Pug characteristics Archives - Page 3 of 3

Are Pugs Intelligent?

March 26, 2022 by emilyreviews Leave a Comment

Are Pugs Intelligent?

In the Stanley Coren testing, pugs ranked 108 out of 136 breeds. This put them in a category that is considered ‘average intelligence for dogs. However, this testing style requires obedience, so stubborn dogs will rank lower, and pugs are known to be stubborn.

In a nutshell, the Stanley Coren testing looks at how many repetitions of a new command a dog has to be shown before it will perform the command consistently. It also looks at how frequently a dog will obey a command that they already know.

Pugs were found to obey known commands only about 30% of the time – showing their stubbornness! They were also shown to need to be shown a new command 40-80 times before they would perform the ask when instructed. This is why they ranked low on the intelligence scale, as ‘smart’ dogs will obey commands after fewer repetitions of an instruction, and will obey known commands more consistently.

As you can tell, both of these forms of testing intelligence require obedience. In my opinion, this means that if you had two dogs who were equally intelligent in terms of what they could understand and do, but one was more stubborn while the other was more obedient, the more obedient dog would test as more intelligent than the stubborn dog.

Now, there isn’t really an easy way to test dog intelligence without involving obedience. How can you test their knowledge if they won’t perform what they know, right? I understand why obedience can’t easily be differentiated from a lack of knowledge or ability…but, I do think it is worth considering when analyzing a dog’s intelligence rating.

Another source of dog intelligence ranking,the Smartest Dogs Breed list according to DogBreedsList.info, ranks pugs in 59th place out of 79 dog breeds.

When researching, I found opposing views on whether pugs have high or low instinctual intelligence. Instinctual intelligence is based on what a dog is bred for, and how well it naturally performs it’s intended behaviors or tasks.

Some say that pugs have low instinctual intelligence because they weren’t bred for a specific task like hunting…so they just don’t have the ability to flex (or not flex) an instinctual intelligence.

Others argue that pugs have high instinctual intelligence. Pugs were bred to be companions so some argue that being a naturally good human companion is a pug’s instinctual intelligence – and that they are very good at. They are little lovebugs!

A Pug Owner’s Thoughts On Pug Intelligence

In my experience with my two pugs, they weren’t easy to train. They were a bit lazy, frankly. However, I never felt like either of my pugs had low intelligence. They were more just stubborn!

I agree with the idea that pugs have roughly average intelligence among dog breeds. While 108 out of 136 breeds sounds low, some of the breeds around their rank include Boston Terriers, Siberian Huskies, Great Danes, Greyhounds, Dachshunds, Shiba inus and Australian Shepherds. While none of those dog breeds are the first ones I think of whe thinking of particularly intelligent dog breeds, none of them come to mind when I think of dumb dogs, either.

I believe that a big part of why people see pugs as a stupid dog is because of their appearance, and the way they are represented in popular culture. They have big eyes that are often crossed, which some take as being a sign of low intelligence.

Cartoons or other forms of media often portray pugs with exaggerated eyes and looking extra goofy. I won’t pretend that pugs don’t have a really unique look that many will read as silly or goofy or weird. I just don’t think their appearance has anything to do with their intelligence level.

Examples Of Pug Intelligence

Pugs are extraordinarily expressive compared to other dogs, in my opinion.

I never felt like I had to guess how my pugs were feeling. This is just my opinion of course, but I felt that both of my pugs could express excitement, playfulness, sadness, hurt, disgust, irritation, contentment, pleasure/happiness, fear, hesitation, longing or desire, tiredess, and jealousy.

My family had a variety of different dogs of different breeds throughout my childhood. Most of them only expressed themselves through barking, whining or whimpering. When I first got my pugs, I was shocked at how many more noises they made! They would exhale sharply when frustrated, groan/grunt when annoyed, and make this repetitive hum-like sound when particularly content…almost like they were purring!

They also have very expressive faces and eyes. I could see excitement, hesitation, fear and boredom in their expressions.

My pug Frank seemed to be a bit more intelligent than my other pug (Beans) was. If allowed, Frank would do things like fuss with a closed package of dog treats until he managed to get a hole in the bag and get a treat out.

Both of my pugs clearly understood common phrases that we’d say to them. They didn’t like going to the vet, but they loved visiting my mother in law. When we would start getting them ready to leave the house, we could tell them “it’s okay, we’re just going to see Grandma” to keep them calm.

In response, they wouldn’t act nervous the way they would when we were going to the vet, and would be excited instead. They clearly seemed to understand where we were going if we told them this.

Frank hated having his nails trimmed, and if he saw me get out our dog nail clippers he’d walk away from me because he knew I’d try to cut his nails soon.

When Beans would be getting her nails cut, Frank would cry almost as loud as he would when we were cutting his nails…even though she handled it pretty well! He clearly understood that we were trimming her nails, and he knew he didn’t like his being done so he’d get upset on her behalf!

When it was dog bath day, whenever I started bathing one dog, the other would try to go hide because they knew they were next.

For the most part, we didn’t give our dogs human food. However, my boyfriend Ryan had a ritual of letting them have a piece of cheese if he were eating block cheese and crackers.

The pugs wouldn’t beg or seem to even be hoping to eat what we were eating when they saw us eating almost anything else…but they would wait very expectantly when Ryan ate cheese. They knew that was a food they had some chance of getting a taste of!

Our pugs wouldn’t bark at the mailman or UPS vehicles (or workers) but would bark if a new/unknown vehicle or person pulled into our driveway.

Frank was a bit of a neat-freak I suppose..in one way, at least. If the dogs own hair got into their water dish, Frank wouldn’t want to drink from the bowl anymore. To communicate this to us, he’d sit by the water bowl and wimper/cry until we refreshed the water.

Frank had a basic awareness of the time of day. How did we discover this? We used to feed them dinner around 9pm. Frank would sit in the kitchen by his food bowl by 830 or 845. Most of the time, anyway. He’d temporarily be thrown off when the clocks changed in the fall, he’d wait for dinner almost an hour too early! This made me realize that he was aware of how it got dark outside around dinner time (during he summer, at least).

Whenever me or Ryan were sick, depressed or otherwise not feeling our best, our pugs would both be extra-clingy. They seemed to be aware of our emotions.

If you have a pug, I’d love to hear your thoughts on their intelligence! Do you think they are smarter than the tests give them credit for? What signs of intelligence have you seen in your pug?

Sources: TheSmartCanine & DogBreedsList.info.

Pugs Are Clingy! Here’s Why

October 28, 2021 by emilyreviews Leave a Comment

Sometimes dog owners refer to cligny dogs as ‘velcro dogs’ because they stick to their people like velcro.

If there was a picture in the dictionary to show a velcro dog, it would be of a pug!

If there was a picture of a lapdog in a dictionary, that would showcase a pug as well.

The truth is, pugs are clingy dogs. Of course, there are always exceptions, but most are really clingy.

Why are pugs clingy?

Pugs are clingy dogs because they were bred for the specific purpose of being lapdogs for Chinese royalty. Their job was to be little loving companions, so pugs thrive on being with their owners, and don’t always know how to entertain themselves if they can’t do their ‘job’ of being at someone’s side.

I snapped this one day after I finished doing some work at the kitchen table. I had been there quite a while so both pugs fell asleep at my feet.

Can clingy pugs be a problem?

Due to their clingy nature, pugs need a lot of attention and commonly suffer from separation anxiety when left alone. They are not naturally independent dogs.

I think pugs are best suited to families or households where they will not have to be left home alone all day. I discuss this more in depth in my post can pugs be left home alone for 8 hours?

Even for people who are at home a lot, pugs being clingy may pose a problem for some people. Not everyone wants a pet who will want to be on their lap everytime they sit down. We all have different personality or temperament preferences in pets. If you like an independent pet, I’d recommend not getting a pug as they may make you feel smothered.

Forgive the sheet that had popped off the corner of the mattress. I took this picture one morning after I managed to sneak up from where I had been sleeping (up against the wall) as I had to laugh at how tiny of a space they had smushed me into, even though my boyfriend had bee gone at work for a few hours so they had tons of room in the rest of the bed.

How Clingy Are Pugs?

If you like a really loving, affectionate dog but aren’t sure if pugs would be too much for you, it may be helpful to get an understanding of just how clingy pugs are!

Of course, pugs can vary from one to the next, but I’ll give you some examples of the level of clinginess that I experience with my two pugs.

They wanted to be on my lap anytime I sat down. They would tolerate it if I sometimes couldn’t or wouldn’t let them sit with me, but they didn’t like it. If I were doing cross-stitch, for example, I wouldn’t want them on my lap as they might get hurt with the needle. Or when I babysat, I’d hold the children rather than the pugs. Mine didn’t whine/cry when I was holding children instead of them, but they did cry if I was working on a cross-stitch project, or wrapping presents, or doing some other sort of project rather than holding them, sometimes. I think if my lap had a child in it, they understood I was busy. Where if I was doing cross-stitch, they didn’t grasp that I wasn’t willing t hold them because of the needle. They just saw that my lap was open and they were confused why they weren’t allowed in it!

I can’t really imagine having a ‘no dogs on the furniture’ policy with pugs. They really want a lot of lap time, and most everyone I know who has a pug has the pug sleep in their beds, too. I don’t think your average pug would be very happy if they weren’t allowed to be on the furniture with their humans, so they may not be well suited to people who want their dogs to stay on the floor.

My pugs would follow me everywhere. It was very rare for me to get up and walk to the bathroom or kitchen and not have them follow me.

They’d move around the room with me if I moved. For example, if I was sitting using my computer and then moved to sit on the floor, they’d follow me.

They wanted to touch me most of the time. Occasionally they’d be fine with just being close (especially my pug Frank). But most o the time they wanted to be in physical contact with me. If they were sitting next to me on the couch and I slid over, they’d most likely slide over too, so they would be touching me again.

Beans had to be touching me as often as possible, and she didn’t really like being next to me, she wanted to be in my lap. When working on my laptop from the couch she’d usually end up in this position shown above, between my legs while I put one leg up to make room for her.

They clung to me in bed. I’d sometimes wake up smushed to one side of the bed and unable to roll over without making one or both of them move because they’d be cuddled so close to me that I couldn’t reposition myself. Sometimes this happened even if I was in bed with just the dogs in our queen-sized bed. They wouldn’t care how much extra space the bed had, they wanted to be right up against me.

They’d whine/cry at the window or glass sliding door if one of us went outside and left them inside. This was even true if I stayed inside but my partner stayed outside…they’d cry that he had gone outside even though I was still with them!

They’d stay in the bathroom while I showered or bathed. Even if I took a long bubble bath, they’d often stay in there with me the entire time.

Whenever my partner and I would try to sit together or cuddle, our pug Frank would try to push his way in the middle.

Reasons why your pug has suddenly become more clingy

If you have a pug ad have noticed that they are now clingier than they used to be, this may be cause for concern. HEre are several reasons why you may notice a sudden increase in clinginess.

A change in their schedule or yours. If you are working longer hours, or your children have gone back to school, or anything of that nature, you may find that your pug is clingier once you are home. This is likely just the result of them missing you while you are gone.

Anxiety. Sometimes new, increased clinginess can be caused by anxiety. If you have anew pet, or had a new person move into your household, your dog may be feeling more anxious and is spending more time near you to try to feel safe.

Age/maturity. If your dog is transitioning from the puppy stage to being more of a mature dog, you may find them being more clingy. Pugs are generally low energy dogs, but pug puppies still have a lot of energy compared to adult pugs. As your dog gets older, and has less energy, they may spend more time attached to your hip.

A health problem. If your pug is not feeling well or experiencing pain, they may be more lethargic and laying around you more, and/or seeking comfort from you. If you have any reason to suspect that your dog is hurt or unwell, be sure to take them to the vet.

A very common experience with Frank, he always wanted to rest his chin on us!

Are Pugs Affectionate?

October 12, 2021 by emilyreviews Leave a Comment

If you’re considering getting a pug, it’s a good thing to ask if they’re affectionate or not. I see the level of affection between dogs and their human family members as being a compatibility factor. If you want a really affectionate dog, an aloof dog breed wouldn’t be a good fit. Similarly, if you prefer a really independent dog, accidentally getting a dog that wants a lot of affection could be a bad idea.

How affectionate are pugs?

Pugs are definitely on the affectionate end of the aloof or affectionate spectrum. If you want to know that your dog loves you, a pug is a pretty good choice! If you prefer an independent dog, a pug probably isn’t for you.

Are pugs affectionate with everybody?

While pugs are typically affectionate with their owners or those close to them, they may not be affectionate with everyone.

I see pugs as a generally friendly breed, so they aren’t likely to dislike strangers or new people. They won’t necessarily want to curl up in a stranger’s lap, though. Where with the people they are close with, they’ll basically wat to be touching them 24/7!

I had one pug that was affectionate with most everyone. Frank was excited to see anybody, and would sit in a stranger’s lap if it was the only one available. He also seemed to particularly like kids. On rare occasion, he’d choose to be near a child rather than sit with me or Ryan even if we were available! While both of our pugs grew to know and remember a variety of our family member’s, frank was the one who definitely seemed more excited to get to visit with extended family sometimes.

Frank cuddling with my nephew, Drew.

Beans on the other hand definitely preferred Ryan and I above everyone else…and honestly, she spent way more time with me than Ryan. She had a really nice bond with Ryan too, but I was definitely her primary perso. She didn’t mind other people stopping over at our house, or visiting with extended family, and she never barked at strangers or anything. She seemed more indifferent about most other people, though. The exception to this would be if we left her. When we’d travel we sometimes left the pugs at my mother-in-law’s house. When we left my mother-in-law’s house, Beans would become attached at the hip to my mother-in-law until we got back. It seemed like Beans needed to cling to someone. While she preferred me, if I wasn’t available she’d pick a new favorite person from those available! Haha.

Frank loved to be near people and rest his chin on them. We called his ‘chinning’. It was almost like he thought his head was too heavy so he was always looking for someone to lean it on.

Can pugs be too affectionate?

Pugs definitely may be too affectionate for some people’s preferences. If you’re someone who finds yourself feeling smothered by pets who want to touch you a lot, you may find pugs too affectionate.

My pugs literally wanted to be touching me as much as possible. Anytime I sat down, they wanted on my lap. When I laid down, they wanted to lay right against me. When I cooked or did the dishes, they’d try to sit on my feet! While we could get our pugs to sit alone if we needed them to, they didn’t prefer to. They also didn’t like being home alone.

Related post: Can pugs be left alone all day?

Neither of our pugs ever licked other people, but they both would kiss Ryan and I. Beans liked to lick us more than Frank did. If we would have let her, I think Beans would have kissed us for hours straight. I don’t really like the sensation of being licked so I’d let her lick me a few times (in an attempt to let her know I was accepting of her affection) but then gently ask her to stop and she would. Ryan didn’t mind the kissing as much so he’d let her lick him longer than I would, and she seemed to really enjoy that he let her. Of course, being licked and may other aspects of animal affection can come down to personal preference.

Are pugs affectionate with other animals?

Pugs usually get along pretty well with other pets. Whether or not they’re affectionate with other pets can vary.

My pugs were listed as a bonded pair, as they had always been together. They seemed to be more focused on us people than they were on each other most of the time. However, they definitely did like each other. They would play together, and if people weren’t around, they’d usually lay together. We had some small dog bed intended to fit just one of them, and some big dog beds intended to fi them both. Even if one of them laid down in a smaller bed, the other would often smush themselves into the small bed with the other! Frank often liked to lay his head on Beans and she didn’t seem to mind at all.

Do pugs like hugs?

Stanley Coren wrote an article about how dogs dislike being hugged, and it actually raises their stress levels. I remember went his first came out, it went a bit viral because so many people were sad to hear this, or wanted to believe it wasn’t true.

I’m no animal therapy expert, so I tend to defer to the experts. Also in my personal experience, it doesn’t seem like my pugs particularly liked being hugged. They did tolerate it, though. Despite not necessarily liking to be hugged, they did love to cuddle. Frank disliked cuddling if you put your arm over him, though. So perhaps it would be more accurate to say they loved laying up against us!

Do pugs like kisses?

I don’t know if dogs in general are supposed to like kisses. From what I can tell from my experience with my pugs, neither of them liked being kissed face-on. In general, I don’t think dogs like having someone right in their face.

However, our pug Frank very clearly loved being kissed on top of his head! He had this little noise he’d make…sort of like a hum, whenever he was really happy. We called it his ‘purr’. He’d make it sometimes while being pet, but he’d almost always do it if you gently rubbed his ears or if you kissed his head or the sides of his face. When being kissed, he’d also close or squint his eyes in a happy way, similar to the face some cats make when they are really enjoying being pet.

Pug Bonding

July 16, 2021 by emilyreviews 1 Comment

Pugs are very social dogs. They’re often described as clingy or as being velcro dogs, even! Meaning if you’re planning to get a pug, you shouldn’t be super worried about whether or not you’ll bond. Chances are, you will bond pretty effortlessly. Still, it’s great to be prepared.

It’s also nice to analyze your bond with your pug because being conscious of your relationship may help you to improve it even more. There’s always room for improvement, right?

Do pugs bond with only one person?

Pugs often have a favorite person who they are really clingy to. They don’t only bond with one person, though! Pugs bond with lots of people, even if they have the tightest bond with one person.

When we got our pugs Frank and Beans, within a few days we knew that Beans had chosen me to be her primary person, and that Frank had chosen my partner Ryan as his primary person. However, we both developed really good bonds with both dogs and they both had lots of love for both of us. Our pugs also created bonds with other people outside of our household.

If we ever needed to travel without our pugs, we’d leave them with Ryan’s mom. When talking to the pugs we called her “grandma”. They would get excited if we told them we were going to grandma’s, as they had a bond with her, too.

Tips For Bonding With Your Pug

Meet their needs

This actually comes from my mom! As a kid our dogs liked her more than me and I was a bit jealous. She explained that she was the one who fed the dogs and looked after their other needs, and that was a big part of why they were most bonded to her. If you take care of the dog yourself, they’ll notice and it can assist with your bond.

Avoid bothering or scaring them

If you can pick up on what your pug doesn’t like and avoid doing those things, it can help your bond. If you do things that scare your pug, they may fail to bond with you due to being afraid of you. For example, if you notice that your pug is sensitive to loud noises and you yell frequently, working on curbing your yelling may help your bond with your pug.

The same is true for things that may not scare them, but that they just don’t like. For example, if your pug gets unhappy when you put a bandanna on them, then not making them wear it may help your bond.

Let them be near you

Pugs live for being with people. While it can be tempting to leave your pug iside when you go outside, or to have your pug on the floor while you are on the couch watching a movie…they’d rather be with you. If you can allow them into your personal bubble more, they’ll likely develop a deeper bond with you.

Learn their favorite things

Keep a close eye on your pug to notice their reactions. If you see them getting excited about something, make note of their favorite things. Once you know what they like, you can do those more often to improve your bond. For example, my pug Frank made this almost pur-like sound when we kissed him, so we gave him a lot of kisses. My pug Beans went crazy for anything chicken-based, so we’d buy dog treats in chicken variety rather than beef or others.

Show them affection

I believe that pugs are quite emotionally intelligent and can pick up on our emotions. If you love your pug and express that affection in the ways that feel naturally to you, they’ll feel the love!

Bonding Activities For Pug Owners

Take them exploring

Walks are great for keeping their activity level up, but pugs often enjoy checking out new areas, too. Taking them for a walk in a new area can be a great bonding experience.

Play with them

How your pug likes to play can defiitely vary by pug. Try out a variety of toys and play styles to see what they espond to both, and then give them regular play time. My pugs liked playing with soft toys with squeakers. They’d fetch them or play tug with them.

Spend time with them on your lap

Pugs love being with people! Just letting them be on your lap while you watch TV or scroll your phone can help them feel the love.

Pet them

Of course, give them pets! It physically feels good to them and can help them relax.

Let them sleep in your bed

Again, pugs just LOVE being with people. If you let a pug sleep in your bed, they’ll love you for it.

Brush them

Some pugs may not love this, but both of mine did! I think getting brushed felt a bit like a massage to them.

Give them treats

Of course, treats have to be managed in moderation. Pugs are prone to obesity. However, pugs do love food. Givig them treats will certainly make a pug happy!

How To Tell If Your Pug Is Bonded With You

They follow you around.
They want to be on your lap often.
They’ll sit near you if they can’t touch you.
They’ll whine or seem sad when you leave or they can’t be close to you.
They act happy or excited when you get home.
They watch you a lot.
They’ll whine or cry while watching you if they are distressed or need something. This shows that they trust you to meet their needs.
They lick you.
They try to get you to play with them.
They stay closer to you than other people.

Can pugs be left home alone all day?

Pug crying

pug bawling

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