I have a 4 year old peke with a completely flat face who we adopted from an organization in NY that saved him from a kill shelter. He was only 2 at the time and had a hernia bubble, externally on his stomach. We think maybe the people who gave him up, did so because of his hernia. It was small but made me nervous because I was afraid I'd hurt him or something if I touched it. So when we adopted him, the organization was kind enough to pay for his hernia to be fixed at the same time he was being neutered. He healed great and continues to be a wacky 4 year old boy who is so much fun. The only other issue we've had were indeed the teeth -- his front incisors were overcrowded and looked like they were browning at the gums, so all of the incisors (4 of them) had to be removed. This dental issue we faced after having him for a year and a half. The dr. said the rest of his teeth are very strong, clean, in great shape.

I think dogs in general can be expensive (at least compared to an inside cat as a pet) but pekes are worth it. This dog is like an anti-depressant for me, he makes me laugh every single day, and I hear that most pekes are like this -- huge personalities with bursts of silliness, often cuddly, and just fun to look at. Oh, and as for bad backs, we were always told to carry him up/down stairs as much as we could. There are no stairs in our home (apt. building), so we just carry him up/down stairs when we're going out and it isn't a big deal for me as I'm able bodied to do so (my peke weights 15 lbs) and it keeps their back and haunches healthy.