MEET MONA LISA

State: near Hartford,CT
Age: 2 years
DOB: 11/08/23
Weight: 24 lbs
Sex: female
Neutered/UTD: yes/yes
Children under 4: no (no history)
Children over 4: Yes
Separation Anxiety: no
Other dogs: Yes
Cats: no (no history)
Crate Trained: yes
House Trained: learning
Obedience Trained: no
Leash Trained: unsure
Microchipped: Yes
ADOPTION FEE: $675

3/21/26-Well I think finally after about 2 months of fostering, multiple vet visits, surgical intervention for both ears, too many medications to think about, and tag team foster care (thank you Nancy!), Mona Lisa is finally ready to go home!!!  She had her follow up visit 3/19 about her ear surgery & all was great & was given a final steroid medication for her ears. Her ears look amazing and I think she is slowly starting to hear more, especially at certain pitches. She is the sweetest lady, loves to be picked up and held, obsessed with balls, super submissive with other dogs, and instantly fell in love with our neighbors toddler this morning. Let’s go Mona!!

3/16/26-Mona’s ears look great after her surgery!  Last Tuesday she had a large polyp in her right ear and a smaller one in her left ear removed, along with laser treatment to “smooth” out some of the scar tissue in her external ears. Since then I’ve been gently cleaning them with saline solution only, no harsh cleansers or ointments. Her ears are healing well with no signs of infection. Her hearing has not improved as we had hoped but for her, this is not a disability as she probably never had good hearing. Initially she was on pain meds but this strong & stoic little girl did not need them anymore after just a few days. She continues with oral steroids and antibiotics 2X/day, and probiotics daily to keep her GI system in balance. She’s got a hearty appetite and is a perfect lady in her crate. Because Mona is back on steroids, she wears panties when not in her crate and we are giving more frequent potty breaks. She really looks forward to cookies after she does her biz!  She is a total snuggle bug, loves humans. Mona has a post-op appointment Thursday 3/19 and will then be ready to go home!

3/16/26:  Mona’s ears look great after her surgery!  Last Tuesday she had a large polyp in her right ear and a smaller one in her left ear removed, along with laser treatment to “smooth” out some of the scar tissue in her external ears. Since then I’ve been gently cleaning them with saline solution only, no harsh cleansers or ointments. Her ears are healing well with no signs of infection. Her hearing has not improved as we had hoped but for her, this is not a disability as she probably never had good hearing. Initially she was on pain meds but this strong & stoic little girl did not need them anymore after just a few days. She continues with oral steroids and antibiotics 2X/day, and probiotics daily to keep her GI system in balance. She’s got a hearty appetite and is a perfect lady in her crate. Because Mona is back on steroids, she wears panties when not in her crate and we are giving more frequent potty breaks. She really looks forward to cookies after she does her biz!  Mona has a post-op 3/19 and will then be ready to go home!

3/7/26-THIS girlie!!  While she was never really timid, I’d say Mona was “reserved” when she first arrived to me. But now she’s really finding herself! She loves playing with my big & submissive boxer boy a couple times/day for ~10mins – and her bulldog genes prevent any fear of his size. lol There’s not much interaction with my older, snotty boxer mix girl but Mona tries to engage using her sweet & submissive side.  Mona Lisa is quite a little busy body but in typical frenchie fashion, after a little play or mental stimulation, she crashes out for some naps. She loves exploring every nook & cranny of the house. While she is 2 years old, she acts like a puppy as she never got to experience that stage of life at the commercial breeder. That being said, I’ve been using the water spray bottle more lately to correct & distract if she’s doing something naughty. She LOVES toys of all kinds (especially stuffies) but sometimes will try to chew a bed, blanket or peepad. I even caught her the other day chewing a knob on a bureau lol. She responds well to a spray of H2O & a firm NO. I’ve also been waving my index finger as a correction & to incorporate another visual sign. She is also in a much better routine with potty training and loves to go outside and sniff around. Mona doesn’t mind the snow but does not like rain. She’s been using the peepads more often so I’ve been leaving the panties off more often. She’s doing 50% better but still inconsistent and does not know how to tell me she has to go out. Because of her limited hearing that we are unsure will be restored next week after surgery, I think she may do best with a fenced yard in her furever home. Mona loves to be picked up and hugged, and will couch-surf & snooze on your chest for hours if you let her. However, I think she would love a fun furry companion that she could follow & learn from too, and expend some energy with!

3/1/26-Now that Mona Lisa is much healthier, happier, spayed, and ears stabilized, we are going to work on potty training!  I’ve kept her in cute little panties for past few weeks as she was squatting in between routine, frequent potty breaks. I think this was due to transition, diminished hearing, steroid use and her past life (no training & probably lived in an indoor kennel). I’ve noticed she piddles most of the time on door mats, so we started peepad training as an initial step which seems to be going well. She’s not wearing her panties as much and I’m doing better at rewarding good behavior with face smooshes (she LOVES that) and treats when I’m fast enough (I need to keep them in my pocket!)! I also started using some basic sign language like waving towards me when I want her to come and thumbs up when she does something good, like using the pads. She’s not timid, has great eye contact, loves to be LOVED and is very food motivated so I’m already seeing progress after just a few days! She has always kept her crate dry (typically 8-9 hours) so I know she can hold it!  This will take time, but I know using the 3Ps (patience, practice & perseverance), Mona’s got this!

2/28/26-Mona has been a busy lady over the last week so I wanted to give an update on her progress. First, she is healing from spay without any complications and as a typical bulldog, has remained stoic and resilient despite likely pain. Unfortunately the litter she had prior to rescue resulted in a C-section so she had a lot of scar tissue and her procedure was more extensive than a typical spay. This past week she had a slumber party at a fellow foster home and got along famously with the boxer and little Boston there.  She is very curious and loves exploring new environments, then toasting her belly in front of a nice warm wood stove.  Lol. Our foster colleague brought her for consult with a surgical team for her ear issues. We are excited to say that we now have a plan for intervention! On Tuesday 3/10 she will have polyps removed from her ears, and some ablation and laser therapy to combat the tissue overgrowth which is contributing to chronic ear infections and loss of hearing. She does have some hearing but it is limited so I am hopeful she will hear more. I have determined she hears (or feels) loud barking and high-pitched whistling and squeaky toys. Also, this girl is a foodie! There  seems to be nothing she won’t eat, and love! Bananas, apples, melon, cranberry sauce, and cookies of all kinds! We did change her over to a grain free, limited ingredient kibble as sometimes food allergies can contribute to chronic ear infections. We will see if this reduces the junk in her ear canals which I continue to clean every night – they look, and she continues to feel so much better! It is so awesome to see positive progress in this sweet girl who deserves to be loved and to live a blessed life.

2/19/26-Mona Lisa’s personality is really starting to come out now! She has found 3 favorite toys in a giant basket full of them. She loves the rope toy, a rubber barbell, and a stuffy which is most exciting because she can hear the squeaky!  She keeps her crate dry overnight but wears little panties when roaming around the house. We have been working on establishing a potty routine outside. She is so dainty, unlike normal bulldogs she never makes a peep! Doesn’t even snore when she’s sleeping. Every once in a while she will do her little Frenchie pounce when playing with our big boxer boy. We had another little Frenchie (Kahlua) as a houseguest over the weekend and she instantly recognized her own! She loved having another little over for a slumber party. She is extremely submissive but not timid. She could be the center of your attention as an only, but also be great sharing the house with other dogs. Don’t wait to get your app in for the sweetest little lady!

2/14/26-Mona Lisa is VERY chill, doesn’t make a peep, doesn’t even snore!!!  Lol We are working on fixing up her ear & potty training. Friday 2/20 is her spay & soon after that she will have another evaluation about what to do for her ear.  

2/13/26-Mona Lisa had her preop appointment with our vet who thought she was super sweet and also in good health. We discussed her ear issue and she may be a candidate for a less invasive procedure to remove the polyp in her right ear rather than an extensive total ear canal ablation (TECA) which comes with more risk. We put her spay off temporarily so that we could coordinate a consult with a surgical vet and schedule both procedures appropriately, now that we have a more information.  Spay is now scheduled for Friday 2/20.  We plan to do these procedures separately to mitigate risk of complications. In the meantime, little Miss Mona is being such a good girl letting me clean her ears daily and instill special ointment. That hygiene which she never had before, along with the steroid pills have made her ears look so much better and more comfortable.  I don’t see her shaking her head anymore but I do think she has hearing loss, not sure if it is permanent or if it will improve after this procedure. Because she is taking steroids she’s doing a lot of tinkling so she wears little panties to prevent accidents. And she looks even cuter, especially with her Spider Woman tutu on!!

2/9/26-When Mona Lisa arrived to me Saturday, my heart instantly sank for her. She looked so sad and pitiful – her head hanging low & her right ear raw & smelly from a raging ear infection. I wrapped her in her new blankie and placed her in a crate in front of the wood stove where she had a cozy nap after her long journey. After she woke, I fixed her up some venison, broccoli & kibble and dropped her steroid pill on top. She gobbled it all up quickly! After buttering her up with yummy food, I got to work on cleaning her ears with a medicated flush, pads and qTips. I then applied a special topical antibiotic. Clearly this poor girl has had chronic ear infections that were ignored as both ears look like cauliflower – I don’t know how she can hear, but she can! She constantly shakes her head and bends her neck to the right. She must be in so much pain and discomfort. It also seems she scratched her right eye and caused an ulcer, probably itching her ear so she gets eye drops 4X/day. I know she doesn’t feel great and as much as she’s been through in her short life, she knows we are taking care of her. She’s so calm and remains still when tending to her medical needs. This little lady has a pre-op appointment with our vet later this week for spay and re-eval of her ear & eye. Don’t worry beautiful Mona Lisa, you are going to feel so much better soon, I promise. We got you!!

2/06/26-Mona Lisa is a very sweet 2 year old female french bulldog. She came in from a commercial breeder as she had some polyps in her ear that were getting bad so they didn’t want her anymore. She arrived safely into rescue today thanks to her transport & overnight volunteers. Her first vet check showed her ear canal is closed up & may need specialized surgery. Also she may have an eye ulcer. Her pre-spay appointment is on Thursday 2/12 & we will see what they say as 2nd opinion on her medical issues.