Success Stories

We are posting photos and brief descriptions of our successfully adopted pugs here and we would love to receive update about our former fosters. Please send your pug’s story via email. This is the perfect place to brag about the pug you’ve adopted! We love the dogs we rescue and are always happy to hear how they are doing!

Brutus

Pugsley III and Charlie

Pugsley and Charlie are adopted (12/07). Here’s what their new family has to say:  “They are both very well behaved pugs with Charlie being the best (no marking problems).  When we got Charlie we were told that he was a hyper pug, that is exactly what we were looking for to keep Pugsley and our bigger dog Rodeo busy after Sprout died.  He is far more mellow than Pugsley. I always joke that if he were any more mellow he would be comatose!  These two get along like brothers, it's like they have known each other forever.  They eat sleep and play together.  Here is them crashed around the house. It's their normal state of being.  We have another foster from MPR and I had a talk with the boys about bringing another pug in the house and they are as excited to help another one of their own as I am.”

Earl / Oliver

Earl's adopted (3/08)! Here's what Oliver's (formerly known as Earl) new family has to say: “Oliver is doing very well.  He gets along very well with his new "siblings" Oscar and Lola.  They love to play and all run through the house as if it was the Indy 500!  He's just a wonderful addition to our family and will do a good job of keeping his new brother and sister active (and hopefully help them work off some of their winter weight!). He loves his new house and has "made his place" in our bed. He likes to sleep at the top of the bed between his new "mom and dad" with is head on a pillow, just like a person!  Thank heaven we have a king size bed so there is plenty of room for all of the "kids".  We're looking forward to when we can bring him to our summer weekend campsite where he and his siblings have a nice big deck and fenced in area to play  and trails to go for walks on. I'll send a picture of Oliver with is new brother and sister when I can get them all to sit still long enough to have their picture taken.”

Cayanne

Cayanne is adopted (4/08)! More to come ...

Millie

Harlie

Harlie's adopted (2/08)! Here's what his new family has to say about her: “Harlie has been with us a little over a week but you'd think she's always been here.  Her big brother Winston is a great role model.  The two of them are rarely apart and there's no fighting.  We may hear an occasional growl when it comes to toys or chewbones but they work it out with the growl that say's “Hey this is mine right now' and that's the end. Harlie has only had one 'accident' in the house which is great for a new dog in a new home.  She's quite happy to go outside with Winston and 'take care of business'.  At eating time they leave eachother alone (as long as Mom or Dad is within sight!)  When Mom and Dad eat the dogs are lying in thier beds watching. They get thier doggie treats after we are done eating and it didn't take her long to know the schedule! They play for hours in the mornings and then sleep when no one is home.  We were concerned with Harlie's separation anxiety but she only cried once when Mom left for work and since will get on the couch with Winston and is quiet.  They get the run of the family room  while Mom and Dad are at work. Harlie is getting used to the crate when it comes to rides in the car.  Winston gets in his crate and then Harlie tries to get in with him!  She cried the first car ride but has improved greatly since then. We now only hear a few wimpers and once we talk to her she's fine. Harlie has gone with Winston to visit residents at the nursing home and she LOVED the attention!!  They both walk side by side and are quite the attention grabbers traveling down the hallways!   We are very pleased to have Harlie with us....she looks up into your face and wags that little tail which is then followed by two pug kisses.  Winston is happy to have her around as well. They sleep together (in Mom and Dad's bed)and lie together on the couch or floor...pretty much have bonded. Thank you for finding a wonderful pug for us to have as part of our family!”

George

Pete

Pete's adopted (12/07)! More to come ...

Mayo (formerly Mya)

Mayo's (formerly Mya) adopted (9/07)! Here is what her new family has to say: "Mayo is doing well, fitting in – I knew she would – and extremely happy.  I've never met anyone, animal or human, as innately cheerful and happy as Mayo.  She is constantly in a good mood and doing her 'Snoopy dance' of happiness and joy.  I call her my Happy Little Idiot. 

Pickles is less reticent now with Mayo here.  He'll lick her tummy, her face, her ears for as long as half an hour while Mayo sits in a trance of relaxation.  Pickles has learned her name and when I ask him "Where's Mayo?" he goes off to find her and starts licking her.  While usually always together, Mayo is now confident enough to curl up in any given comfy area on her own.  But let me call either one, and I've two Puggies at my feet.

Pickles is definitely the dominant puggy, Mayo the more submissive of the two.  He's fine until Mayo goes for 'his' toy and then she gets a nip and growly bark.  She just backs off and finds her own toy.

My heart sings with joy when I come home from work and let two writhing, wiggling, barking puggies tripping me up out of their cage.  It's the greatest time, the highlight of my day I look forward to.  We all sleep together, including the five cats, and I have to lift Mayo up on the bed because of her bad back leg (patella or hip dysplasia).  Snuggling with two puggies is way better than with one!

I'm so glad I got Missy Mayo.  She's a joy and so happy.  With all she'd been through and still be able to love and trust is amazing.  We could all take a lesson from Mayo."

Pugsley

Ping
Ping's adopted (6/07)! More to come ...

Popeye

Popeye's adopted (1/07)! Here's what his new family has to say: "I can't believe it's been a year since we lost our beloved Punky to cancer. She was our one in a million dog to us. I knew we could never replace her, but something brought me to this website, I think she wanted us to find somone for her sister that she left behind. My husband said no at first, but I knew once he saw the pugs he would soon change his mind! We wanted a female but none were available at the time so we took our chances on a male named Popeye! I can't describe how fast he won over our hearts. He is such a clown and the biggest snuggeler ever. We can't thank you enough for rescuing him from the hurricans. He loves life on the farm and we love him so much. All of your workers and volunteers are absolutly awesome. Thank You. Thank You!!!"

Maddie

Maddie came into our rescue organization a very little 3-year-old girl that had been bought by an angel in Wisconsin to get her out of some poor living conditions where she had been used for breeding.  We were told that Maddie’s last litter all perished, although the circumstances were not shared with the rescue organization.   Unable to keep Maddie because her rescuer already had a pack of dogs at her farm, Maddie was given to the rescue with the understanding that she would be spayed and given a loving home for the rest of her life.  Maddie stole everyone’s heart with her sweet face, partially blind eyes and the perpetually turned out feet that pranced when she walked.   The day she was picked up by her foster mom, Maddie went into heat.  For the next three months, she became a part of a real family where she learned how to be truly loved, slept inside where it was warm, put on weight that covered up those little ribs and had two “sister” pugs where Maddie quickly established herself as the alpha – even though her “sisters” outweighed her by six pounds.  It was with a very heavy heart that Maddie’s foster mom brought her to her forever home on Good Friday 2007. 

Her new forever mom says,  “My son and I already had a 6-year-old male pug, Mops, whom we love dearly, but we felt he would love to have a playmate.  After talking with a representative of MPR, I felt a female dog would be a nice fit for us.  As luck would have it, she was fostering a little girl.  We met Maddie at a pug meet-up and thought she was awfully sweet.  She was prancing around the place like it was her own.  And when the treats came out, boy, did she perk up!  Since she came to live with us on Good Friday of 2007, it has been like she has always been part of our family.  The dogs hang out together and Mops has been a good big brother.  He leads her around the yard and seems to know when she needs encouragement to go potty.  Maddie loves to chase the cats onto their cat tree, and enjoys sneezing at the neighborhood dogs.  Even my teenage son has fallen in love with her, and she likes to sleep on his lap when watching TV.  We are very happy to have Maddie as part of our family!”

Sadie Mae
Sadie Mae's adopted (4/07)! Here’s what her foster family has to say about their new addition: “Sadie (on left) is doing great!!  She went right to sleep in the car.  All my little cousins in Kansas City were so excited to meet her. They were amazed that she had both eyes unlike my pug Charlie (on right).  My sister and my dad fell immediately in love with her.  All of my older cousins said they wouldn't mind taking her home with them that she was so well behaved and had such a cute personality.  She is definitely Charlie's best friend.  The first couple days she didn't know what to think when he licked her, but now she love's it, and she likes to lick his face!”

Tinkerbell
Tinkerbell (previously known as Bessie) was adopted this summer. Here's what her new family has to say about her: 
"Tink is great! She's such a dear! We snuggle every night and sleep together. She's never figured out how to get on or off the bed (there's a chair right next to the bed!) so I have to take care of that. That's OK! She’s snoring on the couch right now. She's lost 7 ounces. We have to go on more walks! She loves them. She doesn't mind going out in the rain, and is kind to all the other dogs in the neighborhood. One bad thing though. If someone walks by, she tries to follow them home! I keep telling her she's mine but she doesn't listen! :) This weekend, she tried to climb in someone’s car as their family got in. She's so funny! She loves all people and they love her right back! She had her two teeth cleaned and they didn't have to pull either of them! Very exciting. She did (thought you'd like to know you were right) have a pretty bad ear infection that took a long time to clear up and needs her nose fold cleaned, but that's minor stuff. She is a true delight."

Dooley

Dooley's adopted (9/06)! Here's what his new family has to say about their newest addition:

"Well, we've had Dooley for a full week now, and what a joy he is to have around!  He didn't take long to warm up to everyone in the house. (I have 2 kids, and my boyfriend Jim has 4 -- Dooley loves them all, and they all love him). The funniest thing to watch is when Jim's kids Mom picks them up, he thinks he gets to go with, and runs back and forth between the car and the house. He's also been enjoying playing tag in the backyard with the kids. He loves to run and jump and then crawl in your lap and snuggle for a while. Dooley has been a perfect gentleman. Only once has he had a little "oops" in the house, and that was probably more my fault than his... I was still getting used to reading his signs.  

The one thing we are working on is Dooley's need to hit the "snack bar" (a.k.a. the litter box) every day. I keep it very clean, but he seems to know every time the cats use it... he runs to the snack bar, and we tell him no... and he tries to sneak back when he thinks we are not looking. I did catch him twice with sprinkles on his nose. Dooley also loves riding in the car. He came with us to the DQ last night and just loved the ride. We are so happy that Dooley is a permanent member of our family. He is a very special pug."

Hagrid

Hagrid's adopted (12/06)! Here's what his new family has to say: "He is such a dear old soul, I can’t imagine my life without him. He has really blossomed as part of our family. The other dogs like him and he has started to participate in play with each of them. His favorite things include coming and going from my office, sleeping on the bed with Mom while watching TV and riding in the car. He is doing well with his acupuncture and eye treatments. He actually runs and bounces with very little weakness. He is doing well holding his urine as long as I help him express his bladder when we go out potty. The poops are still an issue but he is worth a little extra cleaning up after. My other dogs aren’t perfect either. He loves to have his chest rubbed and will roll over and get so ecstatic that he just has to take some of my shirt in his mouth as he rubs his face on it. Thank you to all the people involved in his rescue."

Buckaroo
Buckaroo was adopted this summer. Here's his story: "Buckaroo came to the rescue because the original family could not keep him due to a new human baby coming into their lives. This couple gave Buckaroo to a friend of theirs that had lived with pugs before. He is a realtor and has odd hours and could not take care of Buckaroo in a humane fashion. He had Buckaroo for a week before he contacted me.

So after that we had Buckaroo stay with us a few days before he went to his foster home - during this time my husband fell in love with him. He was in the foster home for about a week to two weeks before the neuter. I picked him up after the neuter and have had him since.

Buckaroo had a couple that wanted him and they lived in Illinois. They submitted the application, I contacted the references and things looked good. Then unexpectedly, they called and said that they could not adopt him because the dad's boss would not let him bring two pugs into work (only the one that they already had).

So Buckaroo has been added to our crew. He is a ball of fire and always running around looking to play. He loves the chewies and sleeping in, in the mornings. He learned how to swim over the summer and he sits for his treats."

Priscilla (formerly known as Rosie)

Rosie's adopted (4/08)! Here’s what her new family has to say: “Priscilla (formerly known as Rosie) is just a wonderful new addition to our family. The pictures that we sent are of Priscilla (on the right) laying on her new favorite couch. Priscilla and Frankie like to lay on the top of the couch and sleep or watch the neighbors from their veiw point. They are quite the pair of pugs. Frankie is just enamored with her.In fact they spend most of their day chasing each other around our home. They've made a race track out of our down stairs. Watching them is so entertaining. They go around so fast and Pricilla is so much faster than Frankie, she dodges him left and right. They also LOVE their bones. One night I counted all of their bones that the two of them had taken out of their toy basket and they had taken out 18 bones! Pricilla in particular always has at least three bones in front of her when she chews them. Then she usually falls asleep with one laying against her cheek! Pricilla has given us a lot of good laughs although she's only been with us for a week now. We were really surprised when the little girl could jump up on our bed with out any trouble. Our Frankie waits to be picked up. (Frankie is a Diva). Today we all took a nap in our loft and I awoke to Frankie and Pricilla laying on my chest! I was so cute they we just a snoring away! My teenage brother, Jared (the one that was with us when we picked Pricilla up) is over a lot and he LOVES the pugs. When he stays with us he sleeps in our day bed, which is quite tiny bed. So, anywaythe other morning when I went to get the dogs from Jared I went in to the guest room and all three of them (Jared, Frankie and Pricilla) were snoring and sprawled out! I just love it! We couldn't have made a better decision than to adopt Priscilla. She just seems like a natural fit into our life! Thank you for making her adoption an easy and enjoyable process! Keep up the good work. It's a noble cause that you do.”

Wilbur

Wilbur's adopted (4/08)! More to come ...

Ruby 

Ruby's adopted (1/07)! Here's what her new family has to say: "Ruby (pug on the left in the photo) is doing absolutely fantastic.  She has taken over and is currently ruling our household.  She was eligible to be registered with the AKC, so I did, so her “official” title is Lady Ruby of Virginias Alex.  That was in honor of the woman she was named after, the state she came from, and the reason I received her – my dog Alex died.  She sleeps like a champion, eats like one even better.  She demands to cruise the internet anytime anyone is on typing which I think is hilarious.

The first time she waddled into our home she took after the younger pug like she was letting him know just who was the new sheriff  in town.  They play a little, but it is taking a while.  She isn’t a player.  She is warming up to it, but it is taking a long time to learn how to play.  I don’t think anyone really played with her before, like tug of war or chase the stick, etc.

She has also had several gran mal seizures since arriving to my home.  I’ve taken her to the U of M Vet Clinic to be evaluated.  We have found three different types of seizures that she has.  Gran Mal, and two petit mal.  So she was started on Phenobarbitol.  So far so good.  She has had problems with wetting because she is drinking more, but we’ll get over that I guess.  She also has some Keretosis in her right eye and very little vision, so she is so cute when she looks up sideways at us.  Like a sly glance.

Her favorite spot is in the kitchen of course.  Right between our legs when we are cooking.  Just in case.  She has adopted my son and follows him EVERYWHERE.  Up and down the stairs.  When he comes home from school, she just about comes out of her skin she is so excited – and the snuffling is outrageous!  I’ve never heard a louder pug.  We may have to have that looked at a later date.  The vet mentioned that.

All in all we are madly in love with Ruby.  I cannot imagine life without her.  So far car rides do not go well, but we are working on that also. 

My other pug, Winston just floats through life.  He hops on all fours outside. I think he thinks he’s a rabbit.  He has his second birthday coming up and we are having a cake delivered from the Three Dog bakery in Kansas City. 

Thank you for everything.  We are tickled pink.” 

Oliver

Here’s what his foster family has to say about their new addition: “Almost eight weeks ago, we (Jeff & Jennifer) started fostering Oliver, in hopes that he would join our family. And now (4/07) he has! Ollie had lived in the same house for all seven years of his life and he’s done a great job of moving.

He has adjusted well to his new doggie bed and kennel, which is where he sleeps at night. Initially, Oliver had difficulty adjusting to the loss of his previous home’s doggie door and learning how to communicate with us. In those moments, our dining room floor served as his pooping place, which was not our favorite phenomenon. Now we have found ways to help him avoid making those messes indoors. We are also glad that he is learning how to be a patient doggie while the humans eat non-doggie food, especially since he can be rewarded with his own treat afterwards. He is sensitive about his tail, due to some previous experiences. When he first arrived, he would “spaz” (that’s what we called his high pitched screech, rapid movement and growling) whenever our petting  was too close to his tail – which wasn’t very close at all! We are proud that he has not spazzed in a couple weeks.

Now that the snow and ice are gone, Ollie loves going for walks! He draws attention from all the neighborhood children and joins in barking-fests with the neighborhood dogs (especially the big ones). He enjoys playing tug of war and recently chewed the knots apart on his favorite rope chew toy. Oliver loves to give kisses, especially to wake one of us up in the morning or after a nap. In the evening, he likes to relax on Jeff’s tummy or snuggle up next to Jennifer’s legs on the couch.

Our latest challenge: sometimes Ollie wakes up as early as five in the morning and starts calling for breakfast. Ack! It’s great if he can wait at least another hour for his tired parents. Despite the early mornings, we are really glad to have Oliver with us.”

Bear

Bear's adopted (7/07)! Here's what his new family has to say about their now permanent addition (They originally fostered him): "We have fallen in love with Bear that we have decided to adopt him. He has grown accustom to our family and has a brotherly relationship with our 2 dogs that we can't seperate him now. My husband was the first to fall in love with him and his ability to play rough. When we first got him he was not in the mood to play, it took him a couple of weeks before he would actually play ball with me and the other "boys".  More to come ..."

Suki-Lee (formerly known as Missy)

Ace

Ace's adopted (6/07)! Here's what his mom has to say, "Ace fit right in at my house no adjustment time needed. Ed, my older pug, loved him from the start.  Ace won’t let Ed out of his sight now.  I found out Ace has very bad hips. I have him on meds and lots exercise so every day get a little stronger.  He really is the most loving pug and wants to cuddle all the time. I just wanted to say thank you for Ace!!! He is very special to me.”

Shelby
Shelby's adopted (6/07)! More to come ...

Izzy (formerly known as Peanuts)

Things are great, and we couldn’t be happier or love him more. Although he still won’t sit next to either of us on a chair or couch, and mostly squirms and squiggles and doesn’t like being picked up and held, he’s still a loving little pug and seems a very happy boy.

Most of the time during the day, he still plays incessantly with favorite chew item, the nyla-bone “barbeque ribs” (see picture). He just doesn’t gnaw at them, he bats at them, pounces on them, and repeatedly knocks them under the couch or chair, and then waits patiently for us to retrieve them. He then starts all over again. It’s almost compulsive, but he does let up after a time. But while he’s engaged, we better not try to pick him up and cuddle. He has no time for that then!

He is SUCH a sweet boy. He follows us around, and even when he’s busy, he’ll poke his head in the kitchen to see what we’re doing, go back to his playing, then check on us a few minutes later.

And he’s a great sleeper! He’s always happy to go upstairs to bed. I often carry him but he’ll bound up the stairs if I don’t. I place him on the bed and give him a rawhide chew to lick clean. After just a few minutes, he moves over and curls up on a fleece blanket and sleeps all through the night. And he DOESN’T SNORE! This is one quiet pug!

We call him a “stealth pug” because every time we turn around there he is there when he wasn’t there a moment ago. It’s like there’s a hundred Izzys, one always ready to be at hand wherever we happen to be, and we never seem to hear him move; he’s just there! It is very funny.

Izzy is everything we hoped for (well, a little more cuddling will be nice but I am ever optimistic that that will improve with time) and we tell him he is the sweetest little boy alive. He looks at us then like “well, what did you expect?” and takes it all in stride."

Yoda

Yoda was adopted this summer. Here's his story and an update from his forever family: "I adopted one of the first surrenders named Yoda.  I fostered him and ended up adopting him.  I fell in love with him and so did my other pug Roxy. He had been living outside since the previous owners did not like his marking in the house. This was during March to May when it was still cold out. They called the humane society, which then called us. I went and picked him up.

He was outside with no water and only a bowl of cat food. There was no fence so I think they were hoping he would run away.  It was raining out that day so he was huddled next to their grill to try and keep out of the rain. His coat was all matted and dirty.  He had no bed, collar or even a toy.  

He is such a sweetheart (like all pugs). He follows me literally everywhere.  He loves rawhides and cuddling. He now has piles of toys and gets lots of love.  I do not have any kids so he and his sister Roxy are my babies."

Otis

Otis is adopted (10/07)! More to come ...

Maxine

Maxine’s adopted (6/07)! Maxine wanted to tell her own story:  “Due to really sad circumstances beyond anyone’s control, I had to find a new home after 7 years with my mom. Carol was wonderful enough to come and pick me up and take me on this really long drive to a foster home out in the country. Well, this drive was so long that I really bonded with Carol and when we arrived there I had no intention of staying. I mean we got out of the van and there were all these pugs at the fence, barking at me and saying "Hello, welcome to our farm." This was too much; I'm supposed to be the only one! Not any more! Changes were in store (but there were all good)!

So, Carol came into the yard with me to meet this gang (only 3 pugs) and encourage me that it was going to be o.k. and I would really like it here and learn new stuff. Since she had been so wonderful on the drive up here I knew she had to be telling me the truth but I really wanted her to stay. That was not to be and after she left I spent some time at the gate wondering if she was going to come back to get me. Nothing doing, pretty soon these new people wanted me to come into the house and get to know everyone. Well, I couldn't help being shy, this was all really new to me but it was better than sitting by the fence.

For the first few days, I pretty much kept to myself and the other pugs just left me alone; no one was going to push me if I wasn't ready. In the evening the folks would try to encourage me to come and sit with them in the living room; with a little coaxing I decided it was OK to sit in there on the couch with the dad since the other pugs were sitting on mom.

Since I had been the only one I didn't understand that meal time meant everyone ate out of their own dish and I didn't really have to protect mine; no one would take it away from me. So at first I was content to just eat in a different room but those pugs really wanted me to join them in the kitchen, so little by little dad moved my dish closer to the others until I was just one more pug having dinner.

Now as the days went by the youngest one, Daphne was trying to teach me something. It took a while but I finally realized it was how to play with her. Having been the only one I never had another pug to play with so this was new and fun!!!! All I had to do was watch Daphne and then copy what she did. This was going to be o.k.

I didn't know this but everyone was working really hard to find me a home that would be mine forever. I mean this place was nice but with all these pugs how would I ever get all the attention that I wanted!! Really!!! Well, one day the mom says, "Maxine, it's time to go meet Michael and Molly and see what you think of their home." Now, that sounded like a plan!!

On a beautiful Friday afternoon, we drove into the city to what was to become my new FOREVER HOME. Michael was so wonderful right away and Molly, the other pug that lived there, well she was quite happy to see me. You see she had recently lost her sister so it was pretty empty at her house all by herself. She couldn't wait to show me all around the house and the yard, and, oh the really neat thing; when it's nice out Michael leaves the door open so we can go outside whenever we want to without asking someone to open the door. There are dog beds everywhere but Molly tells me she just sleeps on the couch and Michael doesn't mind. This is a really great place and I just couldn't believe how lucky I was that I would be living here forever!!! Molly has been telling me how great Michael is and that he really spoils her. Yeah, they even have a place at a lake where we can run all we want.

So, I said good bye to my foster mom but I know I'll get to see her again because she is good friends with Michaels sister. And by the way, she got just a little attached to me while I was there.”

Nikki and Cricket

Maple

Maple's adopted (7/07)! More to come ...

Boomer

Boomer's adopted (12/07)! More to come ...

Sheba
Sheba's adopted (11/07)! More to come ...

Muggsy

Muggsy's adopted (4/08)! More to come ...

Teddy

Teddy's adopted! More to come ... 

Baxter

Baxter's adopted (10/06)! More to come ...

Finn 
Finn has been adopted (4/08)! More to come...