Breed Description

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The Pug Dog
Of all of the dogs is the Pug
who might be king of the castle.
If you're looking to bug
he might first give you a hassle.
But, the Pug dog is kind,
he would never offend.
He is just looking to find
if you'd be his next friend.
No! He's not really pugnacious
as his name might suggest.
He is really quite gracious,
kings and queens like him best.
Michael Leiter
May 1995

The Pug Dog : Breed description

Standard of Points

(By permission of the Kennel Club)

General Appearance: A decidedly square and cobby dog. The Pug should be multum in parvo, but this condensation should be shown by compactness of form, well knit proportions and hardness of developed muscle.
Head and Skull: Head large, massive round- not apple-headed, with no indentation of the skull. Muzzle short, blunt, square but not up-faced. Wrinkles large and deep.
Eyes: Dark in colour, very large, bold and prominent, globular in shape, soft and solicitous in expression. Very lustrous and, when excited, full of fire.
Ears: Thin, small, soft, like black velvet. There are two kinds - the "rose" and the "button". Preference should be given to the latter.
Body: Short and cobby, wide in chest and well ribbed. Topline level neither roached nor dipping..
Forequarters: Legs very strong, straight, of moderate length and well under the body.
Hindquarters.: Legs very strong, straight, of moderate length and well under the body.
Feet: Neither so long as the foot of the hare, nor so round as that of the cat; well split-up toes; the nails black.
Tail (Twist): Curled tighly as possible over the hip. The double curl is perfection.
Coat: Fine, smooth, soft, short and glossy, neither hard nor woolly.
Colour: Silver, apricot fawn or black. Each should be clearly decided to make the contrast complete between the colour, the trace and the mask. Markings: Clearly defined. The muzzle or mask, ears, moles on cheeks, thumb-mark or diamond on forehead and the trace should be as black as possible. Mask: the mask should be black, the more intense and well defined the better. Trace: A black line from the occiput to the twist.
Weight and Size: Desirable weight from 14 to 18 lb. (dog or bitch). (Note of the Webmaster: approximately 6.5 to 8 kg)
Faults: Lean, leggy. Short legs and long body.

The Official AKC Standard.

What follows is a slightly adapted excerpt of Marcy Heathman's submission to the Computer Dogworld Library as downloaded by Jan Mylemans.

Dog Breed Name

Pug Dog
Mops Hond (Dutch)
Mopsi (Finnish)
Carlin, Doguin [Old] (French)
Smutmhadra (Irish Gaelic, literally "stumpy dog")
Mops Hund (German)
Carlino (Italian)
Doguillo (Spanish)
Mops (Swedish)
Ha Ba Gou (? [Old] Chinese)

Formerly also called Dutch Mastiff

Breed Function

As a member of the Toy Group, the Pug is an acceptable "watchdog" who will alert to the presence of strangers, while being an excellent companion in family situation.

They have been accepted in programs as therapy dogs, as well as hearing aid dogs. Mostly, they were bred as lap dogs.

Behavior

Pugs are people-oriented dogs, right down to the fact that they go through stages of maturity. Puppies are especially playful and always underfoot for want of company. If you have another dog, a pug puppy will often seek out their company for play and adventure. The puppy stage often lasts until the pug is about 2 years old, so be prepared with plenty of patience! Older dogs seem to "settle" into a daily routine, and can be almost invisible until you want them. Pugs want nothing more than to please their owners, but you will have to show them just what it is you want! They are not mind readers!

Suitable Ownership Situations

First and foremost: the pug is not a dog to be left outside! Heat and high humidity can easily cause death in this breed, due to the flatness of their faces. If you don't want a dog in the house, you don't want a pug. But, if you have limited yard space, if you want little grooming, if you want an intelligent companion who is just a little hard headed, if you want a dog that doesn't yap (usually - there are exceptions to every rule) but sounds instead like a bigger dog behind a closed door, if you want a dog that is very tolerant of people, then you want a pug.

They do not track (except cookie crumbs). They do not hunt (except the food bowl). They only fetch if they really want to (and then it is till up in the air as to whether you get to have it back!). Pugs often think for themselves, and are smart enough to get into trouble. But, they will make you laugh at them, for they are natural clowns. They will give you every ounce of love they have, and they still won't come if they have gotten into trouble! Pugs are as different and diverse as people.

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