Ariege Pointing Dog Names

In 1998, a small Dachshund was found in the garbage by the Society for the Protection of Animals in France. While Dachshunds were developed in Germany, rather than France, like the Ariege Pointing Dog they are hunting dogs, although they specialize in chasing their quarry into burrows rather than pointing. The little dog was in serious shape, and several operations were required to bring him back to full health, and it wasn’t until eight months later that he was adopted by French author Serge Scotto. Scotto dubbed the dog with the French name Saucisse, a name meaning sausage, and began writing mystery novels that featured his new mascot, inspiring titles like Rencontre sous X (Meeting under X), Saucisse dans le métro (Sausage in the Subway), and La mécanique des Anges (The Mechanics of Angels). These books and many others brought a great deal of fame to both the author and his canine companion, and a square in the city of Marseille was named Place du Chien Saucisse in his honor. His popularity was so great that he was made a candidate in the 2001 municipal elections in Marseille, where he performed admirably, for a canine candidate, garnering 4.5% of the votes and defeating the Rally for France candidate by almost a full percentage point. 

Scotto continued to bring his mascot with him to many different events, including trade shows and literary gatherings and introduced him to many celebrities. Saucisse became a media darling, appearing on French television shows such as Vie Privée and Vie Publique. Scotto even used the pooch’s popularity to expose injustices, such as that experienced by French journalist Florence Aubenas, who was kidnapped in Iraq along with her interpreter. The pair sang a duet called Petit Chien des Rues (Little Dog of the Streets), accompanied by a group known as Mustard, and a vintage wine was created in 2007 with the name Cuvee Chien Saucisse, in his honor. In September of 2009, Saucisse became a contestant on the popular French reality show Secret Story 3, a show similar in nature to Big Brother, in that the contestants live together in a prepared home. In Secret Story, however, each contestant has a secret that the others are supposed to figure out. The little dog was redubbed Secret for the show, as his original name was too well known, and his secret was that he was a candidate in the 2001 municipal elections, a secret which he was able to keep until he left the show on July 31^st of 2010.