Pug Health:
Food & Nutrition
We got on the phone one of the top Pug health experts in the
world, a terrific vet named Dr. Chris Dresser (who owns 11 Pugs herself, by the way), and she spilled the beans on the
right nutrition and foods for Pug dogs.
Discover exactly how to give your Pug a sound, balanced, healthy diet… including the recommended
brands and foods available in your area that are best for Pugs!
Learn how much food to give your Pug and the best time to feed Pugs.
Click below to play part 1:
Allen: And you know let’s start off with a general question which
is: you know in your opinion what is a sound and balanced diet for a healthy Pug?
Dr. Dresser: I’ll give you my experience. My first Pug lived to be
sixteen. He was fed Pedigree dog food which you know there’s
some, they’ve gotten much more exotic and much more expensive over the years.
And I have clients that want to do home cooking and all this business. I can’t argue with
sixteen. He was a healthy dog for his whole life.
And I guess the point being that some of the large dog food manufacturers – they spend
millions trying to make a palatable, safe, healthy food. And yes, we had a bit of a problem last
year…
Allen: We did, yes.
Dr. Dresser: …with this and it wasn’t funny. I think in looking at
a food I would probably, I would never go for a really junky cheap food. I would probably feed, if money is the issue,
I would feed the best food that I could afford.
I feed a dry and then I mix in a small amount of canned.
Teeth I think are one of the really, really big issues. I see a lot of older Pugs with
very bad teeth. The teeth are crammed in there sideways because the face is so short.
So they don’t, and a lot of them do not like to have their teeth brushed because you
start to push up on the gum, on the lip and it cuts off their breath, their breathing supply. So they, they really do
object.
Allen: Yep.
Dr. Dresser: Now some of them are good chewers. Mine adore the
Galileos by Nylabone and they, that’s one of their favorite things. I do like the Dental Diets.
I feed T/D which is a prescription diet from Hills and they’re large hunks and they
almost are forced; I have some who swallow them whole but most of them do sit and chew them.
Because most dogs swallow their food whole. And I know other people have had questions on
that.
Allen: That’s right.
Dr. Dresser: The T/D is wonderful. I feed Eukanuba®, Iams® product that has the dental, what they
call the Dental Defense System™ in it which is a product
that supposed to help keep tartar down. As I say there’s been very, very good foods that have been designed…
Allen: Mm-hmm.
Dr. Dresser: And as far as the amount, there’s an old adage that
says ‘The eye of the master feeds the dog.
And it’s truth. If you look at your dog and it is too fat, it needs less
food.
Allen: Yep.
Dr. Dresser: And if it’s too
thin, it needs more. And I will tell you I don’t feed the exact same amount every day to my dogs. Because I think oh you know Mojo you’re
looking a little chubby there.
Why don’t we cut you back just a bit and so you have to adjust it as you
go.
Allen: And you could, and our readers could use that technique you
described of trying to feel the ribs and…
Dr. Dresser: Absolutely.
Allen: …have a little hip on it to kind of help judge. In our
household we’ve found that to be an effective, you know, just use your eye and common sense.
Dr. Dresser: Absolutely. Absolutely.
Allen: And uh...
Dr. Dresser: But they look at you and they’re
starving!
Allen: [Laughs]
Dr. Dresser: Well they’re not. They would eat a five hundred pound
bag of food and come back for more.
Allen: We, we love to joke, Michelle and I about our Pugs. They
would eat a second dinner if they could.
Dr. Dresser: Of course they would.
Allen: And they’ve one or two times they’ve actually fooled us
where one of us fed them…
Dr. Dresser: Oh yes. Did Mommy feed you? No! I’m
starving!
Allen: So then Daddy feeds. [Laughs]
Dr. Dresser: Uh-huh. Uh-huh.
Click below to play part 2:
Allen: Could you recommend and could you repeat some of those
brands that you have had success that folks can find in pet stores?
Dr. Dresser: Yes, some of the food, and by the way which I didn’t
mention, I do feed twice a day.
Allen: Okay.
Dr. Dresser: They, they get small amounts twice a day. I think it’s
much more physiologic and nicer for the dog to have something. And they do get treats too.
But the foods that I’ve had a lot of success with from some of the big ones like
Pedigree and Purina, Iams Eukanuba, also, if you’re
going for more upscale and some of the ones that are a little bit more organic or based on human grade food I like EVO, Innova and Blue very well. Wysong (editor's note -- see below) has got a great product.
I know some of my clients feed, I already mentioned Innova; let’s see… me
think.
Allen: We, we feed our folks; we’re doing Nature's Variety (editor's note -- see below)which has been very
successful.
Dr. Dresser: Oh, okay. And that is that one you get through the
mail?
Allen: No, actually we get that at our local store.
Dr. Dresser: Yeah, I’m not sure they have that around
here.
Allen: Okay. Well thank you. Those, I think a lot of folks out
there are always, especially with the concerns last year…
Dr. Dresser: Yes.
Allen: ...are really sensitive to this issue. So thank you for that
guidance.
Here at UltimatePug, we feed Bogey & Riley Nature's Variety (formerly called Prairie) dry food -- 1/2 a cup in the morning
and 1/2 a cup in the evening:
One of Dr. Dresser's top recommendations for human-grade premium food is Wysong, which makes an ideal food for a Pug who is
sensitive to other foods or has allergies:
| 
