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People love pugs! There is something in this rogue-like face that pulls the strings of your heart. This worthy toy breed is loved by royalty and ordinary alike. These loving, smart, little clowns are extremely popular and take 12th place out of 154 dog breeds registered by the American Kennel Club in 2005. The pug is the largest of the Toy Dog Group, with a weight of 14 to 18 pounds.
The pug has a fascinating story and one that is somewhat controversial. No one disputes that the English artist William Hogarth owned Pugs and depicted them many times in his paintings. For example, a 1730 painting by Hogarth depicts a black pug in the House of Cards. In the same way, everyone agrees that the pug became the official dog of the House of Orange after saving the life of the Prince of Orange, warning of the approach of the Spaniards in 1572. Later, when William of Orange set off for England in 1688 to be crowned King William III, he took with several pug dogs. So, we know how pugs got from Holland to England, but there is a debate about how the breed got to Holland in the 16th century. One group of historians believes that the pug was developed by crossing several small bulldogs.
Another group believes that this is a miniature form of a rare French Mastiff called Dogue de Bordeaux. However, most historians believe that the pug originated in China and was returned to the 16th century Holland by merchants of the Dutch East India Company. This is a story that we will consider true. The pug is of Chinese origin, and its development seems to precede the Christian era. Early records indicate that the Chinese bred three types of dogs with short noses. These were lion dogs (probably Shih Tzu), Pekingese, dogs, and pugs. These dogs became very popular among the Chinese kings, and the Emperors of China highly valued the pug breed and lived in pampering.
In fact, ordinary citizens did not have the right to own them. However, European traders managed to get some pugs and introduce them to Europe – in particular, Portugal, Spain, Holland, and England, which were the home countries of the traders. There, these charming little animals became spoiled favorites of many royal families. We mentioned earlier that William III and Mary introduced pugs to Britain from Holland when they became King and Queen in 1688, and small dogs became favorites of the royal court.
This small breed of dog was also extremely popular in European courts and was a favorite of Napoleon’s wife, Queen Josephine of France. Later, Queen Victoria of England succumbed to the charms of pugs and introduced several pugs into her household.