Written for The Vines of Mendoza
A dog is supposedly a man’s best friend, and in Argentina you would be forgiven for thinking it’s a man’s, a woman’s, a grandmother’s and even a gaucho’s best buddy. Dogs rule supreme: in every street corner, every park bench and every handbag. You only need to see the photos of the ubiquitous Buenos Aires dog walkers who take about 20 pooches for a walk at once to notice that this is a nation with a serious pet crush on puppies.
In Mendoza it is pretty much the same. Ladies ‘ooo’ and ‘aaa’ over dogs just as much as they do babies. No man feels quite himself running around the park without his pedigree chum, and dogs are featured on more Facebook posts in Mendoza than Justin Beiber is worldwide.
While all dogs are embraced (literally) in Mendoza, there are two dogs that are the height of fashion – the Bichon Frisé and the Dogo Argentino – and apart from sharing a color (white), they couldn’t be more different.
Bichon Frisé
Yappy, fluffy and small enough to fit in your purse, Bichon Frises (quite appropriately meaning ‘curly lap dog’ in French) are all over the city. They are the favorite mutt of single, middle aged ladies and get their bouffant blow-dried more often then the lady President.
They run around scatter brained, skit from side to side, appear to have ADD and bark incessantly unless you perpetually pet them.
Bichon lovers would call their attention demands ‘affection’ and ‘playfulness’, but most will admit that they have a terrific tendency to eat and hide your shoes. A dog for those who actually want a kid.