I got a chance to wash several of Sid’s beds this weekend (yeah, he’s got a BUNCH of ’em). His more oft-used beds had been looking pretty flat and were omitting that charming odour d’pug, so it was a much overdue task. His “fancy” bed (which he got for his tenth Birthday) washed up really nicely though it did require some disassembly prior to washing. After a thorough hot-water cycle down at the Pug Slope laundromat, the bed was restored to its super fluffy, clean-smelling state.

I reassembled all the bolsters, zipped-up all the zippers, and plunked it down in front of Sid. After a five-minute sniff test, he proceeded to spend the next twenty minutes digging, face-mashing, and sneezing on the bed to make it his very own.

I think he got it just right.

We would like to thank you all for the positive thoughts and good pug juju you sent to Sid regarding his hind leg and back. He’s doing much better now and his pug saunter is almost back to 100 percent. He’s got a few more laser therapy sessions at the vet lined up so we’re keeping our fingers/paws crossed.

I know we just finished up reporting on our HPWT trip that culminated with a stop in Holland, MI, so it’s only fitting that we went back there just a few days after I wrote that last post! This time my friend Anna (affectionately known as “Aunt Anna” to Sid) and her young son came along on our adventure.

Holland is about a three-hour drive from Chicago and midway through our journey we stopped for lunch at Panera. Anna and her son ate inside while Sid and I got our lunch to go and ate outside in the rear hatch of our rented Toyota Rav4.

“Hold up!” you might be saying right now. Yes, I did say “ate outside”, and yes our adventure was taking place in the middle of winter. Well, let me explain. Somehow on this late January day the sun was shining brightly, the sky was cloudless, and the outside temperature was almost 60 degrees! It definitely felt surreal but certainly made our dining al fresco experience extremely enjoyable. Sid even got to indulge in some potato chips which he normally would never get.

We arrived in Holland and our first stop was the music store R.I.T. Music. You see, one of the intentions of this trip was so I could buy a guitar amp I had seen at the shop when Sid and I passed through Holland on our HPWT trip last September. Mission Accomplished! We then took a stroll down the main drag, 8th Street. Well, the three humans strolled; the pug rolled.

Yes, this happened to be the day that Sid’s back leg stopped working properly, almost immediately upon arrival at our destination. After an attempt to carry him left me with a tingling arm in under fifteen minutes, Anna thoughfully suggested we prop Sid up in the vacant stroller her son had been riding in earlier.

Being carted around like royalty came natural to Sid and although I had now become “that guy that pushes his pug around in a children’s stroller” the smiles he put on the faces of passersby made it all worthwhile.

We got some delicious sorbet and ice cream at Kilwin’s and that’s when Sid laid into me and Anna with his classic guilt-trip stare.

Like a sucker, I fell hard for it and soon the little furball was lapping away at my ice cream. Within minutes both Sid and Anna’s son were under the spell of a massive sugar rush!

We checked out a few more shops on 8th Street and then hopped in the car and rode over to Windmill Island Gardens. In the winter there isn’t really anything happening in the garden department, but the grounds are open, and free, and THERE IS A HUGE DUTCH WINDMILL! How could we resist?!

The sun was setting by this point and the sight of the pink and purple clouds reflecting off the canals was magical.

If you ever are passing through western Michigan, be sure to stop by Holland. It’s pug-approved!

We hope you all are having a pleasant January. It has been unusually warm here in Chicago — especially for January! In lieu of snow we’ve been getting tons of rain which makes walks difficult because, as we all know, pugs REFUSE to walk in the rain.

Another thing that has made walks difficult is that one of Sid’s rear legs decided it would stop working properly on Saturday morning.

He didn’t seem to be in any distress and would put weight on his left hind leg but something was clearly not normal. His gait was wobbly and he also kept his rear end tucked a bit, so it was off the vet. Hooray!

Well, there were no signs of pain or distress which was a relief. After examining him and looking at the symptoms, the vet suspected Sid may have experienced some mild disc compression in his back.

He received some fancy laser treatment on his back and some meds to help with any inflammation. He’s doing much better today and he’s got more of the normal pep in his step. But I wouldn’t say he’s 100-percent back to normal. If you could spare some good pug juju, please send a little our way. I’m hopeful he’ll be back to strutting his stuff again in a couple more days but for now we’re keeping our walks short, naps long, and the little guy gets carried up and down all stairs (I secretly think he may be faking the whole thing for this reason).

Leave it to a pug to always find their way into the spotlight — even while napping.

As you may already know by now, one of Sid’s favorite things ever is his treasured Wigzi treat ball. Each day, when I eat lunch, Sid gets a treat ball stuffed with a couple crunchy treats and dab of peanut butter.

(Sid and his glow-in-the-dark Wigzi circa 2014)

The only downside to the Wigzi is that even though it is pretty durable, after several months-worth of chomping sessions, it eventually starts coming apart at the seam. Based on Sid’s daily usage, the lifespan of the Wigzi was about 2-3 months.

About a year and a half ago, I discovered that the Wigzi was sadly being discontinued. How could this happen to Sid’s FAVORITE THING ON EARTH?! I searched every online and brick-and-mortar retailer I could but most were already out of stock. However I lucked out at Drs. Foster and Smith, who still had half a dozen left. So I did what any sensible pug dad would do: I ordered every single one of ’em!

Things had been just fine for many months until our stockpile started to dwindle. I emailed the owner of the Wigzi company and he mentioned some kind of deal with Kong that had been in the works. It sounded like the patent for the toy had been sold to the Kong folks. Well, I waited and waited, while Sid’s last Wigzi ball slowly started to show signs of its imminent demise.

But as fate would have it, as soon as the last Wigzi could hold peanut butter no more, I found Kong had released their “Widgets” pocket ball, which is exactly the same thing as the Wigzi, only it was offered in a different assortment of bright colors!

Of course Sid couldn’t care less who made the ball, as long as it was delivered to him at high noon stuffed with goodies!

And in true pug fashion, every time he cleans the last morsel out of the pockets he brings the ball over to me, plunks it down at my feet, looks up at me with an expression that says “OK, I’m back for my free refill”.

Hello everyone! We interrupt our Have Pug, Will Travel recap because today is the best day of year here at Pug Slope because it’s Sid’s Birthday! Woo hoo!

I can’t believe my little guy is turning ELEVEN today! Instead of the typical apple-based cake I’ve made for him in the past, I assembled three mini towers consisting of a crunchy treat foundation, banana walls, peanut butter ceiling, and strawberry roof.

Sid could barely contain his excitement as I was making it. There was lots of scrambling around beneath my feet, screeching & whining, and even a few barks to ensure I was putting things together as fast as possible.

Needless to say he wolfed it down in a matter of minutes and then promptly passed out in his bed. He’s a pug, what more can I say!

Before he zonked out, he said to make sure if you have a pup to give them an extra treat (or five) today to celebrate!

Greetings and salutations to all you wonderful Pug Slopers out there!

This is Sid here with you today and I wanted to tell you all about a new member of my gang.

As soon as I set my bulging pug eyes on his magnificent long ears and puffy white tail, I couldn’t resist inviting him to play. Get over here, Rabbit!

We had a wondeful time playing chase and tag and basically all the games that rabbits like.

We ended the day with a relaxing cuddle and talked about our mutual love of baby carrots.