The German Mops-Orden (Pug-Order) Pugs is believed to have been founded in Bavaria in 1740, after Roman Catholics were forbidden to join the Masons. Tragically, the order wasn’t comprised of pugs, but merely used the adorable smoosh-faced dog as a mascot. To join, initiates were required to wear dog collars, scratch at the door to gain entry to meetings, and eventually to kiss a pug’s butt as an expression of their devotion.
If anyone wants to write a novel about a masonic order of pugs, I’m in. It can be an historical novel using the real order or a fantasy novel in which pugs pull the strings of Europe’s aristocracy. Perhaps the world’s greatest thinkers are reincarnated as Bavarian pugs. Or maybe pugs are descended from fae or aliens or the elder gods.