"I have a 13 year old chug, I got him 11 years ago. He was a rescue from the high-kill animal shelter. He is the best dog in the world and everyone is crazy about him. He is very smart, and good-natured, hes more than jsut a dog, hes like a little angel. He is gentle and friendly to all humans and dogs and cats. He has traveled with me all over the country on planes, trains, even a bus one time due to an airport closure. He is portable, easy to take care of and very adventurous. He sheds fur like crazy and need brushing all the time. His fur will cover the whole house if left un-checked. I use a swiffer alot and furniture wipes and brush him alot. He cant help his shedding. When he was younger, we went hiking every weekend and hour long walks every day. He can rock-climb, swim, and hike for miles. He is very quiet, and didnt even bark until we moved to a house with another dog who barked and he started barkng with her at the gate. But he is not an excessive barker at all. He is not aggressive at all as some others descirbed their chugs. I think it is not the breed that is aggressive. When I first got him he was totally wild and couldnt walk on a leash. He could jump really high onto the kitchen counters when he was young and steal any food that wasnt in a cabinet. He was very athletic. Even though they are small, they need to burn off their energy every day on a long walk. Now he is suffering from BREATHING DIFFICULTY for the past year off and on. I have been maintaing his health for a year, with herbal and holistic remedies. I still have him in good health when they wanted to put him down a year ago. Except for the occasional wheezing and snoring, he acts like a puppy and is so happy. As soon as they start snoring, go to the vet and check it out. I went to 6 vets before I found one I liked who listened and didnt just want to put him down. Mainly I keep him well with the home remedies. REMEDIES I USE;
-NuVet dog supplement powder, it is a mix of supplements that help dogs with tumors, cancers and illnesses. It contains all of the stuff to help dogs fight cancer. (NuVet.com)
-Rescue Remedy, and L-Theanine to keep him calm and not breathing too hard. (vitacost.com)
- Licorice oil drops for soothing his throat (vitacost.com)
-Colloidal Silver, to get rid of tumors, growths and infections (vitacost.com highly reccomend this)
-NEM or natural eggshell membrane for the natural collagen to supprt his windpipe (vitacost.com)
-Cold-pressed, high lignan organic flax oil for omega 3's and health support (vitacost.com)
-Trachea Support for kidney not grasping the Qi , apparently it is the best blend for his condition, they have many blends available and will even call you on the phone to find out which blend works for your dog. Pawhealer.com
-Hound honey KC attack syrup Pawhealer.com
Also I elevate his food bowl on a stack of magazines with a dishcloth on top against a wall so he doesnt have to dip and bend his throat to get the food down. He chokes and gags on his food if he has to bend his neck down to eat it. He keeps his neck straight and eats smoothly.
I also boil a sauce pan of water every night and turn the heat off after it boils, and drop a teaspoon of Eucalyptus oil (vitacost.com) in the water, take it with a pot holder and holding a dishcloth underneath, I wave it around where he is sitting or set it nearby him on a safe table or shelf of course, and the vapors help him breathe alot. Sometimes I carefully hold him above the pot of steam and make him breathe it in. You could do the exact same thing with a Vick's vaporizer/humidifier too, I just prefer to have the portable sauce pan technique. I try to keep the house really clean of dust and use the eucaylptus pots to clean the air and set it in every room once a day. All of this stuff is really easy and only takes a few minutes a day. "
"Autumn McGrath"
