Today Jenny turned 5 years old. We got her through Pug Rescue of New England and they had her previous owners vet paperwork so we knew her birthday. If there was ever a dog that changed a household she definately qualifies. Here she is looking like a diva.
I admit that getting a pug wasn't my idea. It was my sons. He wanted his own dog and we couldn't talk him into a frenchie. He had even collected pug stuff for years. Since I couldn't find what I considered a reputable breeder in the breed (see previous posts on that topic) we went the route of rescue.
Jenny came to us because she had been fighting in her foster home with the other resident pugs over food. She was a serious resource guarder and had hurt one of the dogs badly. I think the group was thrilled to get an application from a dog trainer. She was a bit of work at first but she fit in to our small pack very well with some management, basic training and behavior modification for her issues. Fortunately my akita was raised by a frenchie so her attitude didn't phase him much. I was more concerned with her and my other female in residence at the time. Same sex aggression can be common and is statisticly more likely to happen between females. (This is where the slang term "bitch" comes from.) Our frenchie Missy was a confident female and wasn't affected by Jennys' insecurities. Plus she was already trained which helps immensely when it comes to managing multiple dogs in a home. (Training works people!)
In going through my photos for this post I found this one above. I believe that this is her happy face. Wow does she love any kind of food! The photo below was taken today after dinner. It is a great example of how far she has come with her resource guarding.
Jenny has definately changed us in a few ways. One is that we have all fallen in love with pugs because of her. I guess you could say she is our "gateway pug". VBG While I have concerns about the breed and their health issues, I cannot help but love their personalities and their cuteness factor. What can I say, curly tails do it for me. Her being a bit higher energy than my other dogs caused me to become a better trainer too. I have to keep her busy so this means I have to think up fun stuff for her to do to keep her mind engaged. A bored smart dog is a challenge to live with and can be destructive or obnoxiously annoying.
Because of her I got off my butt and got into the obedience ring as well. Something I never thought I would want to do. She loves training because it is the opportunity for her to earn food rewards. She is smart and learns quickly, keeping the training as much fun for me as it is for her. I never thought I would be a "small dog" person either. I came into dogs as an adult with a large breed and thought I would always be a big dog person. Now I see the advantages to having smaller dogs. (they cost less to feed, medication can cost less, they are easier to transport, you can have more of them in the same amount of space, ect.)
So today Jenny got lots of extra treats and maybe even a few more scritches than usual. I am greatful for every day we have with her and we hope to have many more years together.
(More photos and videos of her can also be found on my K-9 Solutions facebook page and even on the K-9 Corrections facebook page.)
