Dog Names that Start with Fo

Are you a Disney film fan?  Over the years as we grew up, the creative and magical minds of the filmmakers under the Disney umbrella produced some of the most exciting, comical, adventuresome and downright hilarious films for the entertainment of people of all ages.  Some of those movies were also very tender and heart-rending motion pictures, that brought tears to many an eye, especially when something happened (good or bad) to one of the animal characters.  Some of these flicks featured animals in unique circumstances or depicted them as unusual characters, frequently possessing skills and talents not naturally available to their species.

Our pop culture spotlight for today is Footstool from the Disney production “The Beauty and the Beast.”  Of course, Footstool isn’t a real piece of furniture that we humans call a “footstool” but instead is the castle dog whose real name is Sultan.  As Sultan, Footstool behaves just like any other healthy dog behaves, chasing cats, digging holes, and snuggling with their favorite humans, but as Footstool, he takes on different characteristics and duties.  In an attempt to not get ahead of the story here, we need to establish some basics of the story.

The Disney story comes from the book “Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast” which was first published in 1978 and written by Robin McKinley, an American children’s book author.  Her first book, this particular book was a retelling of a French fairytale, La Belle et la Bete”, given the Phoenix Award in 1998 as well as being the best book for young adults from 1966 to 1988.  

The Sultan/Footstool character lives in the enchanted castle of the beast, where Beauty eventually goes to live and is replete with invisible maids and ordinarily stationary objects which live, breathe and move in uncharacteristic ways.  He appears in several other “Beauty” films produced by Disney described as a happy, cheerful and playful character who appears as a footstool that is red and yellow as well as a chubby little dog with light brown fur, darker brown ears, and spots.  He is the darling doggie of the castle which becomes a footstool as a result of the spell cast upon the castle and the lineage of the Prince (the Beast).  Throughout the story, he allows himself to be used as a footstool or piano bench until he is returned to his natural appearance when Beauty breaks the spell placed on the Prince, his castle and all who occupy it.