Good Bloggie!

Was recently asked this by a shoe designer who has a whole line of Betty Boop inspired shoes. (More about her fun and sassy shoes later.)

Betty Boop was created back in the 1930s when Frenchies often had longer tails and rose ears weren’t uncommon. The bat ear had only been specified by the French Bulldog Club of America about 30 years earlier. It took other countries awhile to jump on the bat ear wagon.

Is it possible that Pudgy (or Pudge) is a brindle pied, rose-eared Frenchie? Take a look at Betty and Pudgy in the images below. (These images don’t show it, but Pudgy has a big spot on his back.)

Certainly gets you wondering where Max Fleischer’s inspiration for Pudgy came from. Short nose? Check. Cobby body? Check. Short coat, extremely cute and lovable looking? Check and check!

For more on Betty Boop, Visit her official site (where most of the images above originate), her Wikipedia entry, and a very dedicated fan’s site.

And the legal fine print: Betty Boop, Bimbo, Pudgy, and Koko are owned by, copyrighted by, and licensed trade marks of KING FEATURES SYNDICATE Inc. and FLEISCHER STUDIOS, Inc. All images of Betty Boop, Bimbo, Pudgy, and Koko are copyrighted by King Features Syndicate

Now what about those shoes? Convinced Pudgy IS a Frenchie and you’d like to have him decorating your tooties? Well today is your lucky day. There is a New York designer with a WHOLE line of Betty Boop shoes and they even look comfy as well as make a statement. The company brand name is Milkshake.

Here’s the line featuring Betty Boop and Pugdy:
Thought Bubble Collection

And a line called Bloom. Have to say, that color scheme is somewhat Ebullient!

Best of luck to Milkshake on the new shoe line and what a great question.

If you are looking for something, which is truly for an Austin Frenchie lover, then check out the latest design at the Austin French Bulldog Play Group’s CafePress Store. (Whew! That was some typing!)

Created and uploaded a new design for T-shirts, etc. and it comes for both the Frenchie boys and girls.

Shirt text:

“My dog is sooo Austintatious…(s)he even has bat ears!”

For those not from Austin, what the heck does this all mean?

Austin is very proud of its bats. In fact, the local hockey team is called the Ice Bats, a popular tourist attraction is the evening bat flight from under the Congress Avenue bridge, and Austin is home to Bat Conservation International.

French Bulldogs are the only AKC breed to specify bat ears as a part of its required breed standard. From the AKC Glossary:

Bat ear: An ear that stands up, with a broad base, rounded at the top, with opening facing forward.

Combine these two together and Ta Da! French Bulldogs are the perfect dog match for Austin. (We’ll just overlook the notorious Austin allergy and the intense summer heat part.)

Oh, and Austintatious is a long-time term used by Austinites to describe anything especially grand about Austin.

Just uploaded the new design today, so some store items may not properly reflect the new design yet. Look for the word Austintatious in the title, and click “View Larger.” It will show up eventually. Not everything has the new design. Some items still have the Play Group logo. Because this is a “basic” CafePress shop, can only have one design, per item at a time. If you want the new design on something else in the shop, just contact me and I’ll set it up for you.

FRENCHIE TRIVIA: If you are trying to tell the difference between a Boston Terrier and a Frenchie, look at the ears. A Boston will have pointed or “prick” ears. A Frenchie will have rounded or “bat ears.”

All shop profits go to maintaining the Austin French Bulldog Play Group Meetup site and the holding the Meetups. (Those web hosts seem to think they should be paid!)

There has been considerable buzz among many AKC breeds because the AKC is considering restructuring breed groups and adding some new ones.

What does this mean for Frenchies? French Bulldogs would move to a group called the “Companion Group,” which might be the smallest of the 10 proposed groups. Sounds like a good deal until you realize two of the heaviest hitters in the dog show world also move from the Non-Sporting Group into the Companion Group: Poodles and Bichon Frises. Both these elegant and heavily-groomed breeds are big winners in the ring. A sometimes amusing contrast when a muscular, stocky, short-coated Frenchie is up against one in the group ring.

Below is a look at the proposed new groups and breeds. Remember, this is only a proposal by AKC Delegates. The final list may look quite a bit different and it may be a long time before implementation. If you don’t agree with your breed’s current placement, contact your National Club’s AKC Delegate or the AKC directly.

For more on the topic, here is a link to a Labrador Retriever forum posting an overview about the realignment from the AKC Realignment Committee.

For a view of the realignment from the UK Dog World, visit this article by Bo Bengtson explaining how this would realign AKC groups to be more like FCI groups.

AKC Group Realignment Committee - Proposed Breeds & Groups

(7/31/08)
From a presentation to the Delegates on September 8, 2008 by the AKC Group
Realignment Committee

Group 1: Sporting - Pointers and Setters (11) (12)
Brittany
Pointer
Pointer (German Shorthaired)
Pointer (German Wirehaired)
Setter (English)
Setter (Gordon)
Setter (Irish
Setter (Irish Red & White) Miscellaneous 6/27/07; Full Recognition 1/1/09
Spinone Italiano
Vizsla
Weimaraner
Wirehaired Pointing Griffon

Group 2: Sporting - Retrievers and Spaniels (17) (18)
Retriever (Chesapeake Bay)
Retriever (Curly-Coated)
Retriever (Flat-Coated)
Retriever (Golden)
Retriever (Labrador)
Retriever (Nova Scotia Duck Tolling)
Spaniel (American Water)
Spaniel (Boykin) - Miscellaneous 1/1/08
Spaniel (Clumber)
Spaniel (Cocker) ASCOB
Spaniel (Cocker) Black
Spaniel (Cocker) Parti-color
Spaniel (English Cocker)
Spaniel (English Springer)
Spaniel (Field)
Spaniel (Irish Water)
Spaniel (Sussex)
Spaniel (Welsh Springer)

Group 3: Scent Hounds (14) (16)
Basset Hound
Beagle (13″)
Beagle (15″)
Black and Tan Coonhound
Bloodhound
Bluetick Coonhound - Miscellaneous 7/1/08
Dachshund (Longhaired)
Dachshund (Smooth)
Dachshund (Wirehaired)
English Foxhound
Foxhound (American)
Harrier
Otterhound
Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen
Plott
Redbone Coonhound - Miscellaneous 9/1/08

Group 4: Sight Hounds (11)
Afghan Hound
Basenji
Borzoi
Greyhound
Ibizan Hound
Irish Wolfhound
Italian Greyhound
Pharaoh Hound
Saluki
Scottish Deerhound
Whippet

Group 5: Working (23) (25)
Anatolian Shepherd
Bernese Mountain Dog
Black Russian Terrier
Boxer
Bullmastiff
Cane Corso - Miscellaneous 7/1/08
Dalmatian
Doberman Pinscher
Dogue de Bordeaux
German Pinscher
Giant Schnauzer
Great Dane
Great Pyrenees
Greater Swiss Mountain Dog
Komondor
Kuvasz
Leonberger - Miscellaneous 7/1/08
Mastiff
Neapolitan Mastiff
Newfoundland
Portuguese Water Dog
Rottweiler
Saint Bernard
Standard Schnauzer
Tibetan Mastiff

Group 6: Terriers (28) (29)
Airedale Terrier
Australian Terrier
American Staffordshire Terrier
Bedlington Terrier
Border Terrier
Bull Terrier (Colored)
Bull Terrier (White)
Cairn Terrier
Cesky Terrier - Miscellaneous 7/1/08
Dandie Dinmont Terrier
Fox Terrier (Smooth)
Fox Terrier (Wire)
Glen of Imaal Terrier
Irish Terrier
Kerry Blue Terrier
Lakeland Terrier
Manchester Terrier (Standard)
Miniature Bull Terrier
Miniature Schnauzer
Norfolk Terrier
Norwich Terrier
Person Russell Terrier
Scottish Terrier
Sealyham Terrier
Skye Terrier
Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
Staffordshire Bull Terrier
Welsh Terrier
West Highland White Terrier

Group 7: Toys (21)
Affenpinscher
Brussells Griffon
Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
Chihuahua (Long Coat)
Chihuahua (Smooth Coat)
English Toy Spaniel (Blenheim & Prince Charles)
English Toy Spaniel (King Charles & Ruby)
Havanese
Japanese Chin
Maltese
Manchester Terrier (Toy)
Miniature Pinscher
Papillon
Pekingese
Pomeranian
Poodle (Toy)
Pug
Shih Tzu
Silky Terrier
Toy Fox Terrier
Yorkshire Terrier

Group 8: Companion (11)
Bichon Frise
Boston Terrier
Bulldog
Chinese Crested
French Bulldog
Lhasa Apso
Lowchen
Poodle (Miniature)
Poodle (Standard)
Tibetan Spaniel
Tibetan Terrier

Group 9: Herding (20) (21)
Australian Cattle Dog
Australian Shepherd
Bearded Collie
Beauceron
Belgian Malinois
Belgian Tervuren
Belgian Sheepdog
Border Collie
Bouvier des Flandres
Briard
Canaan Dog
Cardigan Welsh Corgi
Collie (Rough)
Collie (Smooth)
German Shepherd
Old English Sheepdog
Pembroke Welsh Corgi
Polish Lowland Sheepdog
Puli
Pyrenean Shepherd - Miscellaneous 1/1/07; Full Recognition 1/1/09
Shetland Sheepdog

Group 10: Northern (13) (16)
Akita
Alaskan Malamute
American Eskimo Dog
Chinese Shar-Pei
Chow Chow
Finnish Spitz
Icelandic Sheepdog - Miscellaneous 7/1/08
Keeshond
Norwegian Buhund - Miscellaneous 1/1/07; Full Recognition 1/1/09
Norwegian Lundehund - Miscellaneous 7/1/08
Norwegian Elkhound
Samoyed
Siberian Husky
Schipperke
Shiba Inu
Swedish Vallhund

Want to help from a distance? Or in your local area? Below are a few links to places in need of supplies and funding. Check with local relief agencies to see if there are more ways to help in your area.

American Red Cross

Salvation Army

Houston SPCA

Special Pals Animal Shelter (Houston area)

Livestock rescue and assistance:
Texas Animal Health Commission 1-800-550-8242 ext. 296.

Link to local Houston news site with updated links:
KHOU News

For Austin residents:
KVUE News
KXAN News

Update 9/25/08: Click on “Comments” below to read some important info from a reader and another way to help.

Our Grande Dame’s name is Lucy, and apparently, there is another inspirational French Bulldog named Lucy in Denver, Colorado. Her owner, Wende Curtis, is opening a new restaurant named for her four-legged Lucy. But don’t think this place is for the dogs. This is will be an upscale establishment connected to a comedy club featuring the likes of George Lopez, Bob Saget, and Jimmy Fallon on stage. The food will be modern American with a Southern twist.

For more about Lucy Restaurant and Comedy Works South, check out the story in Rocky Mountain News.
Rocky Mountain News

Here’s the pre-opening and opening line-up:

Pre-opening lineup

Charity events:

• Oct. 1: 7:30 p.m., Bryan Kellen; benefits Beacon Youth & Family Center, $60

• Oct. 2: 7:30 p.m., Kevin Fitzgerald; benefits Fired Up for Kids, $35

• Oct. 3: 7:30 and 9:30 p.m., Deacon Gray; benefits Rocky Mountain MS Center, Children’s Hospital Foundation, Buffalo Trail Elementary School, $65

• Oct. 4: headliner to be announced; 7 and 9:30 p.m.; benefits Food Bank of the Rockies, Colorado Youth for a Change, Bloom Again Foundation, Lupus Foundation, Colorado Cancer Research Program, Colorado Children’s Chorale, $30

• Oct. 6: 7:30 p.m., Rusty Z; benefits Parker Hospital Foundation, $30

• Oct. 7: 7:30 p.m., Rusty Z; benefits the Wildlife Experience, $65

Opening lineup

The schedule for the coming months at Comedy Works South:

• George Lopez: Oct. 10 and 11; $50

• Bob Saget: Oct. 17 and 18; $35

• Jimmy Fallon: Oct. 23 to 25; $35

• Kathleen Madigan: Oct. 30 to Nov. 1

• Kevin Pollak: Nov. 20 to 22

• Greg Warren: Dec. 10 to 14

• Tommy Johnagin: Dec. 17 to 21

• Chris Bliss: Dec. 26 to 28 and Dec. 31

And if you are in the restaurant biz and want to work at Lucy Resturant, there’s a Craig’s list posting!
Craig’s List in Denver

Lot’s of opening night luck from our Lucy and crew to the folks at Lucy Restaurant. (Our Lucy says she likes modern American cuisine and wouldn’t say no to a nice doggie bag. Too bad we don’t live closer to Denver.)