Adopting an Older Pug: The Overlooked Gems of Rescue

Since they are older, will they ever bond to me as their new owner?

I have never heard of any rescue Pug that didn't fall madly in love with their new family, especially the older Pugs. Even Pugs who have spent their entire lives in an outdoor cage as a puppy mill “breeder” very quickly get used to the concept of being loved and cared for and they learn to trust their new families.

Malcolm and Rose, two older Pugs who were found on the streets of Reno, Nevada and whose tattoos told of their puppy mill pasts, received a lot of extra love and attention from their PugSavers foster parents. In a matter of weeks they learned that sitting on a warm, comfy couch is one of life’s biggest pleasures. They have bonded with their foster parents and will also bond just as closely to their “forever home” when they are eventually adopted.

Eddie, an oldster who was found sleeping under truck bed liners at a car lot and survived by drinking dew that collected in the liners, was fostered by Rebecca Greeno-Rutledge. He had a mostly-gray face and his coat was as thick as that of a Husky from years of living outdoors. The vets estimated him to be twelve to thirteen years old. Rebecca did not change the name which was given to him by the people who found him because she was certain she was only going to be an interim foster family. Eddie, however, had other ideas. Rebecca immediately became “Mom” in Eddie’s eyes and he would constantly gaze at her lovingly. Eddie quickly went from being a “foster” dog to being permanently adopted by Rebecca who remains the love of Eddie’s life. When you talk to Rebecca on the phone you will likely hear what sounds like purring or cooing sounds in the background. That isn’t a cat or a baby; it’s Eddie, contentedly nestled near Rebecca. More than three years later, after having several growths and 10 bad teeth removed, Eddie is doing fine health wise and remains active and loving and will hopefully have many more years to share with Rebecca.

The joys in Eddie’s life seem simple to most people. He is excited to sleep in bed every night and shows his joy by rubbing himself the entire length of the bed. Even his harness is special to Eddie: when removed from him he will cry and paw at it to keep it close to him. What is a symbol of confinement to some dogs is a sign of love and belonging to Eddie. Initially, Eddie was scared of the dark. Rebecca kept a night light on during the night so he wouldn’t cry. With love and patience, he overcame this fear and now sleeps peacefully through the night in Rebecca's bed.

“I was originally going to purchase a black Lab puppy before Eddie came into my life.” Rebecca says. “Having had Pug puppies from the age of 7 or 8 weeks old, compared to Eddie who had lived easily a decade before coming into my life, I think I have bonded more to Eddie than to the ones I had since a puppy. It’s not that a puppy is not special, but they were loved and cherished since the day they came to us and they often take being cared for and loved for granted. Eddie on the other hand has known a lot of hardship and has been denied basic care and attention for the majority of this life. To him, every moment of love and protection is something he feels compelled to let me know he appreciates, be it with a loving glance, a sloppy wet kiss, or snuggling up next to me with his contented purring. I feel like the lucky one in being open enough to accept an older Pug into my life. Once he was in my home and my heart he chose me to be his "forever mom", and it was clear he wasn’t going anywhere."

Steven and Mala Marcus, who adopted an older Pug named Otto more than six years ago, also shares Rebecca’s feelings. While he didn't intentionally go looking for an older Pug, they were pleasantly surprised by their "new" addition. Here is Steve's story:

"My wife Mala and I wanted another Pug, and we learned, to our surprise, that there were Pugs that were abandoned, lost and rescued. When we arrived at the home of the person who was fostering some of these rescues we were greeted by about a dozen barking and bouncing Pugs of all sizes and ages. She mentioned that she had an "old man" that she had just received. He was in a crate because he'd just come from the pound and was suffering from kennel cough. We already had two female Pugs, so we were excited about the prospect of getting a male. Mala and I took one look inside the crate and knew that this was "our boy". Here was this old Pug (the vets estimated him to be at least 9 or 10 years old) with a massive head and a white, wizened face with big sad eyes and a wide smile. He looked at us beseechingly, as if looking for someone to comfort him during his final hours."

"Mala and I took him for a little walk to see how he would behave. The little old guy was bow-legged and walked at a slow consistent pace, and reminded me of the old Italian men I'd see walking arm-in-arm down the streets of Brooklyn when I was a kid. This endeared him even more to us and we couldn't wait to welcome him into our lives. "

"On New Years Day 1997, Otto arrived at his new home. Otto bonded to Mala straightaway given that she was giving him all the TLC she could, nursing him back to health. Otto became a great buddy of mine, too. We put in a lot of couch time together and I always appreciate his peaceful and quiet presence. I really sense from Otto just how much he loves and appreciates his home."

"Now in his fifteenth or sixteenth year, Otto has always been a favorite with friends and family. His slow pace and regal bearing always make him shine in the crowd. Since we adopted Otto we've brought several other Puggies into our lives- some old and some young. The latest addition is a youngster named Jake. He is barely a year old and bounces off the walls. Just watching him makes me run out of breath. I can tell that Otto is barking under his breath and rolling his eyes, but he puts up with the young whippersnapper and fires an authoritative bark when the kid gets too close."

"Clearly, Otto will one day leave us and Jake will be the only male in the pack. I can only hope that Jake bears his old age with the same grace and dignity as Otto continues to do."

If Steve and Mala had not been open to considering an older Pug, they would have missed these past six years (and hopefully several more) of love and devotion. By keeping an open mind to rescuing a Pug of any age, both their lives and Otto's have been enriched.

Isn't it better to get a young dog because I want to have them as long as possible?

We all want to spend as much time as we can with the people and animals we love, but getting a younger dog does not guarantee that you will have it for a long time. Pug Dog Encephalitis (PDE), which is always fatal, generally strikes before the age of six. While there is a genetic link, it is impossible to tell which dogs will develop it and which will not. Other diseases and problems can also cut short an animals life. Michael Hamlin and Lee Rolfe unfortunately had to deal with this reality firsthand with their Pug Phoebe.

"Our Pug girl Phoebe was 1-1/2 years old when we adopted her, and 6-1/2 when she died of PDE." Michael says. But the loss of this middle-aged Pug did not send them running for a puppy.

" It was about three months after her passing when we decided we were ready to get TWO new Pugs." Michael continues to tell the story of the next Pugs they would welcome into their home.

" We filled out an application to adopt from rescue and days later we got the call that there was a Pug family of three that needed to be adopted out together, Cassie and Bruno were the parents and Pee Wee was their son. But this was not a young Pug family: Bruno was 10, Cassie was 8 and Pee Wee 7. We thought, "Ah! What's one more?!?"

"We drove to Vacaville, California on Valentine's Day 1999 to meet Cassie at her foster home. We fell in love with her immediately! She was so little and her tail just wouldn't stop wagging! We then drove to Rocklin to meet PeeWee at his foster home. PeeWee was a perfect gentleman and took turns sitting on our laps. He was so soft and sweet! Then Bruno and his foster family showed up at the house. Bruno wasn't interested in us AT ALL! He was excited to see PeeWee again and wobbled around the yard chasing Pee Wee and sniffing the grass and plants. Lee was ready to take them all home, but I wasn't sold on Bruno and I knew that they were a "package deal". The rescue organization had us think about the decision to adopt the Pugs overnight, so we spent Valentine's night at a bad hotel in Sacramento. We ended up going dancing and heard a Janet Jackson song that we called "Phoebe's Song". It's a song about looking up and seeing a star and knowing that it's a loved one in heaven looking down. We replaced the word "baby" with "Phoebe" and it became the Phoebe Song to us. We had also heard the song on the way to the Dog Show where we learned about the rescue organization. When the song played at the dance club I took it as a sign from Phoebe that we had to adopt the Pug Family!"

"The next morning we picked up Bruno and PeeWee from one foster home and took them to reunite with Cassie and on February 15, 1999 we officially became the "Pug Dads" to the "Pug Family"! Looking back, I can't imagine why I ever had doubts about Bruno, he is so very special!"

"We weren't really looking to adopt Pugs who were as old as they were. If Phoebe was still alive, she'd still be about 6 months younger than PeeWee, our youngest. Bruno is now 14, Cassie 12, and Pee Wee 11. We knew we didn't have the time needed for a puppy, so we knew we wanted adult Pugs. We immediately clicked with Cassie and PeeWee, and Phoebe sent us a sign to convince me about Bruno! Their ages weren't really an issue. What I think is special about senior Pugs is that they really appreciate the love, and really give it back. Puppies often focus their attention on toys (or shoelaces or other things they shouldn't chew on!). These three senior citizen Pugs just want to be with us. (except when it's time for breakfast or dinner, they are still Pugs after all!) As sad as it is, no Pug is going to live forever and it's always going to seem like too short of a time that they are in our lives. But with seniors, it's such quality time! Relaxing time! Loving time! And as we found with Phoebe, you never know how long your baby is going to be around. We lost her way too early, and we'll hopefully have the three old Pugs with us longer than we had Phoebe."

"If someone doesn't want to adopt an older Pug because they think they won't have as much time with them, they will be missing out on SO MUCH joy and love! Whether it's only for a year, four years, or eight years, you will never regret the gift of love that you give an older rescue Pug."

Search your soul, open your heart to an “older" Pug, you will never regret it!

Can you imagine what it must be like for a dog to be discarded in middle age? Sometimes it happens because the owner dies, but it is usually because the owners just decided they didn't want the dog any longer. These are not "bad" dogs, just dogs that happened to end up in bad circumstances.

One such gray-faced "middle aged" black Pug ended up at Contra Costa Animal Control several years ago. When the Pug rescue volunteer when to pick her up from the pound, one of the employees asked the volunteer "Why do you want this one, she's old?" We are a society obsessed by youth and beauty, and this "humane officer" obviously could not see beyond the white hair on the chin to the personality within. To not take her out of the pound would have meant certain death for her later that day. What became of this Pug? She is now known as "Marley" and is living in Idaho. Her "mom" designs and creates clothing made especially for Pugs and named the company after her, House of Marley. Each item of clothing bears her name on the label. Marley can be seen modeling many of these creations at her website, www.houseofmarley.com