The Big Ragu

When I first saw Carmine on the shelter’s website, his name was Mugsy and it said he was an 8 week-old Bulldog.  I have a thing for pushed-in faces (actually called “brachycephalic”) so I thought

I gotta have him.  In reality, he was a 10 week-old Boxer/Bulldog mix.

After changing his name to Carmine (that night at the shelter) and nursing him through a cold which became pneumonia before he finally got better, he started to grow tall & long.  And as he grew, he looked more and more like a Boxer; not a purebred Boxer but a mix.  When we went back to the medical center for some shots, the vets and technicians didn’t recognize him – the baby Bulldog they treated had become a Boxer boy!!

And so the questions and answers began. I’ve been told – not asked but told with extreme certainty – by people on the street Carmine is A) An Old English Bulldog, B) An American Bulldog, C) An American Boxer, D) A German Boxer, E) An Alapaha Blue Bulldog, (Say what?? I have no idea either. Not even if they said Alpha or Alfalfa), F) A Mastiff, G) A Great Dane, and H) A Pitbull.  And each persons insists that that’s what Carmine is and they know better, so there! One person even said, “Oh I never heard of that breed…is it new?,” as if a Boxer/Bulldog is one of the new designer breeds!  So that would make him a Boxbull or a Buller???!!! Shut Up!!

I remember finding a Boston Terrier/Pug mix on the Humane Society’s website before I found Carmine, but he was instantly adopted.  Intrigued by the mix, I Googled “Boston Terrier Pug mix” to find all these breeders specializing in the new designer breed called a “Bugg”!!

Seriously, a Bugg.  Then one day, I saw a baby “Bugg” in the dog park.  It was an east coast Paris Hilton moment as this very young girl had this very tiny dog and told me some silly nickname for it even though I told her it was a Bugg. She disagreed, having a problem wrapping her head around the fact that a bug usually has wings, antennae, lotsa legs, and can fly.

I will scream if one more person suggests I do a DNA test on Carmine that supposedly can tell you the different breeds that make up your dog.  Why?  I’d rather spend the bucks on dog food or treats, y’know the yummy doggy crack known as lamb lung.

And who really cares what Carmine is or what any dog is?

He has four legs; a heartbeat; a big head; a bark; and a tail that wags when he sees me.  He’s a dog and that’s all that matters.