldering in the rain.
The double-wide for the seniors was more than just their home. It housed the laundry facility, all of the bedding for the entire sanctuary as well as over $3,000 in desperately needed medication and medical supplies and much more. Cedarhill is in a state of emergency and urgently needs financial donations to help replace the lost supplies and equipment. More importantly, funding is needed to clean-up and rebuild a new home for senior cats awaiting a second chance.
In loving memory of: Alley Cat, Barnee, Breanna, Celeste, Christmas, Crystal, Cuddles, Danielle, Diana, Dino, Dizzy, Ella, Elvira, Frazier, Freckles, Gizmo, Grizabella, Heavenly, Isis, Jasmine, Jennie, Libby, Maggie, Mallroy, Man Man, Marilla, Michief, Midnight, Oliver, Patches, Paw Paw, Pretty Boy, Princess, Puck, Sabrina, Samantha, Sammy, Sierra, Snow Ball, Susie, Tabatha, Tank, Tickles, Tweety Pie and Zena.
Here’s a newspaper article on the fire, and the clean up and recovery efforts –
Officials assessing cause of fire that destroyed 48 cats
By Garthia Elena Burnett
gburnett@cdispatch.com Volunteers at the Cedarhill Animal Sanctuary are reaching out to the community for help after a Thursday morning fire destroyed the trailer previously serving as the home for their senior domestic cats.The fire started at about 6:30 Thursday morning. It took nearly six hours to completely put out the blaze. By then, the entire building was ravaged, and only two of the 50 cats, ages 11 and up, escaped. The bodies of the other 48 later were recovered by firefighters.Despite taking time to mourn, Craig and others manning the haven for rescued animals must press on.
“We still have 250 more animals out here that we need to take care of,” she said. “And once we get this place rebuilt, we’ll have 50 more cats to take care of.”
Workers hope to re-open a new home for cats, but they need donations.
The non-profit organization is funded completely by donations.
“We have about 1,800 donors that have supported us for a number of years from all over the country,” said Craig.
Among the sanctuary’s needs is a new doublewide trailer.
“There’s absolutely nothing left,” Craig said of the cats’ former home.
Cedarhill also needs volunteers to help in cleanup efforts and money to rebuild.
Cedarhill was the first sanctuary to be accredited by the Association of Sanctuaries and currently houses more than 300 animals, including 12 tigers, five lions, four cougars, two bobcats, one wolf, about 200 domestic cats, 30 dogs and six horses.
The sanctuary was founded in 1990 to serve as caretaker for abandoned, abused, homeless and neglected exotic and domestic felines.
If you can help Cedarhill, donations can be mailed to:
Cedarhill Animal Sanctuary
144 Sanctuary Loop
Caledonia, MS 39740
Call Stephanie Cash at (662) 549-3261 for more information or to volunteer.
Learn more about Cedarhill at www.cedrhill.org or learn more about the tragedy at http://www.freewebs.com/cederhill/index.htm
Happy New Year's, From the Boring Dog Lady
Sean and I spent New Year’s Eve at home, where we ate chips, a shrimp ring, and got wild by drinking a half bottle of wine. Woohoo! We’re officially boring dog people. Next up – I start whipping out photos of my dogs to show to strangers in the supermarket. Oh wait, I already do that.
We spent most of the evening indulging in what he and I call “Puppy Freak Out Time”. That’s where we let loose Bunny’s seven week old hellions, and watch them tear around the family room, terrorizing any other dog foolish enough to get in their way.
Penelope and Delilah think it’s like having the circus come to town, only in this circus the clowns climb out of the center ring and bite you in the leg.
The older dogs pretty much just try to stay out of the way of the mayhem, but Tessa and Sailor set up some ground rules almost immediately – “I am older than you, and I will bite you if you piss me off”.
The puppies respect this rule almost all of the time, although last night Dex and Izzy spent ten minutes playing ‘barkbarkbarkBARK‘ with Sailor, in an attempt to get her to drop her nylabone. Since Sailor invented that game, she didn’t fall for it.
I took the time to shoot a ton of new video and photos, all of which can be found after the cut, including a compilation video of Mz. Izzy being super duper cute.
If you don’t want to watch them here, check them out on YouTube –
New Year’s Puppy Party
Dexter and Izzy Versus Sailor
New Year’s Day Puppy Freak Out
Growing Up Izzy
The Flickr photos are here –
http://flickr.com/photos/frenchbulldogs/sets/72157603604359049/
And check out this cute shot of a very sleepy Solo, just after his feeding. He’s doing really well, knock on wood.
Like I said, I’m not talking about him much, because I am a superstitious nut job.
Don’t forget – videos embedded after the cut.
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