water and edible.

Первые упоминания о мопсовидных собаках, сохранившиеся до наших дней, датируются 600 г. BC e. It is known that they were favorites of the Chinese rulers. Despite the fact that dogs were considered a hunting breed, they were treated more like decorative ones: they were groomed in every possible way, pampered, each of them had their own servant, and they were delivered to the hunting place on specially made stretchers to preserve their strength and hide from the views of commoners.

The modern look of pugs is not much different from the images found on objects of ancient art. In particular, pug-like dogs were depicted as short-haired, with a large rounded head, short muzzle, large round eyes, and curled tails, sometimes without them.

Однако в эпоху династии Цинь (221–207 гг. BC e.) развитие собаководства было приостановлено на некоторое время. Связано это было с тем, что император Цинь Шихуанди (259–210 гг. BC e.), ярый противник конфуцианства и последователь школы фацзя, вместе со своим министром Ли Сы провели ряд жестких реформ.

Their result was not only the complete destruction of their opponents and the entire socio-political system. To prevent criticism of the new regime, the emperor also ordered the burning of all the literary and scientific heritage of his country and executed 460 scientists. As a result, many valuable monuments of science and art were lost, and the development of literature was suspended for a long time.

However, despite the fact that many traditions and accumulated knowledge were lost, dog breeding did not disappear completely. Во времена правления династии Хань (206 г. BC e. – 220 г. н. e.) благодаря Великому шелковому пути быстрыми темпами налаживались дипломатические, культурные и экономические связи между странами Дальнего, Среднего и Ближнего Востока. Caravans delivered precious stones and products made from them, furs, precious woods, glass, spices, incense, etc. to China. China supplied silk, precious metals, iron, nickel, and mirrors. It was thanks to close trade relations in many Asian states that they learned about the existence of the Pekingese, pugs, etc. Small friendly dogs were very popular with the rulers of many countries.

In China, there were two varieties of dogs - ha-pa and lo-tse, which had a similar external structure and differed only in the length of the coat. The first were long-haired, the second - short-haired. It is believed that the ancestors of pugs were precisely lo-tse.

In the X century. Sichuan-bai began to be called Lao-chenjie, or lo-jie, in honor of the capital of the province of Sichuan - Lo-Cheng. This name remained until the beginning of the 20th century. In ancient China, there was a strict regulation, which strictly defined who and what kind of dogs could be kept. Despite the fact that the Pekingese were recognized as imperial sacred and cult dogs, the lo-tse had an equally privileged position. They were a kind of sign of glory and luxury, so they were only allowed to be kept in the homes of rich and noble families. However, pug dogs also lived in the imperial palace, which they never left. Each had a collar with a bell and its own servant.

Such a privileged position of pug-like dogs is most likely due to the presence of forehead folds in them, forming an interesting pattern. In ancient China, this drawing was compared with a Chinese character that carries a hidden meaning and is called the imperial sign. It should be noted that the folds on the forehead of the lo-tse were not as deep as those of modern dogs. The consolidation of this trait, which is characteristic of the breed today, was specially dealt with in ancient times.

However, over the centuries in China, interest in these dogs began to fade. They continued to breed them mainly in the monasteries of Tibet, as well as in some other Asian countries, where they managed to secretly take the lo-tse from China.

At the end of the XVII century. In the Forbidden City, Pugs, along with Pekingese and Japanese Spaniels, regained their former popularity. They were again surrounded by mystery, forbidden to show ordinary people. When breeding short-faced dogs, special attention was paid to those individuals that could easily fit in the wide sleeves of women's dresses and court costumes. It is thanks to this circumstance that the expression "pocket dog" appeared.

There is a legend that Emperor Long-tu loved his pug so much that he officially gave him the highest title and matching hat and belt.

Pug is a favorite of the Chinese nobility
The privileged position of pygmy Chinese dogs has been preserved for many centuries. But in 1860, during the suppression of the Taiping uprising, France and Great Britain, taking advantage of the difficult situation in China, launched a second "opium war". During the hostilities, the Forbidden City was devastated, many art monuments were destroyed. The Chinese nobility, who did not want to leave anything of value to the invaders, chose to kill their four-legged favorites. Only a few dogs were able to be taken out of China.

In Europe, acquaintance with short-faced Chinese dogs took place much earlier, as early as the 16th century. It was then, with the development of trade relations between European and Asian countries, that the Dutch sailors brought home the lo jie. Europeans liked the restless energetic dogs, equally loved by monarchs, nobility and ordinary people. In the works of art of that time, images of pugs were often found.

In the 17th century the dirty beige color of pugs was called isabella. It is believed that the following historical event contributed to this. In 1602, the Spanish Archduke Albert laid siege to the Dutch city of Ostend. His wife Isabella, daughter of Philip II of Spain, made a vow that she would not change her linen until the city was taken. The Dutch surrendered only three years later. From that moment on, Isabella color - dirty beige - came into fashion in Spain.

In the XVI century. pugs were especially popular in Holland. In addition to energy and cheerfulness, these dogs had another valuable advantage: they devotedly loved their owners. Thanks to this quality, camus (as they were called in Holland) won the great love of the Dutch. Especially after once, during the war with Spain, the pug Pompey saved his master, Prince William I the Silent (William I of Orange, or Nassau, 1533–1584) from death. In 1572, a Spanish detachment led by Julian Romero, on the orders of the Spanish commander Duke Alvarez de Toledo Fernando Alba (1507-1582), attempted to capture the Dutch camp at night. However, the operation failed: Pompey, sensing the approach of strangers, woke up his master with barking, and the Dutch entered the battle in time. After that, pugs were officially announced the dog of the House of Orange.

After the heroic deed of this small dog in Holland in the 16th century. owning a pug was considered a sign of good taste. Pugs were especially popular among noble ladies: “boudoir dogs,” as they were called, were constant companions of their mistresses and accompanied them everywhere, and warmed them up in cold rooms at night.

A century later, pugs have gained recognition in many European countries. It was at this time that an exotic Asian style was in fashion, so living rooms, salons, and boudoirs were decorated with overseas trinkets. Lively, cheerful pugs fell in love and soon became constant companions of noble ladies at parties and receptions. People of art did not pay attention to pugs either: images of small, squat dogs with large round eyes adorned porcelain and ceramic items (vases, candy bowls, snuff boxes, etc.).

In France, pugs appeared around the 16th century, but there is practically no information about them. Most of the information has been preserved since the 18th century, when pugs became a kind of fashionable attribute of the nobility. In historical chronicles, these dogs are often mentioned along with the name of the first wife of Napoleon I - Josephine Beauharnais. It is known that her favorite pug Fortuna, with whom she practically never parted, bit Napoleon on their wedding night. And later, when Josephine was imprisoned in the Carmelite monastery, the pug carried the emperor's love notes under his collar.

Napoleon's brother, Prince Lucien Bonaparte, had a pug kennel with the famous black mask on its muzzle. It was because of her that the dogs began to be called Carlens, in honor of the protagonist of the popular commedia dell'arte "Harlequin from Carlen", who wore a black domino mask during the performance.

By the middle of the XIX century. in Europe, interest in pugs is being lost, they began to be considered a symbol of philistinism. In addition, in most countries, these dogs were not properly cared for, pampered in every possible way and fed sweets in unlimited quantities, as a result of which they became very fat; tried to cross with other small breeds. All this led to the fact that the breed began to degrade.

The modern type of pug was bred by English dog breeders
A great contribution to the preservation and development of the breed was made by English dog breeders, thanks to whom the modern type of pug appeared. The first to come to this country dogs were with short cropped ears, a strongly protruding tongue, longer noses than today, paws, and with a more rounded and less dense body.

First, in England, dogs were bred with a black mask of two colors: “shine of the moon” (silver) and “warmth of the sun” (apricot with a reddish bloom and black ends of the coat on the withers, back and ears). Then black specimens appeared - “blackness of the night”. Among the breeders of the new breed, the most famous are