French Bulldog Comes Running as Soon as She Hears 'The Magic Word'

There's little doubt what this French bulldog's favorite word is because no matter how far away she is, she will always come running when she hears the magic word.

A video posted by TikTok user Andy Pagana showed the hilarious way his brother, Mike Pagana, manages to capture the attention of his cheeky Frenchie, Opal. As she was wandering round the neighbor's field, he knew there was little chance of simply calling her name and getting her to come back, so instead he reverted to yelling her favorite word: cheese.

It certainly did the trick, because as soon as he shouted "Opal, let's get a piece of cheese," the pup immediately came sprinting back to the house. Mike Pagana, from Hudson Valley, New York, explained that getting Opal's attention can be difficult, telling Newsweek that she's "very stubborn and only listens when she wants to," so he has to get creative.

"We have a lot of space for Opal to run around, but recently she's been running down to another field, and she can get preoccupied sniffing for other animals and exploring the farm," Mike said. "Recently, when she goes down to the neighbor's field, it's been difficult to get her back, so I've been trying to train her with cheese and pizza crust. She really loves those two foods."

After seeing how fast she came running back to the house for cheese, Pagana knows that's the key to Opal's heart. Aside from being the Frenchie's favorite snack, cheese is also a great training tool for dogs as it's such an enticing snack.

While it contains protein, calcium and vitamin A, the American Kennel Club adds that it's also high in fat, so too much of it can lead to weight gain and in some instances, obesity. If your dog likes the taste of cheese, it's recommended to feed them low-fat options such as mozzarella, cottage cheese or goat cheese to reduce the risk of obesity.

When Andy Pagana saw the speed at which Opal moved for a bit of cheddar, he couldn't resist sharing the video on his TikTok account (@thenonsensebox), and it's already been viewed more than 1.8 million times and gained over 155,100 likes. Layered over the video, the caption joked: "This dog is my spirit animal."

Andy has loved seeing the positive response to his post, which has become his most viewed TikTok video to date.

He told Newsweek: "I laughed so hard and watched it over and over again, so I knew I needed to post it. Opal sure had it in her to hightail it home, and it's so funny but also adorable to watch her run with such excitement. I'm super happy with the response it's gotten.

"People love her and plenty of people have said they understand how good cheese is, so everyone seems to relate to this. She's truly so funny, especially because of how she relates to food. She's also such a strong personality and unique looking, and I think her appearance draws people to her."

Opal is reverse cross-eyed, meaning her eyes point outwards rather than inwards. Although some people think she's unusual, the Pagana family can't get enough of her, and Andy sees nothing wrong with her, as he feels that it makes her look "super cute."

"Opal was the runt of the litter and the breeder feared she wasn't going to make it. Most French bulldogs sell for thousands of dollars, but because Opal has a disability, the breeder sold her to my brother for $200 with the promise that they wouldn't breed her. But for him, she's the best $200 he ever spent," Andy said.

After the video of Mike shouting "the magic word" to get Opal's attention, the viral TikTok post has amassed over 2,100 comments from adoring social media users. One comment reads: "That is the furthest I've ever seen a French bulldog run."

Another person responded: "you know she was cursing her short legs that whole sprint."

While another account joked that Opal will do "anything for the cheese."

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