How the Bulldog Got Its Name
...outhern shire even more. Little did they know that there was an obstacle in their way before they could claim the shire as their own. In this southern shire of England, there was a wandering dog. He was a petite kind of dog, four feet in length and no more than a foot off of the ground, with a white coat blotched with a few large black and brown spots. Although he was rather small in stature, he had the confidence and ego of a dog ten times his size. He wandered the shire with no worries at all, coming and going as he pleased. Frolicking through the shire made him most happy. Now like all dogs, he was very protective and territorial. If he spotted anyone enjoying the lush grass of the shire other than him, he was quick to chase them away. For he never wanted to share this beautiful shire with anyone else but himself. On a particularly lovely day with clear skies and warm weather, the dog decided to run and play in the shire as he usually did. As he came up to the top of a hill, he noticed three unfamiliar figures. Curious, he slowly crept down to the bottom of the hill to get a closer look. He quickly recognized the three burly figures as bulls. So he found a bush to hide behind and eavesdrop on their conversation. Crouching behind this bush, he heard the three bulls discussing how excited they were to go return to the herd and bring them news of a newfound home. Upon hearing this, the dog became enraged and jumped up from behind the bush. Startling the three bulls, the dog said, “Did I hear you three correctly? Newfound home?” One of the bulls replied, “Why yes. We are from the northern shire. You see, our herd has been living there for quite some time, but it is lacking fresh grass and has limited space for our growing population. So the three of us set out to find a new home for the herd. This shire is quite lovely and is large enough to sustain our growing herd.” The dog replied, “Yes indeed it is lovely. It is so lovely, that I do not wish to share it with anyone. It is my shire. Pass through if you must on your journey, but please hurry and be on your way.” At his comment, the three bulls began to laugh at the little dog’s response. For they knew that such a small dog did not need all the space of the shire. Therefore, the bulls ignored the request of the little dog and went on their merry way exploring more of their newfound home. The dog noticed how bulls had thought nothing of his request. So he began to follow them. The bulls took their time wandering the vast hills and fields of the shire. It had already been a few days and the little dog remain on their heels, barking and running circles around them in the hopes of annoying the bulls enough to run them off the land in the search of a new home other than his shire. For the first few days, none of the little dog’s antics bothered the bulls, but things were about to change. The little dog got tired of running in circles so he starting tugging on the bulls’ tails and whipping them with his tail every chance he got. A week had passed and the bulls were beginning to become quite irritated with the little dog. One of the bulls asked the dog, “We do not mean to kick you out of the shire. We only ask that you share it with our herd. That isn’t much to ask. This shire is so vast that you can wander to your heart’s content and still not run into any one of us.” The little dog replied, “It is my shire. I was here first and I do not wish to share it with you, your herd, or anyone else for that matter. So be on your way.” Not wanting to argue any further with the dog, the bulls walked away. The dog thought he had won the argument and went on his merry way. Little did he know, that the bulls discussed and figured that the shire was big enough to where the dog could wander and never find them or the herd living there. So the bulls agreed to return to the northern shire and round up the herd to make the move. As they came upon the wall of the village that is found at the edge of the shire, the ...