Tag Archives: teddy

A typical French Bulldog – kinda, sorta

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Torque is nine months old now – theoretically as tall and long as he’s going to get. He’ll still fill Torqueout, as all puppies do as they mature, but my little boy isn’t so little any more. In fact, he’s a bit taller and longer than Teddy. It seemed to happen overnight.
He’s my third Frenchie – and the one that most closely adheres to all the breed descriptions I carefully read before getting my first French Bulldog, Dax.

Frenchies are supposed to have poor tolerance for heat. Dax, also a brindle, adored the sun and would sun bathe as long as I’d allow it. Teddy is a fawn-colored Frenchie and not only loves lying in the sun, he loves the heat and rarely will even pant. I know this reflects his wonderful breathing apparatus as well as heat tolerance, but he’s truly a sun worshipper. The thing I worry most about with Teddy in the sun is those pink-interior ears getting sun burnt.
Torque loves sun bathing, too. But he’s not good at it. The 90 degree days we’ve had recently had him panting in no time. I’ve been prepared for Frenchie-in-hot-weather for years – but Torque’s the first one who’s actually needed the cool coat, the always-available water supply, and shade over his crate in the car.

Frenchies are supposed to be clowns – always up for a game, for play, for just being silly. Teddy is the most serious dog on the planet. Yesterday he actually played with a toy for 20 seconds and it was cause for amazement. Dax was occasionally silly, but was really too busy being queen bee to cast her dignity aside. Torque’s a goof. He wiggles his adorable butt in the air, races around the house, barks at the puppy in the mirror, and is a joyous little fellow. He even hugs – the first of my dogs ever to do that.

TeddyFrenchies are supposed to love everybody and be perfectly willing to abandon their homes and families to the first person waving steak in their faces. Dax and Teddy – both momma’s kids. I’ve worked pretty hard at training Torque to pay attention to me and come when called – but I wouldn’t bet a paycheck that the steak wouldn’t win. He’s a very sociable fellow and wouldn’t want to insult anyone by ignoring them.

Frenches are supposed to be flatulent. Fortunately, none of mine have been. I credit our willingness to keep trying different high-quality foods until finding the right ones to keep their digestive systems, and our noses, happy.

Every breed has certain characteristics that make it what it is. Every dog of a certain breed will look similar – to the point that most people won’t be able to tell them apart. In a room full of Frenchies, I’ll always know my dogs. But each dog is unique. Once you’ve done the research and decided which breed is right for you, there’s still a lot to learn about the individual dogs. It’s a lot of fun getting to know Torque – my French Bulldog.

Learning is a reward all its own

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teddy_tripleThis past weekend Teddy, Torque and I (Hope) went to Ohio to visit with friends and compete in an agility trial. The visiting part went great – Teddy remembered all of his friends (canine and human) and was happy to add another doggy friend to the mix.

Torque got along great with almost everybody. People are no problem – he adores everybody. And three out of the four new dogs he thought were great. He just adored his new buddy Trevor the Yellow Labrador Retriever – he’d be happy to stick by Trevor forever.

The only snarkiness came between the two adolescent boys. Archie is about 14 months old, Torque just turned eight months. Two intact, youngsters being idiots. Torque was the bigger idiot – Archie is more of a lover than a fighter and retreated from the field at first.

The good news is that by the end of the weekend, even Torque and Archie were find together. It’s always a challenge introducing dogs – my friend Michelle and I were happy we were able to resolve this with just one real spat.

On the competition side – I learned a lot about Teddy’s and my partnership. From the way Teddy ran and behaved, I know he really does enjoy it – you can see it in the pictures from the trial – he looks alert, happy, athletic, and relaxed. We didn’t qualify at all – there was “just one thing” in each run that kept us from the ribbons.

I guess the most important thing I learned is that Teddy does agility for fun. He’s not competitive, so I’ve had to reassess the goals for Team Teddy. I think we’ll continue to play agility, for the fun, for the camaraderie, to get out and have some fun with my dog. If the ribbons come, that’s fine. And if they don’t? That’s going to be fine, too.

Can you see the resemblance?

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We’ve had Brussels Griffons for decades – more than we’d like to admit. We fell in love with the breed as little girls at the International Kennel Club show at the old Amphitheater in Chicago and many years later discovered that the wonderful lady who allowed us to pet her dogs and ask a million questions as kids had actually become a friend in adulthood. It truly is a very small world when you’re a “dog person.”

One of the things that first attracted us, was, of course, the looks of Griffs. They’re called “pansy-face” dogs because the folded ears, mustache and beard mimic the petals of the flower. One of my very favorite flowers in the world, I was naturally attracted to living pansies!

This morning, with our pots of pansies in bloom, I tried to get a picture of Tango next to the flowers. It sort of worked – if you can disregard Torque trying to eat them, Teddy sniffing them, and Booker just being generally nosy.

Can you see the resemblance?


pansy_tango_booker pansy_tango_torque pansy_tango_teddy

Good news came early

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tedandmeWe weren’t expecting the results of the biopsy on Teddy’s growth until later in the week. And when we saw the vet’s office number on the caller I.D., we had to brace ourselves. When we played the message – grins from ear to ear! It was benign!

There are some people in the world who lead charmed lives. They expect good things to happen and seem to get them. We’re not among them. We try to be optimists, glass-half-full people. And we’re grateful for all the good things in our lives and make the best of every situation. Generally speaking, unexpectedly good things just don’t happen for us. As an example; I was almost brought to tears when I forgot my reusable bags at our regular little produce store and the cashier, who I see every week, actually gave me one of the store’s $2.50 canvas bags.

Frankly, I was prepared for the worst with Teddy. I was a bit floored when the news came back unreservedly good. It took a while to process and the earth shifted just a bit. And now I can’t stop smiling!

And it’s also wonderful that social media allows us to celebrate together – as well as share our grief. I posted about Teddy’s news on facebook yesterday afternoon and heard from so many people it amazed me. I don’t believe the internet has separated us – I think it’s allowed us to form communities that ignore boundaries.