Our breeds
      
       - Yorkshire Terrier
       - Shih Tzu
       - Daschund
       - Pug
       - Cavalier King Charles

Important things to know

How ready are you for your new puppy?

How to look after your puppy

What our vet says

Quick Facts:

Breed Origins: China ( Dates back to antiquity )

Breed usage: Lap Dog and Companion

Dog Weight: 14 - 18 Pounds

Dog Height: 10 to 12 inches to the shoulder

Average life span: 12 – 14 years

Characteristics:  Pugs are decidedly square and cobby with compact, stout bodies having well decided proportions and a developed muscle structure. The Pug's muzzle should be short, blunt and square. Their bodies should be short and cobby with a wide chest. Their legs strong, straight and of moderate length. Lean and leggy Pugs, as well as those with short legs and long bodies, are not good examples of the breed, but they still make wonderful family pets. The head should be large, round and massive with profuse wrinkles. The eyes, another of the Pug's predominant features, should be dark in color, large, spherical in shape, and bold. Their expressions should be one that projects concern, attentiveness and eagerness. One look into the eyes of a Pug and you will fall in love with them immediately. The mask should be as black as possible, the darker and more defined the better. The ears are small and thin with a soft feeling, almost as if touching black velvet. Two shapes can be found in the ears, the "rose" and "button." The "button" shape, where the ear is folded over, is the preferred shape. The tail should be as tightly curled as possible and up, over the hip. A double curl is highly sought after and considered perfect.

A Pug's coat should be a fine, soft, and short hair. It should be smooth and glossy and can be either silver, apricot-fawn or black. For silver and apricot-fawn colors the dog's mask, muzzle, ears and trace (the line extending along the dog's back from head to tail) should be as black as possible to form as complete a contrast as possible with the dog's coat color.

Temperament and Sociability:  The Pug's temperament is probably one of its most sought after features. They are mostly known to be friendly and outgoing even to

strangers and little children. Pugs seem to love everyone equally and energetically. They are excellent with children. While they qualify as a small dog don't let that concern you. They are a rugged little breed and hearty when it comes to the rough and tumble play that children can sometimes engage in. They are sensible enough to disappear when the play gets to rough or does not go in a way they expect it should.

Pugs are very loving and loyal friends. While they may, in families, align themselves to one person, they are not traditionally what you might consider a "one person dog" to the exclusion of others. They, without question, love food of all types and quantities. Even dry and canned dog food!

A Pugs congenial temperament is not limited to just us humans, they are sociable with other animals as well. Whether it's cats, small or large dogs they mingle well and get along with few problems. They are eager to play with animals of all species and can often be found looking to instigate some adventure with one of their house mates.

Grooming and Daily Exercise:  Pugs have two loves in life: their family and food! The first presents no problems, but the second can be dangerous. When it comes to eating most Pugs do not know the meaning of the word enough. They will eat and eat and eat all day long and, as a result, can become overweight easily. You, the owner, must control this to insure that the dogs stays within the guidelines for their age and size. An overweight Pug is an unhealthy dog. Do them a favor and keep them trim and fit at all times.

Daily exercise is one way to keep you Pug healthy and fit. They enjoy long walks and free romps in open areas. While they will never play Frisbee with you the way you see other larger breeds do, they will eagerly play a game of fetch with anything they can comfortably fit into their mouth. Even in the house a good game of fetch can be used to keep your Pug in healthy shape.

Brushing your Pugs coat is a good thing (not to steal a phrase from you know who) and will make both you and your Pug happy. Their short-hair coats are thick and subject to quite a bit of shedding. Frequent brushing stimulates the oils in their skin and helps to keep the coat clean and shining. You should brush the coat in both the direction the hair grows (to clean the surface coat) and against the growth direction (to remove and clean the undercoat). We suggest using one of the wraparound blade brushes as they are excellent for removing loose hairs from the dog's coat. We also suggest when brushing your dog in an open area of the yard you do so in an out-of-the-way place as a rather large patch of hair will remain on the ground.

Bathing your Pug can be fun for both you and them. While bathing is not something that needs to be done frequently (providing you keep the dog's coat clean by frequent grooming) an occasional bath is recommended. The first couple of times you bath your Pug be sure to do so with loving and gentle kindness. Doing so will insure that your Pug looks forward to the experience in the future and keeps bathing from becoming a necessary evil chore. When finished bathing the Pug have a couple of clean towels handy and vigorously rub the coat dry. The rougher, it seems, the better. Pugs love a vigorous rubbing and will gladly run toward your towel for more.

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