Jul 11 (edited) • Breed of the Week
Pug
Today we are going to explore the Pug. This breed is not known for having any sort of work history aside from not defecating on their palace floors in China perhaps. The Pug is one of the oldest breeds, going back as far as 400 B.C. and originated in China and was one of the three small flat faced dogs: Shih-Tzu, Pekingese and the Lo-Sze (the Pug who was also known as Foo dog).
Pugs were highly regarded in ancient China and were given extravagant gifts and even had their own palaces. The Han Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty had strong affections for pugs and many members of the Chinese royalty kept them as pets. The Pug was bred on purpose to have round heads, short snouts and large eyes. Apparently part of their grooming included decorating their coats with pattern and designs.
By the 7th and 8th centuries the Pug spread to Korea then to Japan and quickly became a status symbol. In Japan the Pug has become so popular that there is a national holiday where owners dress up their dogs in headscarves.
It wasn’t until the 16th century that the Pug came to Europe where the pug proved to be more than a fancy lap dog with exquisite taste in accommodations. Pompey, one of the most well-known Pugs of the time, alerting Prince William the Silent of the House of Orange in the Netherlands, to an assassination attempt in 1572. Following Pompey’s heroism and stout alertness the Pug became the official dog of the House of Orange.
In Italy it is said that Pugs rode up on private carriages adorning matching jackets and “pantaloons” of the coachman. Allegedly they were also used to track animals and people as well as be guard dogs. They seemed to have had to do a little more to earn their keep in Europe than back home in Asia.
Pugs back then, according to paintings, had longer legs and longer snouts than they do today with the occasional cropped ears (in an attempt to enhance the wrinkles on their head). It is thought that around 1860 the appearance of the Pug changed to ones with shorter legs and the shorter nose we are accustomed to. It is believed that this version of the Pug was introduced after some loot was sequestered by the French and British soldiers from modern day Beijing (then Peking). The coat was different as well as they were black and white not just the yellowish fawn that was preferred.
I do encourage you to go read the Wikipedia page (there are lots of sources at the bottom of the Wikipedia page as well) as there are more details about which royalty had which kind of Pug and the Morrison and Willoughby lines in Britian. Plus, apparently the English Bulldog was thrown into the mix at one point to help solidify preferred traits.
Sources: https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/dog-breeds/pug-history/, https://www.betterpet.com/learn/pug-history,https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pug
Also, as a former vet tech I had to put that one about the nail trim in because it is so true.
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Pug
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