Joe and Leo

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:04

Welcome back to another edition of the Dog Park Chronicle.

SPEAKER_00 0:14

Our park pop profile today is about Joe and Leo. They are pugs. The pug is a small ancient breed believed to date back 2,000 years. They were once companions of Chinese emperors and later the mascot of Holland's Royal House of Orange. The lore is that a pug saved the life of the Prince of Orange by barking to warn the prince of an attack on his camp by a Spanish prince. And so the breed became the mascot of the royal house. The pug is a husky little fellow with a short, fawn-colored coat. They have a flat, wrinkled face with a black mask and a tail tightly curled on their back. These muscular little dogs with their big eyes and wrinkled brow are known to give a range of human expressions, including surprise, joy, and curiosity. Pugs are said to have a charming, mischievous, and affectionate personality. Comical is another adjective often applied to a pug. They are very loyal and love to be near their people. Alicia is Joe and Leo's mom. Alicia, do I remember that Leo and Joe are your second pair of pugs? That's correct.

SPEAKER_01 1:35

I had two pugs before. I had Peyton and I had Griffin. And they were four years apart. So this time around is different because we got two puppies at once.

SPEAKER_00 1:46

What makes pugs so special to you? Why do you love the bee?

SPEAKER_01 1:51

Well, we first got pugs because my husband had a close friend that had a pug. I grew up with a schnauzer and he grew up with a beagle, but he just loved the pug. So when our kids were about 10 and 11, we decided to get a dog, and we decided on the pug. And it was a great decision because they're a great family dog. They're very loving. They want to be with you all the time, and they just have a very funny personality.

SPEAKER_00 2:21

Okay, well that's that kind of fit. The description that I read. Did you get them both at the same time? Are they brothers? Are they the same age?

SPEAKER_01 2:28

We actually got them two weeks apart. They are half-brothers, they have the same father. Their father's name was Sir Guinness McPug. And uh Guinness was actually a black pug. Um, but both of their mothers are fond. So the story was that we went for the visit with Leo at six weeks, and she had just had a second litter, and Joe was really working on my husband Peter, just kind of staying by his side, and we kind of I say we kind of caved to the second one because we had talked about it, and we were just gonna get one this time around. But we committed to a second one next day, and that's how we ended up with the two of them. But we did get them two weeks apart, both at eight weeks.

SPEAKER_00 3:13

So somebody once told me that two dogs are better than one. Recently, actually. Um was housebreaking hard following two pups around at the same time?

SPEAKER_01 3:26

A little bit, not gonna lie, because it's hard to keep track of you know who's having an accident in the house, and you know, they're on kind of the same schedule, but kind of not. So you're you know, luckily we had a fenced-in yard and we could let them in and out constantly, and it was summertime. So um, there were times when it was difficult, but now that we're through that initial puppy stage, they're now two years old. Um, things are much better, and it is they have a constant companion, so it's it's been great.

SPEAKER_00 3:57

You're happy you got two pugs.

SPEAKER_01 3:58

I am now, yes. At the time it was we we questioned whether it was like a bright thing to do, but um just getting a puppy.

SPEAKER_00 4:06

I remember my 15-year-old dog passed away, and I got a puppy, and I'd forgotten what it was like to housebreak and to follow a puppy around. It's like, oh my god, what have I done? It was my first thought when I she hit the floor running and she never stopped. It was like, oh yeah.

SPEAKER_01 4:22

We'd had done the senior years with the other two, so it was a complete like 180 going the other way back to the puppy stage.

SPEAKER_00 4:31

Back to puppies, but they're so much fun and they give you so much joy. Oh, yeah. You have to laugh.

SPEAKER_01 4:37

I mean, you know, it's like anything, they they can be work at times, but um they you know, aside from some shedding, they're pretty good dogs.

SPEAKER_00 4:45

All right. I just did a pug profile, but it seems all pugs are not created equal. Joe and Leo seem so different personality-wise. Tell us a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_01 4:57

Okay, well, Leo is very loyal, he sticks by your side all the time. Um, Joe is definitely more curious of the two. So I always have to kind of watch him because I never know what he's gonna get into. But it's you know, uh of my last two, the older one was very mischievous. He knew that if he got into something that he wasn't supposed to be in, you know, he'd get a treat out of it or something to get him, you know, to behave like Joe is literally just into things because he's genuinely a curious dog. Um, but they're both they're both funny and they're both loving, they're both laptops. They like to be on top of you all day, all night if they could.

SPEAKER_00 5:43

Sounds like a good breed to have. Sal and I have carriers and we don't see them most often.

SPEAKER_01 5:49

They go off by themselves. I can't go anywhere. Every time I look up, there's Leo beside me. He's he's he follows me around.

SPEAKER_00 5:58

Makes you feel good. I understand that no breed comes without some cautions. And pugs with their pushed-in face, they can have breathing problems, they may not do well in the heat. Have you found that to be true?

SPEAKER_01 6:12

Yes, absolutely. Um, and because they tend to put on some weight as they get older, you have to be careful with them. So in the summer, we just make sure that we walk them early and shorter. And same with at the end of the day, we wait till the end of the day to take it for a second walk, you know.

SPEAKER_00 6:30

So air conditioning is a good thing to have a hundred percent.

SPEAKER_01 6:34

If you don't have air conditioning, you are in trouble. If it's a hot if you're in a hot climate, you have to have air conditioning, I will say, unless, and if you don't, then lots of fans going in the house because they do get hot.

SPEAKER_00 6:46

Okay, well, that's something you have to consider. Um, so dieting could be in their future, also.

SPEAKER_01 6:53

Yes, I find that Joe has a naturally slimmer body, um, and he's more if you look around, he's uh far more active than Leo is. I don't know, I think just it's genetics. If you could see their mothers, Leo's mother was very plump and had a lot of fur. Um, and Joe's mother was just slimmer built, you know, um, more atypical for a pug. I've I've my other two were more kind of like Leo, like just round.

SPEAKER_00 7:22

Like my sister and I, she's tall and thin, and I'm a short, dumpy. Oh, which is true. Yeah, how about traveling? I believe you travel back and forth to the Cape. Do Leo and Jo enjoy a ride in the car?

SPEAKER_01 7:35

They love being in the car.

SPEAKER_00 7:36

Do they like to go?

SPEAKER_01 7:37

Yeah, we actually this time around, the one rule I haven't broken is that they're always in a crate in the car. My last two, it was kind of free-fall, they were all over the car, and I just don't think that's very safe. So we've been putting them in a crate right from day one, and they actually really like it in there. They're comfortable in there, they feel safe in there, and you know, if we're getting ready to go somewhere, and especially like a trip or something, not just out for an errand or whatever, they know and they just want to be wherever we are, so they're quite content in the car, but they're good travelers.

SPEAKER_00 8:09

They're happy because they know they're not getting left behind, and that's what it's all about.

SPEAKER_01 8:12

Exactly. Yeah, no, but they're good, they can last like we travel to Canada a lot because that's where we're from, and um they can last eight hours in the car. I mean, of course, you gotta make a quick little stop here and there, but they're pretty good, like I said. If they're with us, they're happy.

SPEAKER_00 8:27

So well, I what's helpful now I find is that there's so many pet-friendly motels, which you know, days gone by. It was hard to find a motel that would take a pet. So that's really good too. Well, at home, are they do they play together a lot? Are they playful? Do they have favorite toys, or are they just kind of locked?

SPEAKER_01 8:48

They got Rocky raccoon that they like, you know, Rocky and um oh a couple of other little toys. They they do have some there's this crazy turtle that they love and a swan that they love, and Joe really likes running after balls. Leo will kind of get in on it a little bit, but he kind of peters out whatever. But but when you get them going in the backyard, they'll be bombing around and they do play together. Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_00 9:12

That's good exercise.

SPEAKER_01 9:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:14

Well, we are tickled pink that Joe and Leo have become part of our park. And thank you, Leo, Joe, and Alicia, for joining us for the park pub profiles.

SPEAKER_01 9:26

You're welcome. Thanks for having us on today. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 9:34

Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, and we'll see you next time.