A Frenchie Invasion!

Hey.  Mason here.  Remember me?  The laid-back senior member of this pack?  I put up with a lot, especially all Brutus' antics.  That's in addition to being referred to as a labradork.  And I never get to post. 

Mom & Brutus are all wrapped up in getting Big Earl ready for our trip out west - good for them.  I'm happy to be inside, chilling on the couch in the A/C (it was 87F here today!!).  They're so busy that they haven't even noticed that snooped into the laptop and put together my own post.  Hehehehe.

So let me tell you about what happened earlier this week at my house - a French bulldog invasion!  No, seriously!!  I was just snoozing on the couch, a nice quiet morning with less harassment than usual from my pesky little brother, Brutus.  Out of the blue I heard a commotion & came out to see what all the ruckus was about.  When I saw the source, I couldn't believe my labra-eyes...  

There were six - yes dear friends - SIX Frenchies, breaching the threshold of my noble home!  That might not seem like much, but trust me - it seemed like a million of the little smushfaces!  Could this be some sort of cruel joke?  A daydream (more like a nightmare) of some kind?  Outnumbered 7-1 by funny-looking little beasts?

To make a long story short, it turns out that mom's friend Lori (who is also our V-E-T, but I like her anyways) came over with a bunch of her dogs.  These Frenchies are already finished Champions in the breed ring (click here to see more about their accolades), now looking to put another feather in their caps with a different kind of title.  Apparently mom must consider herself some kind of Frenchie-whisperer lately (so she trained Brutus to jump through hoops, big hairy deal...), as she's been helping Dr. Lori get a few of her dogs ready to take their Canine Good Citizen (CGC) test.  

Here is mom's favorite student, Doug (Ch. King of Queens d'Assisi).  I have to admit, he looks like a happy guy!

Mom worked with Doug and two of his Assisi Frenchie clan, Gena & Neill, for quite a while down in our basement (which I call the agility dungeon).  It was all old hat to me, just basic obedience stuff that I learned years ago - sit, down, stay, heel, come.  Simple enough, but mom was so ecstatic about having taught Doug "down",  that she took his picture to prove it.  Turns out Frenchies are a lot more trainable than people give them credit for.  Go figure.

So that only accounts for 3 of the Frechies who invaded my home - you might be wondering if I had miscounted.  Turns out that Doug and Gena recently became proud parents, and three of their 11-week old pups had also come along for the ride & some socialization (at least that's the line mom is keeps trying to feed me...).   Here they are, a boy on the left and two girls on the right.  They represent half of a litter of six, Gena's first.

I finally got a good look at them when we all went outside, and I must admit they were kinda cute.  But being the wise & seasoned labradude that I am, I knew they would be nothing but trouble if I acknowledged them.  So I just went about my business - literally...

To Brutus, however, it was a totally different experience.  He was a pup himself not all that long ago, you'd think he would have figured out that these were some of his own kind!  I guess it eventually soaked into that big head of his that they were dogs, but he just stood and stared at them for the longest time.  

Then mom & Lori let the pups out out to roam free (and therefore piddle at will) in my backyard.  The grass was long, so they could stalk and pounce like little tigers.  Pretty amusing, actually!

When the puppies started moving around more, Brutus finally figured out that they were in fact some of his own (weird) kind and wanted to hang out with them.  

I have to give my little bratty brother credit, he was actually well-behaved for once.  Kind of watched over them and herded the pups around.  One of the little girls especially seemed to take a liking to Brutus, and even took him for a walk (mom had left his leash on, just in case she needed to grab him in a hurry).  Here she is running next to Brutus, carrying the handle of his leash in her mouth!

As for myself, I just sat back and took in the proceedings.  I have to admit, it was nice to see Brutus being the one chased, hung on, and generally harassed by something smaller & more energetic than he is for a change.  It's about time he gets a taste of his own medicine!!

Brutus was actually gentle with them, even when they rolled over submissively after a long game of keep-away with a piece of mulch.  Eventually the pups started to wind down.  It had been an exciting afternoon for the pups, and they piled up for a snooze. 

Soon thereafter the Assisi gang packed up to head back home.  In the end I was glad they came, since it gave Brutus a great alternative to his usual pastime - tormenting me!  Here's some photo evidence of how I typically spend a good part my day, a bulldog hanging from some part of my face.

Uh, oh - I hear mom & Brutus coming.  Better wrap it up before they see what I've been up to! After all, I have to put up with Brutus for the next few weeks in a much smaller space than usual inside Big Earl!

Thanks for listening, it was good to get a chance to sneak the blog away from Brutus for once.  Just between you & me, it might do that little ruffian good to learn what it's like to be the big brother...  Think I might be on to something there?

Later, Taters-

Mason