My name is Eben. I was adopted November 10, 2010. Funny thing, my mom didn’t even know what a french bulldog was when she adopted me! She didn’t know how trendy we are…she just fell in love with my rabbit ears and never looked back. I have been dragging my paws for a long time about starting this dawg blog. It’s hard for me to type with my paws.  Mom told me I have a message to give others. The past 6 years of my life I have traveled with my mom….she told me that we would be gone camping and hiking and traveling one week sometimes two weeks out of each month. We don’t have shit bags of money, mom has a health problem that leaves her feeling hindered at times, she is very ordinary and not a outdoor bad ass that grew up doing sports, her job can be exhausting and she has struggled with depression at times.…but she told me that she wants ordinary people like herself to know that they can put themselves in nature with their dogs on a regular basis despite all the odds against them. I want to inspire others to go play in nature and allow nature’s good tidings (as John Muir put it) to wash over one’s soul, you know that invisible part of us! I told my mom to stop with all the excuses to not get out there … I may be a french bulldog, not a badass either, but I am all heart and I want to get on the mountain. This is when stuff changed for us…she helped me see that I could live a life beyond what my breed as a french bulldog is thought to live as: a lazy couch potato indoor dog eating dog treat bon bons that can’t hike due to breathing issues…yep mom got me a nose job! So I began hiking and camping and back country and flying….and to date Iv’e been on nearly 100 hikes now… and we even did Mt. Baldy together with my grandpa when he had cancer. We all pushed through.

I’m teaching my mom how to be present when she fears the future…that’s all i know is now! and I have taught her to love nature for nature’s sake! I don’t care about being a famous bad ass sponsored alpinist mountaineer dog you see wearing the same brand from REI (that only features Australian shepherds and labs hiking geez so typical)… You see I love nature for the smells, the colors, the sounds…for the gift it is! I have taught her to do the same. What’s so funny is that my mamacita brings a Patagonia jacket for me on our camping trips…no I do not wear this to be dressed up but I get really cold, I hardly have any fur I swear…since I have to put on clothes, it might as well be a sustainable company right? Btw I look for seals everywhere I go. Mom says seals don’t live in lakes and rivers but I don’t believe her. We live near the beach in San Clemente and you can find me everyday searching for or jumping on seals.

I am Eben, the hiking and camping and traveling french bulldog who loves to experience God’s beautiful creation in nature….we may be on a string shoe budget but me and my mom are seeing the world! And you can too!