Two Pug Tails

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Do Pugs Shed A Lot?

Pugs shed a fair amount, and shed all year. Double coated pugs will shed year-round, but will also shed more twice a year when they lose their winter coat for the summer, and again when they lose their summer coat so that their winter coat can grow in. Single-coated-pugs will experience a more consistent amount of shedding year-round.

If you want a pug that sheds less, consider getting a black pug as they usually have just one coat and shed less than other colors of pugs.

Female pugs who are in heat may experience more shedding than usual.

Are Pugs Single Coated Or Double Coated?

It depends on the pug! Most black pugs have a single coat, while fawn, silver and apricot pugs usually have a double coat.

Double-coated dogs shed more than single-coated dogs because they have more hair.

Pugs are said to have up to 600 hairs per square inch, vs just 100-200 hairs per square inch in some other dog breeds. They have really dense hair! This is part of why pugs shed so much.

All dogs have a shedding cycle, but the pug shedding cycle is shorter which is also contributes to why they shed so much. Not only do they have more hairs per inch than other dog breeds, they also cycle through “sets” of hair more frequently.

How To Manage Pug Shedding

1. Brushing your pug regularly will help to pull off loose hairs, and to keep those hairs from getting spread around your home! When your pug is transitioning their seasonal coat, you may want to brush as frequently as daily. Outside of those heavy-shedding seasons, brushing them a couple of times per week may be sufficient. You could brush daily though if you really want to minimize how much hair falls in your home.
2. Diet. Your dog’s fur will stay healthier if they are fed a high-quality diet.
3. Invest in a good vacuum. A vacuum that has a lot of power and is specifically designed to be great with pet hair can make a big difference. A high-end vacuum wasn’t within my budget when I had my pugs. I’ve heard the Dyson Animal vacuum is amazing, but I couldn’t justify spending $500 on a vacuum. However, even just buying a more average-cost vacuum that is specifically made for pet hair helped. I have the Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet Vacuum Cleaner and thought it was noticeably better at picking up pet hair than other vacuums I’d owned at a similar price point.

That’s really about it! For the most part, the amount of shedding that your pug does is something to accept rather than something to try to ‘fix’ or change.

What brush to use for pug shedding?

When we first got our pugs, everyone was talking about the furminator as they claim to be desheddign tools, better than regular brushes. It did seem to really effectively remove hair from the pugs, too! However, one day after brushing Frank I realized he was bleeding. He had a few moles or skintags and the furminator bristles are so hard that they had actually cut him when I brushed those areas. I quit using the furminator after that.

I’ve since read that deshedding brushes like the furminator aren’t ideal for double-coated dogs anyway. Instead, it’s generally recommended that you use an undercoat rake to help loosen up any hair that needs to be let free, and the a regular pin brush to remove the hair.

When To Be Concerned About Pug Shedding?

Shedding is usually a natural part of being a healthy pug, and most pugs will shed more when the weather transitions from warm to cold, or cold to warm. If you find that your pug seems to be excessively shedding, it could be a cause for concern.

Some factors to consider:

Is your pug is shedding excessively while experiencing high levels of stress. Like humans, dogs can experience hair loss due to extreme stress. So if you notice an increase in shedding around a stressful event, that could mean their hair loss is due to stress rather than healthy shedding.

Is your pug showing signs of allergies or skin issues? Sometimes these cause hair loss, so if you see shedding alongside allergy symptoms, allergies may be causing the shedding.

Does your pug’s hair look and feel healthy? If it feels rough, wirey or just otherwise unhealthy, you may need to improve their diet or seek medical attention.

Does your pug have bald patches or unusually thin sections of their body that should be covered in fur? This is a sign of unusual hairloss and you should see a vet.

How To Keep Pug Fur Off Your Clothing

Honestly, pugs are such a clingy breed that it’s really challenging to keep hair off you regular clothing. Not letting your pug on the couch or your bed would help, but I think my pugs would have felt abused if I didn’t let them be on te furniture with me! So, for the most part, we just accepted that we’d get pug fur on our clothing when at home. However, we of course couldn’t have pug hair on our outfits all the time.

Keep your ‘nice’ clothing away from your pugs. When Ryan was working in an office, we keep his clothing hanging up in the closet and he’d put it on just before heading out the door to keep it free from pug hair.

Protect your vehicle. If you take your pug for a ride in your car, either putting a blanket (or towel) down in their seat before the drive and cleaning it up later, or vacuuming your car after can help. Otherwise, they’ll likely shed in your vehicle seat and then in the future your clothing will have fur on it after you sit in the vehicle.

Lint rollers are a pug-owners best friend! They make small ones that you can fit in your purse or glovebox for use on the go.