Wednesday, January 30, 2008
I just wanted to say, “Thank you” for all the kind comments left on yesterday’s post about Luna’s “Gotcha Day” (I like that term!). I have read (and re-read them) and I am very thankful to be able to share my thoughts about Luna, Benny & Henry with all the pug lovers out there.
I have been loving all the comments lately because I feel like I am getting to know everyone out there. So keep them coming because it is great to learn about all you wonderful people owned by pugs.
Also, many said that they have rescued a pug and I would love to hear your Rescue Story. Just send us an e-mail and we will post it on the site.
Thanks for stopping by and reading about Benjamin, Henry & Luna. Your comments always make my day!
Have a wonderful day, pug lovers!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
I have had a few questions on how to introduce a new pug to the family, so I thought I would share how we went about bringing Luna into the family. I am by no means an expert, so I would love to hear how others went about bringing a new pug into the family.
Here is what worked for us.
The first thing we knew we wanted to do was to have Luna and the boys meet on neutral ground. We didn’t want to just bring Luna into the house and plop her down in front of the boys because we knew they would feel more territorial meeting her this way. So, we brought the boys to the park where Luna’s adoption took place. Would it have been a tad easier to do all the adoption paperwork without the boys there? Yes. Would we have been able to totally pamper Luna more without the boys there? Absolutely. But I thought it was important for the boys to meet her the same time we met her and the park was a perfect meeting place. The boys had never been to that park and I don’t think Luna had been either. So from the boys’ point of view they were just meeting another dog at the park, which is something they love to do. They had no idea that she would be coming home with us.
After we took care of all the adoption paperwork, we walked around the park with Luna and the boys. There was a pug festival going on so the park was buzzing with activity and there were pugs everywhere. So we just walked around meeting other pugs and talking to people.
After we made our rounds, we decided to call it a day and head back home. We had a 3 hour drive ahead of us so we wanted to hit the road. Also, I was anxious to see how the boys would react to Luna getting in the car. This would be their first test of allowing Luna in their territory. And having them first get used to Luna being in their car, rather than their house was no accident. I wanted to sorta gradually introduce her. We had Luna’s seatbelt already setup, so we stuck to our normal routine. Benny always gets buckled in first then Henry, so we stuck to that order. Then we simply buckled Luna in making no big deal of it. Although, that was the hardest part. I wanted to make a big fuss over our new baby girl, but I just knew that I couldn’t. That would be the worst thing to do. I knew that would send the boys into jealous mode, because some new pug is getting all kinds of attention for doing something that was so routine to them. So, we kept it low key and acted as if Luna had been with us all along.
Once we got home, it was dinner time for the pugs. So we decided to feed the pugs before we even went inside the house. Luna was only used to eating kibble at that point, so we made her dinner and got the boys’ dinner ready. Rather than eating in their normal spots we had the pugs eat outside on the lanai. We gave each of the pugs ample space and put down their bowls in their normal order, Benny’s, then Henry’s and now Luna’s.
After they ate, we let them play in the backyard a bit. They had a great time running around playing chase and we got to know Luna a little bit more. Once everyone was tired it was time to show Luna her new house. We simply opened the door and let her in like she had been here before. Luna went around smelling and looking over things and the boys were right by her side (and we weren’t too far behind). Since, they already had a rapport with her they didn’t seem to mind her barging in.
After that, we just tried to keep things business as usual. It was really hard no to dote on Luna, but I knew it would be best in the long run if we treated her just like the boys (they don’t do too bad in the doting department themselves).
To sum things up, here are the thing that we deliberately set out to do to make the addition of Luna as smoothly as possible.
- Met on neutral turf
- Let the pugs get to know each other before we brought Luna into the house
- Stuck to the boys’ routine. Rather than changing everything because Luna was now here, we just simply taught her the boys’ routine.
- Gave extra praise to the boys for being such good big brothers
- No special treatment for Luna, at least not in front of the boys. With the boys around she simply got as much love and attention as they did.
- Fed Luna last. When doling out treats or meals, Luna was always fed last. I once read that the top dog gets their food first, so we didn’t want to send messages to the boys that Luna was the new top dog in town or we didn’t want to coax little Luna’s alpha personality along and help her take over.
- Took lots of walks. We went on lots of walks the first month Luna was with us. This kept the boys well exercised and well behaved and was great opportunity for them to get out and bond with Luna
How did you go about adding another pug to your family?
Thursday, December 13, 2007
I would like to THANK everyone who voted for Benjamin & Henry in the PetSource.org Halloween Costume Contest. Because of your daily clicks the boys took home first place, earning Compassionate Pug Rescue $1,000. Last weekend, Compassionate Pug Rescue received their check in the mail! Hearing that news made my weekend!
So a huge thank you to all of you! Without your daily clicks none of this would have ever been possible!
Monday, October 22, 2007
Hello everyone! Thanks to all that have voted for Benjamin & Henry in the PetSource Halloween Costume Contest. The boys are currently in the lead, but there is a new “Sheriff” that is catching up quick! If you have the time please drop by and vote for the boys. You can vote up to one time a day and I believe the contest runs until Halloween. After you register the first time, voting is a lot easier. The quickest way to find the boys is to sort by Most Voted. Hopefully, we will still be at the top 
The boys are dressed as Batman & Robin
If we win, $1,000 goes to Compassionate Pug Rescue. We would love to be able to win the money for them.
Thanks so much!
Thursday, October 18, 2007
I just entered a picture of Benjamin & Henry into PetSource.com’s Halloween Costume Contest. The entry that gets the most votes gets a $1,000 donation to the animal charity of their choice. We would love to win and send $1,000 to Compassionate Pug Rescue. They nursed little Luna back to health and they have have recently helped so many pugs that were in need of costly medical attention. So if you can, please drop by and cast a vote for Benjamin & Henry in Luna’s honor! You can vote one time per day.
For some reason, I can’t link directly to our entry. But right now it is on the front page if you sort by newest.
Friday, August 10, 2007
Earlier this month, Animal Services contacted Compassionate Pug Rescue to let them know that they had just received a pug that had been hit by a car. Because of the severity of the young pug’s injuries, Animal Services would be forced to put down the pug. CPR swooped in and took the young pug from Animal Control and set off to get her the care that she needed for her injuries.
X-Rays revealed that Angel had an upper hip fracture, a fractured pelvic bone, and a left femur fractured in three different areas. It was determined that precious Angel would need two surgeries because the surgeon thought trying to fix everything at once was more than the sweet little girl could probably endure.
Angel’s first surgery was on August 3, 2007 and her second surgery was on August 6, 2007. Angel has a lot of physical therapy to undergo in the upcoming months, but the Dr.’s prognosis for the future is very bright for sweet Angel.
As you can only imagine, the cost of Angel’s surgeries is much more than a small rescue organization can support. Now more than ever, CPR needs the support of Pug Lovers everywhere! A donation of any size goes a long way in helping to pay for Angel’s medical costs.
Thanks to CPR, Angel now has a whole life of pug living to do.
You can make a donation to the Compassionate Pug Rescue Angel Fund from Compassionate Pug Rescue’s Website. Donations can be made via PayPal or checks may be mailed directly to Compassionate Pug Rescue.
I would like to give a big thank you to all those who donated money to CPR for the calendar contest. Please know that your donations are being applied to the Angel fund and are helping this sweet girl on the road to recovery.
