How did you get involved in pug breeding? 
 

I wanted a pug ever since I was little, but my parents believed that dogs should be adopted from a shelter, so for a long time, I’ve only had large mix-breed dogs. After I married, and I finally could have my own pug, I did a lot of research and spent about a year looking for my first pug, but finding a good breeder that really satisfied me wasn’t easy. My first pug that I finally found unfortunately died young from pug emphacelus (sp?)  It really devastated me, but thanks to her, that experience gave me the motivation to think about breeding pugs in my own ways. 
 

How did you find a white pug? 
 

It was providence. Many year ago I found a breeder who wanted to sell a white pug puppy as pet. Her parents were AKC registered fawn pugs, but one of the puppies was born white. Other than the unusual color, there was nothing wrong with her, and from the pigments of the eyes and nose, it was apparent that she wasn’t an albino. I thought it would be a pity with her strong and healthy qualities to get her fixed as a pet, so I negotiated with the breeder and adopted her with reproductive rights. 
 

The pug standard only mentions fawn and black colors, but what about the white pugs? 
 

Once I got interested in these pugs, I did a lot of research, and I discovered that if you look back into the history of pugs, you will see that not only white pugs, but other colors like gray and brindle also existed. Although they’re in black and white, there are old photographs of pugs that are clearly not fawn or black, and there are also paintings that show pugs of various colors.  Now you can only chose black or fawn in the AKC registration form, but in the past, dog owners could write down the description of their dogs, and if you read these old records you will find pugs of different colors. Even after the choice became limited to fawn and black, I believe there’s always been pugs of color that were either not registered or registered as fawn or black by default.  
 

I’ve also heard opinions that white pugs are result of cross-breeding with Pekinese and other similar breeds. 
 

I thought about that too, but if there’s any Pekinese in recent generations, one should also expect the appearance of the long hair genes, but I have never seen any indication of that in white pugs. Of course, dogs like pugs, Pekinese and Japanese chin are thought to have common ancestor way back in their history, but there is nothing but pugs in the lineage of these dogs for at least 10 generation or more. As a proof, the DNA test results of my dogs showed nothing but pugs in all three categories. 
 

Then, why do you think pugs other than fawns and blacks disappeared from the mainstream history of pugs? 
 

I am not completely sure, but perhaps it was because these colors were more difficult to stabilize, and in the process of standardization, they were eliminated and became even more difficult to find.  As one indication, the fact that the silver pugs have become so rare these days may be due to too much line-breeding diminishing the diversity of the gene pool. 
 

What kind of colors is really meant by silver and apricot? 
 

What is called silver more accurately should be called silver-fawn. These are pugs with black mask, but with clear white fur on the rest of the body, that’s described as being white like the “moonlight.” Apricots are also fawns with black mask and beautiful reddish fur that looks like burnt orange. 
 

At Funny Farm isn’t there another kind of silver pugs that you call silver grays that are different from silver-fawns? I believe it is similar to a color that’s often described as “blue” in some other breeds of dogs. 
 

Yes, silver-grays are solid color pugs like the blacks, except that they are silvery gray all over instead of black. I think the silver-gray gene might be the key to the production of silver-fawns. The silver-fawn puppies born here all have silver-gray in their background. I suspect that there may be a history of eradicating the silver-grays behind the silver-fawn pugs becoming so rare. 
 

At Funny Farm do you have some special breeding practice for reproducing the different colors? 
 

Not really. We work to preserve the genes that produce the different colors, but we never breed just for colors. I believe that too much line-breeding and near relation crossings have caused many of the health problems of the modern purebred dogs. So when I wanted to breed my white pug, I only paired her to pugs from different lines. I think it is wrong to inbreed just to get a particular color or any one attribute. Instead, it is more important to improve the line by breeding with superior typed fawns and blacks. 
 

What do you think about the pug standard? 
 

Of course I think standards are important. It’s something necessary to protect the characteristics of the dogs, and keeping pugs looking like pugs. But I think it’s ethically unforgivable to keep breeding for any one particular trait at the expense of the dogs’ health. Balance is what’s important. Lots of wrinkles are cute, but it would be wrong if that were to cause problems like breathing problems. I always put health and the good temperament first in my program. Good pugs are healthy pugs that would be loved for a long time besides their owners. 
 

Do white pugs have any health issues? 
 

Whit pugs that I’ve seen have all been very healthy. I think it’s necessary to maintain the diversity of the gene pool in order to protect the health of the puppies. For example, we did not cross white with white until there were two from unrelated lines. Even without crossing whites to whites, as long as there are white genes, it’s possible to produce a white from another color. So it’s unnecessary to cross near relatives. 
 

Have you figured out the breeding combinations needed to produce the different colors? 
 

I’m slowly learning through experience. At this stage, I’m still in the process of figuring out the exact genetic mechanism behind the different colors. One interesting thing I found is that the apricot genes often produce unexpected results. For example, white pugs have no mask, but the areas with darker pigmentation show some apricot traces indicating the presence of those genes. 
 

Are there other breeders of pugs of color besides Funny Farm? 
 

Yes. For example our brindle pugs come from another breeder who’s been working with brindles for long time. To increase and diversify the lines of pugs of color, we have also recently begun giving breeding rights to few trusted breeders. It was also for protecting the future of the pugs of colors that I started the Pug Color Club with friends who share our philosophy of ethical breeding. 
 

What kind of future do you want for the pugs of color? 
 

I hope that in the future, instead of being just a curiosity, a pug of color will gain the same kind of recognition enjoyed by fawn and black pugs today.  While we want more people to know about these pugs, we are also very afraid of them falling into the hands of unscrupulous breeders who would only breed them for money. Nothing can ruin the future of these pugs more than such thoughtless and ignorant breeding just for profit. I feel that it is my duty to make sure nothing like that happens and to protect and nurture the heritage of these wonder pugs of color. 
 

I heard that in the past, it also took a long time for black pugs to gain wider recognitions. 
 

Yes. And just like those who were devoted to the black pugs never stopped nurturing and improving them, we shall also continue our effort to keep nurturing and improving our pugs of color so that they could embody all that’s so wonderful about pugs. 
 

Finally, do you have any message for the Japanese pug fanciers who may want to bring pugs of colors to Japan one day? 
 

First, please take your time to get acquainted with reputable and responsible breeder before acquiring pugs of color or any pug.  If you are going to adopt from Funny Farm or other members of the Color Pug Club, please be prepared to fly out to pick up the puppy yourself or find someone you trust who can do this. We do not ship puppies as cargo and only allow them to fly as a carry on. It may be expensive but nothing is more important than the well-being of the puppies. We also do the same whenever we bring new pugs into our home. You are investing in a 15-18 year companion, and I would like you to make the happiest choice for both you and your pug.