From stray dog to celebrity: Bougie gets more than a party

By Demion McTair. Updated 7:25 p.m., Monday, April 25, 2022, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).

Some six months ago on a rainy night Mulisha Mulzac found herself pulling a stray dog and his siblings from a drain on the Grenadine island of Union. Six months later, that stray dog is now an important part of her family and is gaining notoriety on social media.

Ms. Mulzac, a resident of Union Island in the Southern Grenadines told One News St. Vincent on Monday (April 25) that when her adopted dog Bougie ‘Bouge-Bouge’ Mulzac was born, he and his sister were among several stray puppies that took residence on their property.

She said that Bouge, however, and his sickly sister were neglected by their mother who stuck to the other six juvenile dogs that were born.

As the puppies and their mother were often on Mulzac’s property, she said her sister and her aunt would often look after the juvenile dogs.

One of the puppies, the sickly one, died and on one fateful rainy night when they could not find any of the dogs around the property, they went in search and found them in a drain where it appeared their mother had taken them under a culvert.

Mulzac who owns a restaurant and bar in Ashton, Union Island said after that encounter, Mel, a coworker encouraged her to take Bouge as the other puppies had been adopted by other people to ensure their care.

“You would do well with Bougie,” she said her friend Mel told her.

She said one of her sisters gave the dog its name – Bouge which is derived from the word bourgeoisie due to its well-to-do behaviour.

She said she later developed a bond with the dog.

“Oh my God, he is so loving. He is so clingy. He is familiar with everybody at work,” Ms. Mulzac told One News St. Vincent.

She said that the bond she shares with Bouge feels like the dog is her child. The dog even knows her morning routine. “He pushed in the bedroom door this morning and woke me up for breakfast,” she said.

She said she discovered, however, that as Bouge matured, “he was bumping into things a lot” which gave her a suspicion that he was blind or had difficulties seeing. When she took him to the vet, her fears that Bouge was blind were confirmed. She said, however, that Bouge uses his other senses to function like a normal dog.

Life has changed so much for the dog that was once a stray dog that a party was thrown for his birthday on Sunday, April 24.

The historic ‘dog party‘

Mulzac, who is also the great grand daughter of Captain Hugh Mulzac, held the island’s first publicized dog party on Sunday, Bougie ‘Bouge-Bouge’ Mulzac, and seven other dogs and their owners were invited to attend.

She said two other puppies and their owners came along – a total of ten and were warmly welcomed to the event.

Ms. Mulzac told One News St. Vincent the party was great. “We did grilled chicken, a doggy cake, hotdogs, and burgers. There were party bags with goodies such as puppy chow. Dog leashes and other accessories were also in the bags.

He was a bit selfish and shy yesterday [at the party] because he had a lot of people around, but he is such a friendly dog,” she added.

She said a dog named Christan danced and he was excited because he met with a Rottweiler at the dog party named Spud and he (the dog Christan) “was the life of the party as he made us laugh”.

When asked why she decided to have the party for Bouge, which she describes as a mixed breed with a pointed face like a German Shepherd, Ms. Mulzac said:

“When I first thought about it and I asked myself if I was crazy. It was just outside the box. I like to do weird stuff, but it is something I’ll do it all over again”.

She said “people need to give more love to animals. He’s like my child and love him that much.”

Ms. Mulzac said she thanks her sisters Molseen and Molica for helping to take care of Bouge, especially when she has to travel. She also thanks Mel for encouraging her to take and care for Bouge – a decision she feels happy about.

She said she also thanks Stanton Gomes/Radio Grenadines, the guys who assisted with barbeque grill and props – Akeem and Chris, and other dog owners who made the event a success.

Bouge is now getting a lot of media attention since the dog party, a development Ms. Mulzac hopes will encourage more people to adopt and care for stray animals in the dire condition that Bouge once operated in.

Ms. Mulzac is encouraging people to care for animals more.