A huge HELLO from Joy and Maya

[Joy101]

My family and I just bought our first little pug puppy from a local and reputable breeder. Her name is Maya(MYuh) and she is absolutely ADORABLE. We are first time pug owners so even though all of you pug owners are familiar with pug behavior, I'm just going to gush all over again about hers.

Did I say she is adorable?

At seven weeks, Maya has so much energy the four of us(human family) are not only exhausted but happily so. She loves to scramble right up our bodies, wiggling her little butt all the way, excessively licking our faces and nibbling our ears. She also loves to bite pretty hard and it's surprising how hard this pup can chomp down. Wow, what a terror!

The lady I bought her from says she's going to be small, but Maya struts around like she's a huge beast.

When she calms down, she gets comfy on our laps and proceeds to splay her little body in the funniest positions as she falls asleep. I have never seen a dog do this.

Yes, I adore Maya's little head tilt. I love that her family members are the top lights of her life(next to food that is). Speaking of food, this girl is a glutton! I have never seen a dog eat like she does. Thankfully, I ran across some online advice about pouring her food onto flat surfaces like a cookie sheet--although I use a child's plastic plate--so she won't eat her food too quickly.

The following are some concerns I have:

The lady I bought her from had lots of invaluable advice to give regarding pugs and one of the things she told me was to feed her 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup total daily. So, every six hours I fed her 1/4 cup on a regular feeding schedule(6am, noon, 6pm) but this little gal's tummy began to be tight as a drum and appeared bloated. She also has constant access to fresh water. Last night I was worried and decided to cut back to 1/4 cup twice daily instead of three times daily. During the night she pooped enough for that belly of hers to slim down, but I decided to wait until 8:00 am to feed her. I have her on Hill's science diet for puppies/small breed and seems to have no issues with that. It is what her previous owner recommended so I haven't changed her diet at all. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance to all who read and respond!

[Spud]

I don't have any advice on the diet. I know there should be recommended daily serving sizes on the bag and online.

I am glad you all are enjoying your new member. Pugs are amazing I am hooked on the breed. Welcome to the board, there are so many helpful people on here. I can't wait to see some pictures.

[Cheryl7777]

Welcome to PV and congratulations on your new Pug puppy. Pugs are wonderful as you are finding out. I have a couple of suggestions. First of all, feeding from plastic dishes can cause acne in dogs. I would get either a stainless steel bowl or ceramic bowl and flood her food with some warm water. You can also get bowls online with dividers that help slow the fast eater down. Science diet is highly recommended by vets because they sell it. There is a website that rates dog food and science diet is only rated about one star. I would check into a prepared raw diet like Stella and Chewys or others you may have available in your area. Again welcome to PV. We love to see puppy pictures if you have time to post some.

[Joy101]

Thank you Spud and Cheryl for responding.

To Cheryl: I wasn't aware of plastic causing acne in dogs, but thanks for the tip. I'll shop around today for an appropriate dog dish. As far as Science diet, I am aware of it's not being grain free and I am only initially sticking with it to ease Maya's transition into our home as that is what the seller had her on. The seller was under the mistaken impression that Hill's Science diet was grain free and not long after I got Maya, I found out differently. As far as the seller goes, all her pugs appeared to be in amazing health and their environment was well structured and spotlessly clean--as well as the owners. I am confident that this lady is a quality breeder, but I'm not sure how she came to think Science diet was grain free. I am a research everything type of person but am also grateful for any advice from experienced pug owners which is part of the reason I joined this site. So thank you for those tips!

To all other pug owners reading this thread: Your advice is appreciated!

[Tinker's mom]

Hello & to the village! So glad you found us, lots of info on here! Aren't pug puppies the cutest things ever?!Good advice about the plastic, you can also use a mini muffin tin to slow her down.Pugs would eat until they pop so keep measuring out the food.Can't wait to see pics of your new addition.

[Wally 'n' Leto]

Welcome! Maya sounds like a little bundle of puggy joy!

I would suggest that you feed her less over 3 meals than the 1/4 cup twice a day. When puppies are small, it is hard for them to regulate their blood sugar, so smaller meals more often is better than larger meals less often. And definitely keep free choice water down, some people take it up late at night to cut out the mid-night tinkle outings, but I honestly feel that if a critter is thirsty, they need to drink even if it results in inconvenience for us. The say when we are thirsty we are already dehydrated, I don't think it can be that different for them.

When our Wally (the brindle mix in my avatar, who is a whopping 15 lbs full grown and very muscled up) was little, we had a hard time with food. He had - and still has - a terribly sensitive tummy. We fed him about 2 or 3 tablespoons 3 times a day, which looked like a whole lot of nothing even in a little bowl. We measured the days rations into a cup and split it from there into equal meals rather than trying to measure kibble with a measuring spoon.

We got a bunch of ceramic flan dishes from the dollar store and even now use them - for him they're just the right size, and his still-small meals don't look as paltry to us so we have less tendency to give him an extra few kibbles.

I think you're on the right track keeping her on the Hills for a little while until she is used to her new surroundings and to make sure she has come from the seller healthy and stays so for a while -- especially as you say that she is doing well on it. If she gets an upset tummy right now, you'll know it's not what you have switched her to... it's something else. You will probably want to change foods by the time you get towards the end of this bag -- leave enough to do a gradual transition over 3 weeks or so.... check out dogfoodadvisor.com for great recommendations. Many better dog food stores will stock free sample packages of the better foods, you can get a few different kinds and offer them as treats to see what tickles her fancy.

We use a mix of Fromm's 4-star wet and Taste of the Wild dry as this has proven best for wee Wally's innards, and both are very good quality. many on the board use TOTW in particular. Leto could eat garbage and thrive on it, so he gets what his brother can handle. We tried raw and a variety of top quality foods, but Wally got sick on them all -- probably because the protein was too high for him to tolerate. You need to find the food that will agree best with both her and your needs. So take a look at what's out there in good grain free, read lots of reviews, and get the best that you can afford on an ongoing basis and that agrees with Maya. Just be sure to do the transition very slowly to let her gut adjust.

Have fun!!!

[Joy101]

Thank you Tinker's mom and Wally 'n' Leto for the warm welcome!

[Lu Ci and Ri Ki]

Hello and to PugVillage. Glad you have joined us and that you have been "Pugged". We need pixs, please, so we can "ooh and aah" with you over your new little Puggie girl.

[CSollers]

Hi Joy and welcome to PV. If you check out this site, you can learn all about different foods for our furkidz. Dog Food Reviews | Dog Food Ratings

[Hellas]

A warm welcome to PV! I agree with Wally 'N' Leto that it's best to keep her on what she's eating now and to switch over to a better quality food gradually once she's truly settled in. I also agree that it's better to feed 3 or even 4 times per day in small portions.