However, several months prior, we adopted a 2 year old pug from ARNO, and we named him Ron Weasley!  So, even though Gizmo and Gadget aren’t with us anymore, they’re still with us in our hearts and memories, and we’re still a pug family.

Second, a quick update on Gizmo. He’s had some more breathing problems, but his laryngeal saccules have not been a problem. We’ve been able to keep his throat clear and open with steroids to stop the swelling, but our vet has identified another problem. He’s got laryngeal paralysis. In other words, his larynx (voice box) This causes his airways to be closed somewhat. If he gets excited and pants a lot, it can cause irritation in his throat, which leads to swelling, which leads to more restricted airways. So, not good. The fix is a fairly routine procedure called a “laryngeal tie back.” He’s going in today for his pre-op “consult,” and he will likely have the surgery tomorrow. Good luck Gizmo!

The long story is that the attending Veterinarian who saw Gizmo (Dr. Haydel at Metairie Small Animal Hospital) just so happens to be quite familiar with pugs (he has pugs, himself).  And, he diagnosed Gizmo with something called everted laryngeal saccules.  Basically, there is a little membane on the larynx, and, in dogs with brachycephalic syndrome (flat faced dogs like pugs), the pressure of breathing can cause the membrane to “pop out” and obstruct their breathing even more.  Eventually, it can get so bad that they can’t breath at all.

Gizmo’s layrngeal saccules everted, and then he started coughing.  All that coughing caused his larynx to swell up a lot, which caused him to have even more trouble breathing! He could have gotten worse at any time, so it was great that Tricia took him to the vet in time.  To help treat the problem, Dr. Haydel removed some of Gizmo’s palate (the roof of his mouth), because, in Pugs, it can be too long and it can obstruct the airways.  Once he did that, the swelling started to go down, and, by the time the swelling went down enough to be able to do the surgery to cut out the everted laryngeal saccules, they “reverted” back to where they were supposed to be.

So, he’s back home now (but on some steroids and antibiotics for a little while), and he’s doing great.  The only thing is that he’s  now a “stealth pug” – because you can barely hear him anymore!  No more loud snoring!  He breathes great now!

This first picture is the “before” picture.  If you look at the tube, you can see it going back down into his throat, and there’s a lot of swelling around the tube.

This second picture is a few days after the surgery.  If you look right in the middle of the picture, you can see a lot less swelling around the back of his throat.

Does your pug do any tricks?  Gizmo can “sit” and he’s very good about getting in the car, but other than that — no tricks.

It would be sacrilegious for someone living in this house not to love pugs. Fortunately, Marigny will need no education enhancing her pug affection. She is actually more into pugs than Martine was! Of course, Martine adores Gizmo, but as a baby, she was more interested in pug fur than in pugs.

Also, I think I should address my marked lack of recent posts. I love doing Urban Pug. However, because I have been in school, over the past several years I’ve had some extra free time. In the past 10 months: (1) I started a new job as an attorney; (2) Tricia had our second child; (3) I took (and passed) the Patent Bar exam (which means I’m now a Registered Patent Attorney); (4) I’ve released several iPhone applications (see, e.g., Louisiana Civil Code – review 1, review 2, review 3) and (5) Work has been unusually busy with a deluge of litigation. So, priorities are priorities. Urban Pug sometimes has to wait, and for the past several months, it has waited. Hopefully I will be able to post more often!

Here’s a quick picture of Martine with Gizmo and Marigny. As you may have guessed, Martine is as fond of Gizmo as ever (in fact, she routinely tells Gizmo that she loves him). Whenever we are in the car near our house, she will point out our house, at first calling it “Tine’s House,” but then also saying “Mommy’s house, Daddy’s House, Momo’s house, Manny’s (that’s how she says Marigny) house).

She’s a serious pug aficionado!

Thanks!

Martine’s growing up right before our eyes! She’s just learned about playing “dress up” (and I presume it will not be much longer until she learns to “dress” Gizmo). Anyway, she was outside playing in her costume yesterday, and I managed to take this snapshot of her with Gizmo.