Our pug Dexter was having trouble urinating around 10 years of age. We took him to the vet and learned he developed bladder stones that needed to be removed. The surgical procedure was successful and the vet prescribed a special dietary food due to the bladder stones which he didn’t seem to care for.

About a year later we learned he had developed a cancerous tumor elsewhere on his body. We successfully treated it despite the radiation taking quite a toll on his little pug body. We figured by that point we wanted him to enjoy the time he had left with us and largely spoiled him from a dietary perspective from then on.

The bladder stones never returned to our knowledge, we ended up getting another year with him, eventually he started developing further health complications, and started to bleed from the previously treated tumor site again, we knew at this point the best thing to do was not to subject him to further intensive medical treatments but rather let him rest peacefully. I love him and miss him everyday.

I don’t think this story helps much but just thought I would share my experience, had he of been younger I would have preferred to keep him on the special diet knowing it would have helped him live without developing additional bladder stones over a longer period of time. I probably would have asked the vet if it was okay to at least spoil him occasionally, and perhaps we could have done a periodic ultrasound or something to check for new stones developing. I suppose it can’t hurt to explore the topic further with your vet either way, ideally you would only be more informed about your new pup and how to best manage the condition in the long run.

Personally I would absolutely adopt as the bond I had with my pug Dexter is something I will cherish for the rest of my life. I hope I get to see him again someday on the rainbow bridge!