By Anne-Marie Spencer
The Mountain Times
If you spent enough time at the golf course in Welches, you probably were friends with Maximus the French Bulldog. Max, as he was affectionately known, walked his owners who lived in the condos onsite with the goal of making new friends and greeting old ones. If you were an adult, he’d crawl in low to say hello if you so much as made eye contact. If you were a child, he’d flop over onto his back in the universal dog symbol for “You have nothing to fear from me.” He’d always seek out Dave and his pup, Lily; Timber the St Bernard and his people and Augie the course marshall for one of those treats he kept in his pocket. He was also amazingly skilled at helping find lost golf balls. “He knew more people than we did,” said his owners Anne-Marie and Laurence. “Someone would call out, ‘Hey Max!”and we’d ask each other, do you know who that is? He loved people, all people, no one was a stranger.”
Sadly, Max passed away Sunday June 30 from complications of IVDD, a hereditary condition found in several breeds, including Frenchies. “The outpouring of love from the community has been incredible,” added Anne-Marie. “We’ve received written notes, flowers, countless emails and texts, as we see his friends, we give them the news and we cry together. It’s been so comforting for us to know how much he meant to people here.”
For everyone who knew Max, he definitely left a paw print on their hearts.