Earl The Grumpy Puppy — Portrait of Earl the tan puggle displaying his famously grumpy facial expression outdoors.

Earl The Grumpy Puppy

2015Animal meme / image macrodead

Published March 31, 2026

Also known as: Grumpy Puppy · Grumpy Dog

Earl the Grumpy Puppy is a puggle (pug-beagle mix) from Davenport, Iowa whose permanently irritated facial expression made him a viral sensation in the summer of 2015. After a photo of the five-month-old pup hit the front page of Reddit on June 8, 2015, Earl quickly drew comparisons to Grumpy Cat and built a social media following across Instagram and Facebook1. Despite looking like he'd just been told his favorite bone was discontinued, Earl's owner confirmed the dog was actually one of the most relaxed, cuddly puppies imaginable2.

celebrity animal memes facial expression memes advice animals dogs accidental fame memes

Overview

Earl was a second-generation puggle, meaning both his parents were also pug-beagle mixes. Born in February 2015, he sported an underbite, facial wrinkles, and a dark complexion that combined to give him a look of deep, existential displeasure3. His owner Derek Bloomfield, a 25-year-old from Iowa, said Earl had worn that grumpy expression from day one and that a vet confirmed the dog was perfectly healthy3. The contrast between Earl's perpetually annoyed face and his actual personality as a laid-back, snuggly puppy was the core joke that powered the meme2.

Origin & Background

Platform
Reddit (/r/aww)
Key People
Do1717, Derek Bloomfield
Date
2015

On June 8, 2015, Reddit user Do1717 posted a photograph of Earl to the /r/aww subreddit5. The post took off fast, pulling in more than 5,180 upvotes with a 96% approval rating and over 500 comments5. The image also racked up over 2 million views on Imgur2. That same day, fans created a dedicated subreddit at /r/EarlThePuggle5.

The very next day, June 9, another Redditor turned the original photo into an image macro and posted it to /r/AdviceAnimals with the title "Earl the Grumpy Puppy has had enough of your bullshit," earning over 1,761 upvotes5. "He's tired of these motherfuckin squirrels in this motherfuckin yard," one Redditor joked4.

How It Spread

Bloomfield capitalized on the buzz by creating a Facebook fan page for Earl on June 15, 2015, followed by an Instagram account under the handle @earlthegrumpypuppy5. Over the next six weeks, Earl collected more than 18,000 likes on Facebook and 16,300 followers on Instagram5.

The mainstream media wave hit on July 29, 2015, when Animal Planet's blog, Bored Panda, Mashable, and BuzzFeed all ran stories about the grumpy-faced pup5. CNN followed with coverage the next day, calling Earl "the canine answer to the famous Grumpy Cat"3. Bored Panda ran the headline "Grumpy Dog Hates You Even More Than Grumpy Cat," framing it as a direct rivalry6. HuffPost declared Earl looked "like he's gonna tell us to get off his lawn"2. Cheezburger featured him in a listicle titled "Ten Reasons Why Earl the Grumpy Puppy is Having a Worse Day Than You"7.

Bloomfield told multiple outlets that despite the permanent scowl, Earl was "super friendly" to people and other dogs1. He described the puppy as the most relaxed, content dog he'd ever seen, one who was "constantly trying to snuggle up" and kept his owners laughing with his facial expressions2.

How to Use This Meme

The Earl the Grumpy Puppy format typically followed standard image macro conventions from the Advice Animals era:

1

Take a photo of Earl (or a similarly grumpy-looking animal)

2

Add top and bottom text expressing exaggerated annoyance, frustration, or contempt

3

The humor usually comes from projecting human complaints onto Earl's disgruntled face

Cultural Impact

Earl rode the mid-2010s wave of grumpy animal memes that Grumpy Cat had kicked off in 2012. Multiple major news outlets covered his rise, with CNN, Mashable, BuzzFeed, HuffPost, and Bored Panda all running features within a two-day span in late July 201513. The coverage consistently positioned Earl as a canine successor to Tardar Sauce (Grumpy Cat), though Earl never reached the same level of commercial success or lasting cultural presence6.

The meme also arrived at the tail end of the Advice Animals era on Reddit, when image macros featuring animals with exaggerated expressions were still a dominant meme format. Earl's popularity reflected a broader appetite for pets whose faces looked like they were perpetually judging humanity.

Fun Facts

Earl's grumpy look came entirely from his underbite, wrinkles, and dark complexion. His vet confirmed he was as healthy as any other puppy3.

The original Reddit post hit 96% upvotes, an unusually high approval rate even for /r/aww5.

Earl's photo got over 2 million views on Imgur before most mainstream outlets even picked up the story2.

Despite looking miserable, Bloomfield said Earl was "constantly trying to snuggle up" to his owners and kept them in "constant fits of laughter"2.

Derivatives & Variations

Image macros:

The /r/AdviceAnimals post from June 9, 2015 kicked off a wave of captioned Earl photos using the standard top-text/bottom-text format[5].

Grumpy Cat comparisons:

Nearly every media outlet that covered Earl framed him as a direct competitor or successor to Grumpy Cat, creating a "grumpy pet" rivalry narrative[6].

Frequently Asked Questions