I have all of these awesomely cute pictures of my Pugs as Puglets, er, puppies, and so I thought I might share a few, along with each of their stories. And since I like to talk about my babies, I will give each of their stories its own post.
Please enjoy this little side trip through our furry family history.
Our first little darling was Max. He soon became known as Maxamillion Puddles. You see, Max was a rescue. He came to us at two years old, with absolutely no training or house manners whatsoever. His previous owner had gotten him, evidently as a Christmas gift because Pug puppies are so darned cute, and then they decided it was too much effort to train him. Being a male, he must have taken to marking the furniture, because they chose to stick him in an outdoor kennel and basically left him there for his first two years of life. Pugs are not built for outdoor life. They cannot handle the heat of even a mild summer, nor the chill of a mild winter for any length of time.
When we got him, he was so excited to have the attention of a family. He was the happiest dog I had ever seen, but it did take quite some time to train him and make an attempt at socializing, even though that is all but impossible after the first year of life.
He was also the sickest young dog I had ever dealt with. He had infections in his ears, wrinkles, and eyes and various other areas, which took at least six months to get under control. These infections left him with scars and the beginnings of blindness due to corneal scarring. His corneas have continued to deteriorate in part due to the breed’s tendency to not make enough tears, but I also believe that such severe infections probably had something to do with his inability to produce enough tears.
Despite his blindness, which is almost complete now, he is still one of the happiest dogs around. His arthritis acts up once in a while, but at twelve, that is to be expected.
This is Max enjoying the comforts of the good life.
Here, we are camping at the beach his first summer with us. The pollen from the trees was a real nightmare for Max his first few years with us, probably an aftereffect of the infections.
Max really enjoyed running on the beach as a youngster. Here he is with my daughter and her friend on his first beach trip.
Max also loved playing tug-of-war, especially with my daughter’s pant legs. When he could still see well enough, he also liked catching mice in our garage. Who needs a cat when you have a multipurpose Pug?
My sweet boy.
Max and Ken used to play as much as Tinker Belle and Ken play now.
Next episode: Little Miss Suzie Angel Eyes
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