pugs and allergies

Pugs and allergies: a perfect match!

Itching, eczema, dermatitis, pugs and allergies go hand in hand! In dogs and particularly with pugs, there are four different forms of allergies. From simple eczema to anaphylactic shock, the symptoms are numerous and not always easy to detect. If in doubt, your veterinarian will confirm his diagnosis with a series of tests to identify the cause.

Dermatitis

Dermatitis is a skin disease, and it is also the most common symptom caused by an allergic reaction. Your pug is scratching a lot and plaque forms on his skin. While not serious, dermatitis is however difficult to treat. Wounds can become infected or colonized by all types of bacteria. And, because your pug companion is hairy, his wounds are more difficult to heal, the hairs retaining the soil.

Flea Bite Allergy Dermatitis in pugs

Because they have a short, creased coat, pugs tend to suffer from dermatitis. This is why it is so important to follow a rigorous hygienic routine of your skin. In addition, they are often conducive to suffering from ringworm, an infectious and highly contagious fungal disease.

Moreover, they can also suffer from allergies to environmental or food components. You will need to pay attention to any abnormalities you see on your pug’s skin in order to identify potential allergy issues. In addition, you must carry out an appropriate external pest control routine in order to avoid parasitic dermatosis or a possible infestation of fleas or ticks.

Symptoms of pug allergies

Like humans, dogs can also trigger rhinitis or even a real asthma attack if they have an allergy. Asthma in dogs is a serious risk, it is more common in breeds with squashed muzzles such as bulldogs or pugs. Vomiting is also a symptom of an allergy, for example if it is a reaction to food. Finally, in the most severe cases of allergy, pugs can suffer anaphylactic shock and die within a few minutes. These different symptoms complicate the diagnosis, which is why if in doubt, your veterinarian will command additional examinations for your pug.

Symptoms of pug allergies

Pugs and allergies: A look at the different causes

To prevent your pug companion from having repetitive allergic reactions, you will need to find the underlying cause. Allergies in pugs can be caused by four different factors:

Food allergies

Food allergy affects pugs from 6 months of age on. You will need to identify the precise food or ingredient causing the allergy, as the reaction may be induced by a preservative or flavor in it. In this case, a simple diet will be enough to prevent further crisis.

Allergens

Flea bites are powerful allergens. Some dogs, such as the pug, are very sensitive to it. This specific form of allergy is called Flea Bite Allergy Dermatitis. The best way to avoid it is to administer a preventive anti-parasite treatment to your pug.

contact allergies in pugs

Atopic dermatitis is a skin reaction caused by an allergen in the animal’s environment. Dust mites or pollen, for example, cause an autoimmune reaction that results in redness and itching. Treatment most often involves giving your pug an antihistamine, supplemented topically by applying cortisone ointment to the skin lesions. It is a common disease as 10 to 15% of dogs will suffer from it at least once in their lifetime.

Contact

Contact allergy is the easiest to treat because it is triggered by something in direct contact with your pug. It can be due to fabric, would, plastic or steel surface, soap or softener used in your laundry, etc. etc. Its cause is usually easy to find since lesions form at the point of contact.

Pugs and allergies: Anaphylactic shock is a real danger

A severe allergy can trigger anaphylactic shock and should be treated as a serious veterinary emergency. Sudden swelling, or pale gums with vomiting or altered general condition should take you directly to the veterinarian. He will give your pug an emergency shot of adrenaline to prevent the shock from causing death. Corticosteroids may also be administered, especially following an insect bite that would also obstruct the airways. If it is not frequent, it is a life-threatening emergency. The only preventive measure in this case is to always have a shot of adrenaline with you, which will allow your pug companion to hold on long enough to get to the vet.

Anaphylactic shock is a real danger with pugs

Pugs have a genetic predisposition to suffer from certain diseases because of their anatomical features. It is thus advisable to be aware of these potential problems in order to be able to provide your canine friend with the best possible quality of life.
This is why you need to aware of all the pathologies that can particularly affect pugs:

  • Brachycephalic syndrome
  • Respiratory diseases
  • Common eye problems
  • Joint diseases
  • Skin diseases

While the above list of the most common ailments in pugs (each breed has a different predisposition to certain illnesses) may seem a bit intimidating, this is a breed that usually enjoys good health as long as it’s physical condition is carefully monitored.

Pugs are very affectionate and playful and deserve the best attention!

Questions and Answers

What works best for pugs with allergies?

How do I rehome a 3-year-old pug dog with allergy and medical issues that are unaffordable without hurting the kids?

How to train a pug puppy not to bite

How to train a pug puppy not to bite and jump

This article will teach you how to train a pug puppy not to bite and jump. First don’t panic, you have a normal and healthy puppy! You might as well put it into perspective! However, these behaviors can be unpleasant and many solutions are available to change the behavior of your pug.

First, you have to understand that often times puppies jump on us for attention, quite simply! Talking to them, pushing them away or shouting will often have the effect of further arousing and exciting your puppy, since it gets your attention! Is this really what you want?

Second, it’s okay to be mad at your puppy if it hurts you, or, worse, knocks your kids down! However, avoid falling into the trap of punishing your puppy by scaring or hurting him! For example:

  • Hit him on the muzzle
  • Contain his mouth
  • Take him by the neck and shake him
  • Shout “NO!”

Unfortunately, many dog owners make their puppy aggressive or fearful of body manipulation using such training methods.

puppy pug is playing

What do we do with the puppy that jumps?

Ignore the puppy that jumps (we tell him absolutely nothing). Your puppy wants your attention! Giving it to him will make him want to jump on you again! Don’t push him away, don’t tell him no! Show him that he doesn’t exist when he’s not behaving well! The best reaction is to note the situation making your puppy jump, and to teach him a more acceptable behavior. For example, show you pug to sit calmly!

The situation that makes the puppy jump

Does your puppy tend to jump when you serve him a bowl of food? Does he tend to jump when you get home? When he gets out of his cage? When you are handling objects and he has no access to them? Practice sit down as well as self-control exercises in these contexts!

For example, before going out for a walk, use the sit command to better control the jumps and excitement related to putting on his leash. Or at meal time make your puppy pug sit down to receive his bowl of food! What if your puppy gets excited when you lower the bowl to the ground? Raise it and repeat the exercise until your puppy is calm!

Other examples include teaching your dog to sit down before getting of its cage or opening the door before going out of the house. What if the dog refuses to sit? Wait! Teach your dog that until it is seated, the door will not open!

cute puppy pug

Punishment through withdrawal

When your puppy jumps on you, it is because he wants attention! Show him that jumping is a completely ineffective way to get it! This punishment is not intended to scare or hurt your puppy. Its purpose is to take away what he desires when he engages in behavior that is deemed unacceptable. A bit like with a child who is “deprived” of the right to watch television since he has raised his voice towards his parents!

When your dog jumps on you you go to another room that is not accessible by your dog or simply get out of the house. You should repeat the withdrawal as long as your puppy jumps at you It is important to be consistent! In general, 15 to 30 seconds of “withdrawal” is more than enough! If your puppy keeps going and is having trouble calming down, you could calmly install him in his cage, in an enclosure, behind a fence or in a room with an interactive game and or a good bone to chew at to help calm him down and at the same time prevent him from practicing bad behavior. The more your dog practices the bad behavior, the more it will do it and the more difficult it will be to eliminate it. Putting your dog in the cage should not be a punishment, you should not force it into it. Your dog must also already be trained in the cage.

It is important when you decide to punish your dog (by removing a privilege) to be consistent! If you punish him once for X behavior, the behavior will not stop! You have to do it every time! Otherwise, he will not be able to make the link between his behavior and the consequence, because it too variable.

It is normal that your puppy, the first few times, continues to jump despite the withdrawals, because he has not yet understood. It usually requires several repetitions to get your puppy pug to gradually eliminate the behavior and calm down.

teach pug to sit

How to train a pug puppy not to bite?

Now is the time to teach your little shark what to bite … or not! First, engaging in interesting activities with your puppy will do a lot to make you “less interesting”! Jumps, bites and nibbles included! Little pug is a ball of energy and he needs interesting toys to chew on.

Ideas to keep the puppy biting busy

  • A rope to be pulled soaked in chicken broth and then frozen.
  • Make him a Pop Sicle for dogs with a plastic bowl filled with water, a handful of kibble and a little chicken broth.
  • Give him ALL of his meals in several portions in interactive toys.
  • Buy him all kinds of chew bones.

Understanding the puppy’s nibbles

There are 3 types of chewing in puppies, to play, to demonstrate discomfort and over stimulation. How do you make the difference? When the puppy nibbles to “play”, it will usually come to you! When it nibbles because it is uncomfortable, it happens in a context where you handle or pet it. For example, you take him in your arms and he nibbles your hands. It’s not a game! Same thing if you touch it in a discomforting area and it bites you to stop the interaction.

With the puppy coming towards us and nibbling at us, we assume that it does so because it wants our attention or because it wants to play! It is also possible that it is too stimulated and tries to relieve himself by chewing something … you!

How to train a pug puppy not to bite: Use the withdrawal technique

If your pug puppy does not bite or nibble hard (that is, he does not put a lot of pressure and hurts you), you can redirect it to his favorite toy. If he nibbles hard (you feel great pressure, a lack of control, a pinch) use the withdrawal technique.

puppy pug has calmed down

Bite inhibition, an important learning!

The purpose of these exercises is not to prohibit all nibbling! The goal is to make your puppy understand that his mouth has a certain strength and that he must learn to control it! So later, if it comes to bite, it will be able to control its mouth and will not create significant damage! This is one of the most important exercises to teach your puppy!

Good news, the nibbles “to play” disappear by themselves over time in more than 95% in this case, without any training! However, around 4 and 5 months, when your puppy loses its puppy teeth and its adult teeth grow, it will start chewing again! Do not worry, it’s normal.

This does not mean that your puppy is a monster or that it “regresses” or that it tests you! Giving her lots of fresh and frozen bones and toys will go a long way in getting you through these difficult weeks.

I also suggest that you play “pull a toy” with your puppy, which will teach him exactly the difference between a toy and your hands, in addition to being a great exercise in self-control and a return to calm.

How to train a pug puppy not to bite – Watch this great video!

 

 

Inhibiting its bite is important but do it the right way!

Take advantage of this period in your puppy’s life to teach him to control the strength of his bite! It will be his best life insurance! Why? Because if one day he bites a dog or a human (for example if he is afraid or upset) he will know how to control his mouth and avoid doing major damage.

Don’t think your puppy will never bite! Because anything with teeth can bite! Remember that a puppy that jumps and nibbles is quite normal. I understand that these behaviors are most frustrating and sometimes painful. However, be patient and remember the following principles:

  • Don’t scare or hurt your puppy
  • Show him what to chew on
  • Give him something to take care of
  • Show him what to do instead of jumping
  • Using withdrawal as punishment